By Jesse Neo, PhDMay 31st, 2024
Albert Lawrence Brooks is an American actor, voice actor, writer, comedian, and director with an estimated net worth of $28 million. He was born Albert Einstein, not the scientist but the entertainer. His father was a popular comedian known as Parkyakarkus. Brooks started his career as a stand-up comic after attending Carnegie Tech. He, like other comedians of his time such as George Carlin and Robert Klein, enjoyed making people laugh by poking fun at everyday inconsistencies and often made fun of clichés. Some of his most famous comedy sketches included a talking mime and a humorous recital of the ingredients in a carton of Cool-Whip.
Brooks had a big role in the popular movie Finding Nemo in 2003. He provided the voice for the main clownfish character in the film. Finding Nemo was very well-received and became one of the highest-earning movies ever. Other talented actors in the film included Ellen Degeneres and Willem Dafoe.
He has worked as a voice actor in movies like Finding Nemo and has appeared in The Simpsons TV show and movie. He was born in Beverly Hills, California and went to Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, but left after a year to pursue comedy.
Early Life
Albert Brooks was born Albert Lawrence Einstein on July 22, 1947, in Beverly Hills, California. His mother, Thelma Leeds, was an actress and singer, and his father, Harry Einstein, was a radio comedian. Albert's brother Bob Einstein, known as "Super Dave Osborne," was on TV shows like "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Arrested Development." Sadly, he passed away in 2019 after being diagnosed with cancer. Brooks' other brother, Cliff, helped start L.A.'s Dailey Advertising. Albert's half-brother, Charles Einstein (passed away in 2007), wrote for "Lou Grant" and "Playhouse 90." Brooks grew up in a Jewish family and went to Beverly Hills High School with Rob Reiner and Richard Dreyfuss. He went to Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh but left after his first year to pursue comedy.
Career
Albert started using "Albert Brooks" as his professional name, joking that the real Albert Einstein changed his name to sound smarter. In the late '60s and early '70s, he was a regular guest on talk and variety shows. He first appeared on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" in 1969 and would appear 30 more times before Carson retired in 1992. Brooks began getting acting roles in 1969, appearing on shows like "Marcus Welby, M.D." and "Insight," followed by "The Odd Couple" (1970), "Love, American Style" (1971), and "The New Dick Van Dyke Show" (1972). In 1975, he wrote and directed short films for "Saturday Night Live" and created "The Famous Comedians School" in 1976. Albert's big screen debut was in 1976's "Taxi Driver." He also appeared in 1980's "Private Benjamin" and wrote, directed, and starred in films like "Real Life" (1979) and "Modern Romance" (1981). In 1983, he acted in "Twilight Zone: The Movie" and "Terms of Endearment." Brooks directed and starred in 1985's "Lost in America," which he co-wrote with Monica Johnson.
In 1987, Albert acted alongside William Hurt and Holly Hunter in "Broadcast News," a movie that was added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry in 2018 because it was considered historically important. In the early 1990s, Brooks wrote, directed, and starred in "Defending Your Life" in 1991. He then appeared in "The Scout" in 1994, a film he also wrote, and "I'll Do Anything." Albert collaborated with Monica Johnson to write "Mother" in 1996, a movie he also starred in and directed. He also appeared in "Critical Care" in 1997 and "Out of Sight" in 1998, and provided the voice for Jacob the Tiger in "Dr. Dolittle" in 1998. In 1999, he wrote, directed, and had a role in "The Muse." Additionally, he appeared in "My First Mister" in 2001 and "The In-Laws" in 2003. Albert voiced Marlin in the highly successful "Finding Nemo" in 2003, which made $940.3 million at the box office. He returned to play the same character in 2016's "Finding Dory," which was even more successful, earning $1.029 billion.
Brooks made a movie called "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" in 2005. He acted in it and also directed it. In 2007, he was the voice of Russ Cargill in "The Simpsons Movie." In 2008, Albert appeared in the TV show "Weeds" on Showtime. He played the father-in-law of Mary-Louise Parker's character, Nancy Botwin. Albert won many awards for playing Bernie Rose in the movie "Drive" in 2011. The next year, he was in the movie "This Is 40," directed by Judd Apatow. After that, Brooks starred in "A Most Violent Year" (2014) and "Concussion" (2015). He also did voice acting in "The Little Prince" (2015) and "I Love You, Daddy" (2017). In 2016, he voiced Tiberius the red-tailed hawk in "The Secret Life of Pets," which made $875.5 million worldwide.
How much money does Albert Brooks have?
Albert Brooks is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director worth $30 million. In 1987's "Broadcast News," he was nominated for an Academy Award. He's been in over 30 other movies and TV shows, such as "Terms of Endearment" (1983), "Drive" (2011), and "This Is 40" (2012). Albert voiced Marlin in "Finding Nemo" (2003) and "Finding Dory" (2016), Tiberius in "The Secret Life of Pets" (2016), and many characters on "The Simpsons" (1990-2021).
He made and directed the movies "Real Life" (1979), "Modern Romance" (1981), "Lost in America" (1985), "Defending Your Life" (1991), "Mother" (1996), "The Muse" (1999), and "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" (2005). Brooks put out the comedy album "Comedy Minus One" in 1973, and followed it up with "A Star Is Bought" in 1975, which got him nominated for a Grammy for Best Comedy Recording. Albert wrote the book "2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America" in 2011.
Personal Life
Albert got married to artist Kimberly Shlain on March 15, 1997. They had a son named Jacob in October 1998 and a daughter named Claire in March 2000. Before marrying Kimberly, who is the daughter of writer/surgeon Leonard Shlain, Brooks was romantically linked to actress Carrie Fisher and singer Linda Ronstadt.
Albert Brooks was born on July 22, 1947 in Beverly Hills, California, U.S. He is an American actor, comedian, writer, and director who is famous for his funny movies.
Brooks was the son of a radio comedian and he grew up in Beverly Hills. His childhood friends included Rob Reiner, son of comedy icon Carl Reiner. Brooks studied drama at Carnegie Tech (now Carnegie Mellon University) in Pittsburgh but then left to become a stand-up comedian. He first appeared on TV in the early 1970s on shows like The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Brooks's comedy was wacky and often made fun of show business. One of his funny skits, "Danny and Dave," was about a bad ventriloquist. His first time directing was for a TV show where he acted in a short film based on an article he wrote. It was called "Albert Brooks' Famous School for Comedians" and it aired in 1972 on the Public Broadcasting Service's Great American Dream Machine. Brooks also made short films for the first season of the TV show Saturday Night Live in 1975-76. His big break in movies was playing a political worker in Taxi Driver (1976), directed by Martin Scorsese.
Brooks then made and starred in the movie Real Life (1979), a funny take on a filmmaker trying to film a family without being noticed. After that, he acted in and directed the funny movies Modern Romance (1981) and Lost in America (1985). But it was his serious acting in Broadcast News (1987) that got him a nomination for an Academy Award. Later, Brooks wrote, directed, and acted in Defending Your Life (1991); Mother (1996), featuring Debbie Reynolds; The Muse (1999); and Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (2005). He also appeared in the crime films Drive (2011) and A Most Violent Year (2014), and played a doctor in Concussion (2015), a movie about a brain condition in football players. Some of Brooks's other movies are Private Benjamin (1980), Out of Sight (1998), and This Is 40 (2012).
Brooks also did voice work for different projects, like the TV show The Simpsons and its movie adaptation The Simpsons Movie (2007). But his most famous voice acting job was as a fish clown looking for his lost son in Pixar's animated movie Finding Nemo (2003). He played the same role again in the sequel Finding Dory (2016).
Awards and Nominations
In 1988, Albert Brooks was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in "Broadcast News." He also won awards from the American Comedy Award and Boston Society of Film Critics for the same film. In the movie "Drive," Albert received a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globes and won awards from various film critics groups. In 1997, Albert and Monica Johnson were named Screenwriters of the Year at ShoWest Convention. They also won Best Screenplay awards for "Mother" and "Lost in America." Additionally, Albert and his "Finding Dory" co-stars won the #SQUAD award at the 2017 Kids' Choice Awards, and the cast of "Le Petit Prince" won a Behind the Voice Actors Award. Albert received two Behind the Voice Actors Award nominations for his work in "Finding Dory."
Real Estate
In 1992, Brooks bought a 5,100 square foot house in Bel Air for $3.7 million. He later sold this four-bedroom, five-bathroom house, which used to be owned by Merv Griffin, for $6.3 million in 2012. In 2014, Albert acquired a 4,475 square foot home in Santa Monica for $4.5 million.
