Bernie Brillstein Biography

Fast Facts

• Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001
• Studied at New York University after graduating from Stuyvesant High School
• Nephew of acclaimed vaudeville performer Jack Pearl
• His five children are Kate, Leigh and Michael Brillstein, and David and Nick Koskoff
• Began working in the mailroom of the William Morris Agency before working his way up to the position of talent agency
• Quote: "(On the language of comedy) "'I killed them, they died, I laid them in the aisles, I made them cry․' -- the language is really death․ Comedians are the most morbid people I know․ They all come from dysfunctional homes, as did I, so I understand the comedy mind․ You're trying to please someone in your family, probably your mother, and get them to love you․ So now you get group love․""
• Helped form the easy listening group The Doodletown Pipers