Leslie Nielsen, RIP

[dirac]

Leslie Nielsen dies at 84. And don't call him Shirley.

In a 1988 interview with The New York Times, Leslie Nielsen discussed his career-rejuvenating transition to comedy, a development that he had recently described as "too good to be true."

"It's been dawning on me slowly that for the past 35 years I have been cast against type," he said, "and I'm finally getting to do what I really wanted to do."

Lieutenant Frank Drebin subs for indisposed famous tenor Enrico Pallazzo to sing the National Anthem.

[Helene]

He was a scream in "Men with Brooms". Back to his roots.

Rest in peace, Mr. Nielsen.

[Bonnette]

"It's been dawning on me slowly that for the past 35 years I have been cast against type," he said, "and I'm finally getting to do what I really wanted to do."

Yes, absolutely. I always wanted to laugh during his dramatic forays, but once he found his niche in comedy he was pure genius.

[miliosr]

The shame of his late career transition to comedy is that comedic actors and performances are so rarely recognized in terms of awards. The stuff he did after Airplane! was comedic brilliance but it never got the awards recognition it deserved.

Oh well -- he died beloved by the people!

[dirac]

Hi, Bonnette, nice to hear from you. True, if we hadn't seen him in things like The Poseidon Adventure, he wouldn't have been as funny later on. Part of the humor of the original Airplane! was seeing actors like Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, and Nielsen playing absolutely straight in the midst of everything else going on around them.

Mayor: Now, Drebin, I don't want any trouble like you had on the South Side last year, that's my policy.

Frank: Well, when I see five weirdos dressed in togas stabbing a man in the middle of the park in full view of a hundred people, I shoot the bastards, that's my policy!

Mayor: That was a Shakespeare in the Park production of 'Julius Caesar,' you moron! You killed five actors! Good ones!

[Mashinka]

The Guardian always has good tributes to popular film stars. Here is their obituary.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/nov/29/leslie-nielsen-obituary

His career in photos:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/gallery/2010/nov/29/leslie-nielsen-career-pictures-photographs?intcmp=239

Random quotes generator (keep clicking as some get repeated)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/interactive/2010/nov/29/leslie-nielsen-random-quote-generator?intcmp=239

[Bonnette]

The shame of his late career transition to comedy is that comedic actors and performances are so rarely recognized in terms of awards. The stuff he did after Airplane! was comedic brilliance but it never got the awards recognition it deserved.

Oh well -- he died beloved by the people!

Yes, so true about comedic performances not often receiving the recognition they deserve. Nielsen took such obvious pleasure in creating his comedic roles that his audience was able to enter into the process and laugh along with - not just at - him. There was something healing in this.

Dirac, thank you for reminding me of The Poseidon Adventure! When I think of Nielsen's earlier work, my mind always goes to Forbidden Planet, which I never miss when it's on cable.

[Helene]

Argh, even The Guardian doesn't mention his role in "Men with Brooms" as a stoner curling coach. It was a classic.

I did find a mention in imdb that in the 2004 video "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King", Nielsen was the voice of the Mouse King in the English version.

[dirac]

Dirac, thank you for reminding me of The Poseidon Adventure! When I think of Nielsen's earlier work, my mind always goes to Forbidden Planet, which I never miss when it's on cable.

Oh, absolutely, Bonnette.

I would not in honesty make too many claims for Nielsen in either comedy or drama, as much as I liked him, although I agree in principle that comic performances tend to be undernominated and underawarded. Probably he was at his best in the Police Squad! TV series, which was different from the Naked Gun series in certain ways, and I'd have at least nominated him for an Emmy - I don't think he was.

He certainly should have gotten a Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for making people laugh. Hersholt, an uncle, would have approved, I'm sure.

[Ed Waffle]

When "Airplane" was released I recall the ads made me think wouldn't be worth seeing--they just seemed strange. My wife was traveling, saw it one evening and told me I was going with her when she caught it again upon her return.

It was quite an experience--I understood the reason to watch it more than once--or more than twice--since I missed a lot of the jokes because I was laughing so much already. "Airplane" and the ZAZ/Nielsen collaborations that followed were simply amazing, as full of dumb jokes as an egg is of meat.

NPR summed it up very well: "Leslie Nielsen was able to turn it into comic gold. Saying unfunny things in an unfunny manner and magically having the result be funny is an incredibly hard trick. And nobody ever did it better."

My link

---Rumack: Captain, how soon can you land?

Captain Oveur: I can't tell.

Rumack: You can tell me. I'm a doctor.

Captain Oveur: No. I mean I'm just not sure.

Rumack: Well, can't you take a guess?

...Captain Oveur: Well, not for another two hours.

Rumack: You can't take a guess for another two hours?

--

Flight Attendant: "Doctor, there's a problem in the cockpit"

Dr. Rumack: The cockpit?! What is it?

Flight Attendant: "Its that little room in the front of the plane where the pilots sit. But that's not important now"

[dirac]

Greetings, Ed.

Captain Oveur: Well, not for another two hours.

Rumack: You can't take a guess for another two hours?

I think Peter Graves and Nielsen were at their best in that exchange. So sad to think that they're no longer with us. Lloyd Bridges, also in Airplane! ("Looks like I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue") had a nice little second career in the Hot Shots! series.

Thank you for those links, Mashinka.