“Airplane!” Actor Leslie Nielsen Dead at 84

Monday, 29 November 2010 | by Pat's Picks

Surely, they can’t be serious. The LA Times says actor Leslie Nielsen has died at the age of 84. The Canadian-born Nielsen was a run-of-the-mill handsome Hollywood leading man until “Airplane!” came along in 1980. After playing Dr. Rumack, Nielsen’s career did a 180-degree turn—he went from serious actor to a role on “Police Squad,” which led to box office successes like the “Naked Gun” franchise.  He told the Times back in 1991 that until “Airplane!” came along, he “played a lot of leaders, autocratic sorts” opining that “perhaps it was my Canadian accent.”

Leslie Nielsen on Wikipedia