Jim Abrahams death: Airplane! comedy writer and director Jim Abrahams dead aged 80

American comedy film director and writer Jim Abrahams has died. He was 80.

His son Joseph confirmed the news to The Hollywood Reporter. Abrahams reportedly died of natural causes at his Santa Monica home.

Abrahams was known for his work in the comedy spoof genre going back to the ’70s.

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He worked on films like Airplane!, The Naked Gun and Top Secret! to name a few.

He was famously part of the comedy filmmaking trio, Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker, comprised of him and his childhood friends, brothers Jerry and David Zucker.

In a statement to Rolling Stone, Jerry Zucker remembered Abrahams for bringing “health, humor and love to so many people’s lives.”

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“He was our partner, our friend, and our hero.”

Abrahams started out in the early ’70s when he founded the The Kentucky Fried Theater with the brothers. This led to their first movie, The Kentucky Fried Movie in 1977, which Abrahams helped write.

A couple of years later, he worked on the 1980 comedy Airplane!, starring Leslie Nielsen and Julie Hagerty, scoring a BAFTA nomination for Best Screenplay the next year.

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The trio’s success continued in the ’80s with Top Secret! and Ruthless People.

Abrahams famously worked on The Naked Gun comedy series in the late ’80s and ’90s, starring the likes of Priscilla Presley.

After the filmmaking trio split, Abrahams continued to work in comedy films. 

His last credited screenplay was the 2006 spoof, Scary Movie 4. 

Tributes for the legendary comedy writer have started to flow in on social media.

Airplane! star Robert Rays said Abrahams was a “delight”.

“My friend Jim Abrahams passed away today. What a delight he was, in every way. We met on Airplane! 45 years ago. Jerry, David and Jim were the geniuses who captured lightning in a bottle,” he wrote on X.

One person remembered him for being part of “the greatest comedy trio of all time”

Without “Airplane!”, we never would have known how far stupid yet brilliant comedy could go in a motion picture,” they added.

Abrahams is survived by his wife Nancy and their three children.

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