Kentucky Fried Movie, Airplane!, Police Squad, Top Secret, etc... I mean, come on! All of these projects and more gave us not just laughs, but huge belly laughs. Jim Abrahams was an inspiration to me and I will be forever grateful for all the great comedy he gave us. Rest In Peace. - ThreadSky

frankconniff.bsky.social • 119 days ago

Kentucky Fried Movie, Airplane!, Police Squad, Top Secret, etc... I mean, come on! All of these projects and more gave us not just laughs, but huge belly laughs. Jim Abrahams was an inspiration to me and I will be forever grateful for all the great comedy he gave us. Rest In Peace.

Comments

blksmooth.bsky.social•118 days ago

rootstockmaine.bsky.social•119 days ago

Amazing comedy.
"I picked the wrong day to quit sniffing glue."
"Hey, it's Enrico Pallazzo!"

unclelumpy.bsky.social•118 days ago

So we're just going to forget about "An American Carol"?

ronsparks.bsky.social•2 days ago

Hilarious! Those guys literally invented a subgenre. Best of all, all of their stuff holds up. You can watch Police Squad today and still get the belly laughs. Respect!❤️

mickpbarry.bsky.social•119 days ago

Kentucky Fried Movie.. thats a blast from the past! Wasn't there a scene in that with keeping your dad grandparent on your holidays with you? Mental stuff.. must rewatch. Thank you!

ilex65.bsky.social•118 days ago

I thought that I was the only one who remembered Kentucky Fried Movie. At around the same time, there was a similar movie of short comic bits, would you remember it? It's driving me nuts.

tigerpournelle.bsky.social•118 days ago

The underwater fight in Top Secret is so freaking perfect it should be studied.

terrorfriednipple.bsky.social•119 days ago

The popcorn you’re eating has been pissed in. Film at 11.

badbarkingpug.bsky.social•119 days ago

One of my fondest memories of my early adulthood was cracking up laughing in a theatre in Fort Collins, Colorado while watching Kentucky Fried Movie with five of my graduate school classmates.

lakeshowsheri.bsky.social•118 days ago

Some of my all time favs. Passed that love onto my son. Now they are his favs. His laughs will live on.

wheeliemonster.bsky.social•119 days ago

KFM yeah nothing problematic here

codemistress.bsky.social•118 days ago

RIP

I picked a bad month to stop sniffing glue...

passonx.bsky.social•118 days ago

Sad. RIP.

lampjaded.bsky.social•119 days ago

Absolutely loved that Police Squad ended, not with a freeze frame, but with everyone trying to stand as still as possible to pretend to be a freeze frame 😅

drivingforbush.bsky.social•116 days ago

I remember SO MANY people at work talking about the show and how they dud not understand what was going on. They Saud it was stupid and boring.
Actually they just described themselves.....

lampjaded.bsky.social•116 days ago

I've showed it to two of my kids and they thought it was amazing so stuff those coworkers 😁

dennypage.bsky.social•118 days ago

Endless comedy and a whole life time of laughs with my grandfather to my grandchildren.🥲

pearljamfixer80.bsky.social•118 days ago

Ruthless People. That is all.

dashingdrewster.bsky.social•118 days ago

He allowed us to say “excuse me stewardess I speak jive” in these turbulent times

babewiththepower.bsky.social•118 days ago

I was able to post a ton of GIFs from "Airplane!", one of my favorites I can quote probably too much of. Just belly laugh after belly laugh.

kaptainkid.bsky.social•118 days ago

Catholic High School girls in trouble.

A Samuel L bronkowitz production

foodcave.bsky.social•118 days ago

The dad joke OG

edithmc.bsky.social•118 days ago

💔

boozhebear.bsky.social•118 days ago

And Leo is getting llllarger

citygerl.bsky.social•117 days ago

Me: Rest in peace?? Surely you must be joking!

Frank: I’m not joking and don’t call me Shirley
💔

kimmurphy100.bsky.social•119 days ago

“Don’t call me Shirley.”

nicksterj.bsky.social•119 days ago

That line belongs in the freakin’ Smithsonian!

kimmurphy100.bsky.social•119 days ago

Along with the blowup pilot smoking a cigarette after sex.

tragicpenname.bsky.social•118 days ago

Close. It made the American Film Institute top 100 quotes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFI%27s_100_Years...100_Movie_Quotes

majorfajitas.bsky.social•118 days ago

Manos: The Hands of Fate was one of his best works. LOL

kingkenny007.bsky.social•118 days ago

Kentucky fried movie, funniest ever

konietzkystrain.bsky.social•119 days ago

Johnny, what can you make out of this? This? Why, I can make a hat or a brooch or a pterodactyl...

retroboomin64.bsky.social•118 days ago

Rip, Leslie Nielsen was a master of his craft. Jim Abraham’s will never be forgotten! Those movies literally gave me my sense of humor.

lizzietish81.bsky.social•119 days ago

Rest in laughs.

salazarjcarlos.bsky.social•118 days ago

zcat6.bsky.social•118 days ago

And don't call me Shirley.

Great to see you here, TV's Frank!

gapops.bsky.social•119 days ago

Big Trouble in Little China

adrycoolwit.bsky.social•118 days ago

What does this movie have to do with Abrahams?

howsolid.bsky.social•118 days ago

You laugh so much you miss the next joke.

srednieel.bsky.social•119 days ago

Want a good laugh? Get a copy of Zero Hour. I’m pretty sure the Abrahams bought the rights to the screenplay and just added sight gags for Airplane!

calvinandhobbes69.bsky.social•119 days ago

Surely you can't be serious?

ointment666.bsky.social•118 days ago

Airplane was on last night and I always stop surfing to watch it. Never fails to make me laugh. So many great lines.

desertvol.bsky.social•119 days ago

It’s so eerie but I showed Airplane! to my kids last night. He’ll be missed.

boltonjon.bsky.social•118 days ago

A massive Top Secret, Police Squad & Airplane fan but never heard of Kentucky Fried Movie.

I will find it & watch it tonight in honour of Jim 😀

armieonly.bsky.social•119 days ago

cabanday.bsky.social•119 days ago

I was just reminiscing with a childhood friend about how great Airplane and KFMovie are. His works are the foundation for all those who followed.

ragnarbelial.bsky.social•118 days ago

I think it was a ZAZ production that brought us all the laughs.

hankuitutrecht.bsky.social•118 days ago

Damn indeed. Saw KFM at least 10 times. News at eleven!

thewolverineoflove.bsky.social•119 days ago

thedestroyer616.bsky.social•117 days ago

I guess they're so afraid of offending someone that they won't make movies like those classics anymore

misterpuntacana.bsky.social•118 days ago

As I don t live in USA it took me years to fully understand the Pinto´s joke in Top Secret. The French Resistance in Germany? OMG

milesrandjack.bsky.social•118 days ago

📌

all4revenge.bsky.social•118 days ago

My favorite is Hot Shots!

rokklobstaa.bsky.social•118 days ago

I probably shouldn’t have seen that so young, but I got it. The puns, the double entendres, the ridiculous taking things literally. All that stuff made me see words and language differently, not to mention shaped my humor. Deadpan delivery of ridiculous sentences has been my calling card forever.

vexxed24.bsky.social•118 days ago

If you liked Kentucky Fried Movie, check out Amazon Women On The Moon

k41r05.bsky.social•118 days ago

Such an enormous fountain of enduring laughter.

fantagor.bsky.social•119 days ago

I watched KFM on a loop when it was on ONTV in the 1980s. Same with Airplane! An impressive catalog of quirky comedy films. RIP, Mr. Abrahams.

thedrummer.bsky.social•119 days ago

Now I have to look to see if the rest of the gang is here.

ladypatricia2.bsky.social•119 days ago

Oh no. .

ricthom70.bsky.social•118 days ago

"I am serious and don't call me Shirley" 👍😂

jelvisweinstein.bsky.social•119 days ago

Without them I don't think we would have had as much faith in the "firehose of jokes" approach on MST.

joecgiles.bsky.social•118 days ago

My two favorite comedy TV shows are Police Squad and MST3K.

worldswerth.bsky.social•118 days ago

I'm not a comedy historian, but surrealist comedies – Monty Python (1969), Blazing Saddles (1974), and Airplane (1980) – may owe much to the screwball cartoons of the 1930s-1950s: Looney Tunes, Tex Avery, etc.

thedanklark.bsky.social•119 days ago

Which probably explains why I can draw a straight line in my childhood comedic tastes from Looney Tunes to SCTV to Naked Gun to MST3k.

thesamejames.bsky.social•118 days ago

Including print publications, MAD would be wedged between Looney Tunes and SCTV for me.

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

Oh absolutely, between my mom’s collection from the ‘60s/‘70s and the subscription she got me in 1st grade MAD was a huge part of my comedy education. Especially Al Jaffee, Sergio Aragones and Antonio Prohias.

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

I’d also be remiss without mentioning the Firesign Theatre, Monty Python and Benny Hill.

larrydavid25.bsky.social•118 days ago

i read this this year - HIGHLY recommended oral history by the three of them on the making of the movie 🍿🍿🍿

cacarroll.bsky.social•119 days ago

I’d add Jay Ward to that timeline.

thedanklark.bsky.social•119 days ago

I’ve always been a diehard Chuck Jones guy, his work definitely planted the first “I love comedy” seeds in my brain.

blueberrijuice.bsky.social•118 days ago

Honestly, the best version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas is the one animated by Chuck Jones. Usually I’m a “it’s good, but the book is better” person, but not here.

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

I was a huge Dr. Seuss fan as a little kid and even then I liked the adaptation more. Aside from the animation and direction, I just love Boris Karloff and Thurl Ravenscroft’s voices.

nailsthetabaxi.bsky.social•118 days ago

It's the best version and it's not even remotely close.

cacarroll.bsky.social•119 days ago

Same.
B. Bunny, omg.

Also for me, Bob Clampett. Time for Beany + Beany and Cecil were big at my house.

rodrickspode.bsky.social•118 days ago

‘I’m comin’, Beanie Boy!
Had a Cecil the Seasick Sea Serpent plush that spoke when you pulled the string. Sigh.

rodrickspode.bsky.social•118 days ago

My first exposure to Drag was Bugs Bunny as Brunhilda.

blueberrijuice.bsky.social•118 days ago

Gracious, yes!! 👏

johnkris.bsky.social•119 days ago

I always thought about half as much riffs would be an improvement.

lvhothead2483.bsky.social•118 days ago

"Don't call me Shirley..."

scottapril15th.bsky.social•119 days ago

❤️

twofatfeet.bsky.social•119 days ago

Airplane is great but Top Secret is so under appreciated.

saveourfarms.bsky.social•119 days ago

“He caught a cold the other day, and he’s just a little horse.”

mattnelsonart.bsky.social•119 days ago

You're right to say it

drivingforbush.bsky.social•116 days ago

capnfantasy11.bsky.social•118 days ago

osnapa.bsky.social•119 days ago

The cow, Omar Sharif in a compacted car, .., A masterpiece!

twofatfeet.bsky.social•119 days ago

Some of it’s just so daft, so predictable, so juvenile … and so well done

twofatfeet.bsky.social•118 days ago

zrath.bsky.social•118 days ago

Top Secret! is my absolute favorite comedy movie!

"Very well, let me know if his condition changes."
(:hangs up the phone) "He's dead."

robbdogg.bsky.social•118 days ago

100% agree!

pedperos.bsky.social•118 days ago

Agreed.

herlinghetti.bsky.social•118 days ago

...the Prop Room.

thebitterguy.bsky.social•119 days ago

Agreed.

nailsthetabaxi.bsky.social•119 days ago

"I know a little German. He's sitting over there." has lived rent free in my brain for 3 decades.

twofatfeet.bsky.social•119 days ago

The gags are so childish, so predictable, so daft, and so well done

curtinparloe.bsky.social•119 days ago

That backwards scene is a work of genius.

tombtegtmeyer.bsky.social•119 days ago

Yes, birds too.

aquineas.bsky.social•118 days ago

Oh man I didn't know this. RIP indeed.

scottasantee.bsky.social•118 days ago

Aww. KFM was my teen dream movie.

destroythedawn.bsky.social•119 days ago

You may enjoy Dropout.TV. A lot of goofs and gaffes. 10/10 always make me chuckle

chrysscott.bsky.social•119 days ago

Oh no! 😟

king-of-the-moon.bsky.social•119 days ago

Those movies were legendary

rsthomas42.bsky.social•119 days ago

Some of the funniest movies ever made. I've seen them a hundred times and they still make me laugh. I didn't know we'd lost him. 💔😭

daveinthecave.bsky.social•118 days ago

https://youtu.be/Pm1rif1fASk?si=3-TxNVLmEFGvtcY7

pippimcfos66.bsky.social•118 days ago

“Chump don’t want no help, chump don’t get no help”

sornoff.bsky.social•118 days ago

Oh! RIP 🎬 Some of my favourite movies that I’ve watched multiple times 🤗

stevekarmazenuk.bsky.social•118 days ago

The Zuckers overstepped when they tried to fill in for the Wayans in the Scary Movie franchise.

friendishly.bsky.social•119 days ago

Surely, there MUST be more?

candirisk.bsky.social•119 days ago

Aw man, it looks like I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.

RIP and thanks for the laughs

drkeenerj.bsky.social•118 days ago

I could not agree more.

billgalactichero.bsky.social•118 days ago

https://youtu.be/het1kl-A8qw

mattatmac.bsky.social•118 days ago

Top Secret is definitely in my Top 10. It's hilarious and has some really technically impressive bits.

Case and point: the underwater saloon.

jordanvg.bsky.social•118 days ago

slideboy666.bsky.social•118 days ago

Yippee! I found TV’s Frank!!

pedperos.bsky.social•119 days ago

Damn right. RIP Jim Abrahams. Tonight, I'm going to re-watch some of the (all too few) episodes of Police Squad! , one of the funniest TV programs ever made, apparently cancelled for requiring its audience to actually watch and engage with it.

starkweather.bsky.social•119 days ago

At least The Naked Gun was a huge hit

drivingforbush.bsky.social•116 days ago

I always assumed that it was cancelled so quickly because the average viewer was too stupid to realize it was a comedy.
With no laugh-track, I can just imagine the confusion of so many viewers back then......

pedperos.bsky.social•116 days ago

I think it was more that there was such a constant blizzard of jokes and sight gags that, unless you actually gave Police Squad! your full attention, you'd miss a lot of them. It's not the sort of program you can just 'have on in the background' and get much out of.

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

Leslie Nielsen always said it was because you have to pay attention to get the jokes, and people don’t pay attention when they’re watching TV like they do in a movie theater.

tomforsyth.bsky.social•119 days ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFhpctuUwb4

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

It was one of the most-hyped shows going into the new season, test audiences and critics loved it. But back then they did preview screenings like that in theaters, and they didn’t take into account how little people pay attention to what they’re “watching” on TV.

herlinghetti.bsky.social•119 days ago

Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker said they were actually relieved that the show was canceled because they really struggled with the pace of producing a weekly show, and preferred the time allowed to produce films.

thedanklark.bsky.social•118 days ago

Yeah, it was one of those “blessing in disguise” things. Writing a 90-minute movie is one thing, but packing that many gags into a 30-minute show and keeping it fresh week to week is gonna burn you out fast.

herlinghetti.bsky.social•118 days ago

They also didn't like hassles with the network, which wanted them to use a laugh track. "How do you add a laugh track to a sight gag" was another comment I heard from Z,A &Z. I think that was on the DVD commentary, which is worth listening to.

thedanklark.bsky.social•117 days ago

Yup, the networks’ obsession with laugh tracks lasted well into the ‘90s. It derailed a lot of otherwise promising shows.

pedperos.bsky.social•117 days ago

I remember the BBC removing the laugh track from M*A*S*H when they showed it over here, and I instantly improving it immensely.

thelegendofmatt.bsky.social•119 days ago

I still guffaw at those films. Ahead of their time, absolute brilliance. ❤️

andymstark.bsky.social•118 days ago

He’s not dead, surely!

herlinghetti.bsky.social•119 days ago

I love how for Police Squad! they lifted stories, dialogue, and even the theme song from M Squad, much as they'd done for Airplane! and Zero Hour.

https://youtu.be/lvotUunsEjQ?si=SgT941H6ERj11kja

blueberrijuice.bsky.social•118 days ago

Thanks- I knew I had seen that video before.

storycentric.bsky.social•118 days ago

I’m glad you called out “top-secret“ because it was really underappreciated at the time and now it’s a total classic! Just “skeet surfing“ alone is worth the price of admission.

thesafetypin.bsky.social•118 days ago

dangit... they download as gifs but post as regular pics... I'll figure this out...

nickcliftoncomedy.bsky.social•117 days ago

Movie 43?

dfpaxton.bsky.social•117 days ago

The first time I watched Kentucky Fried Movie, I didn't much make it past the Air Freshener sketch before my attention was lost in simple laughter.

wordscryer.bsky.social•119 days ago

Airplane! and Police Squad! Both classics. And both in color 🫡

cvalde.bsky.social•118 days ago

I see. Let me know if his condition changes.

bethbrown.bsky.social•118 days ago

I imagine him greeting Leslie Nielsen with a “and don’t call me Shirley”

rodrickspode.bsky.social•118 days ago

Don’t call me Shirley

coffeewuff.bsky.social•119 days ago

I just showed my wife the naked gun movies and we are watching airplane tonight, she loves it so much.

blueeyesinjordan.bsky.social•118 days ago

Airplane has to be the funniest ever. We still quote from it now and mimic the person burning themselves during boring meetings

jaycliche.bsky.social•118 days ago

Also brilliant at very elaborate scenes with tons of things happening. We studied them in film school.

pluckinstrings.bsky.social•118 days ago

Good to see ya here, Frank!!!

jessiejessup.bsky.social•119 days ago

The popcorn you are eating has been pissed in, film at 11.😅

fuggitimtired.bsky.social•119 days ago

I still remember the daredevil scene in KFM. That and the boobies on the shower made me not watch a movie with my mother again for a good decade

mumsymcgillicutty.bsky.social•118 days ago

Noooooooo! I loved him and his movies. 😞 Those movies are from the good old days when I was a young whippersnapper. Rest in peace and laughter, Jim. You made our lives so much better. 💙

jason-n.bsky.social•119 days ago

❤️

captbatty.bsky.social•119 days ago

Some of my favorite movies ever since I was a kid in the 70s.

crashsafely.org•118 days ago

“Who are you, and how did you get in here?”
“I’m a locksmith. And, I’m a locksmith.”

olliejasper.bsky.social•119 days ago

You will cream in your jeans! Catholic High School Girls in Trouble!

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