R.I.P. Leslie Nielsen

It’s not too often that I cover such a serious story on this blog, but this seems like a fair occasion for one.

Today one of the greatest comedy actors actors ever, Leslie Nielsen, died at the age of 84.

The late, great Leslie Nielsen

Nielsen is best known for absolute classics such as Airplane! and The Naked Gun series. He was also excellent in Police Squad, the TV series. If you were were a fan of The Naked Gun I’d give Police Squad ago. Essentially Police Squad is to The Naked Gun what The Thick Of It is to In The Loop. If you don’t get this reference then basically one is the film of the other but not entirely the same. Just watch it and see.

Nielsen is known for having provided the comedy world for some of it’s wittiest one liners, lines which have bcome so well known over the years that people who have never seen the original films can quote them.

Gems like the famous:

“Surely you can’t be serious.”
“I am serious, and don’t call me Shirley.”

I realise I’ve plucked for the most obvious choice there but it’s just genius. But here’s some more:

“Doing nothing is very hard to do…you never know when you’re finished.”

“You’d better tell the captain we’ve got to land as soon as we can. This woman has to be gotten to a hospital.”
“A hospital? What is it?”
“It’s a big building with patients, but that’s not important right now.”

“Captain, how soon can you land?”

"I am serious, and don't call me Shirley"

“I can’t tell.”
“You can tell me. I’m a doctor.”
“No. I mean I’m just not sure.”
Well, can’t you take a guess?”
“Well, not for another two hours.”
“You can’t take a guess for another two hours?”

This style is puns is one I’m particularly font of and use regularly. Men like Nielsen are therefore comedy icons in my eyes. So here’s more:

“Nice beaver!”
[producing a stuffed beaver] “Thank you. I just had it stuffed.”

[offering a cigar] Cuban?
No, Dutch-Irish. My father was from Wales.

So, goodbye to one of the greats, he’ll be truly missed. R.I.P. Leslie Nielsen.