Jim Abrahams Biography (1944-)

Born May 10, 1944, in Shorewood, WI; married Nancy; children: Joseph, Jamie,Charlie. Career: Producer, director, and screenwriter. Kentucky FriedTheatre (improvisation company), Madison, WI, co-founder, 1971; Kentucky Fried Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, co-founder, 1972. Also worked as a private investigator. Member: Directors Guild of America. Awards, Honors: Writers Guild of America Award, best comedy, 1980, for Airplane!; Emmy Award nomination, best writing in a comedy series, 1982, for Police Squad! Addresses: Agent: Jim Berkys, United Talent Agency, 9560 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Beverly Hills, CA 90212.

Nationality
American
Gender
Male
Occupation
Producer, Director, Screenwriter
Birth Details
May 10, 1944
Shorewood, Wisconsin, United States

Famous Works

  • CREDITS
  • Film Work
  • Director, Except Where Indicated
  • (With David Zucker and Jerry Zucker) And executive producer, Airplane! (also known as Flying High), Paramount, 1980
  • (With D. Zucker and J. Zucker) And executive producer, Top Secret!, Paramount, 1984
  • (With D. Zucker and J. Zucker) Ruthless People, Buena Vista, 1986
  • Big Business, Buena Vista, 1988
  • Executive producer, The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!(also known as The Naked Gun), Paramount, 1988
  • Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael, Paramount, 1990
  • Executive producer, Cry-Baby, Imagine/Universal, 1990
  • Hot Shots!, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1991
  • Co-executive producer, Naked Gun 2-1/2: The Smell of Fear, Paramount, 1991
  • Hot Shots! Part Deux (also known as Hot Shots! 2), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1993
  • Executive producer, Naked Gun 33-1/3: The Final Insult (also knownas Naked Gun 3), Paramount, 1994
  • Jane Austen's Mafia (also known as Mafia!), Buena Vista, 1998
  • Film Appearances
  • Announcer in the courtroom and first technician, "Eyewitness News" (segment), The Kentucky Fried Movie, United Film, 1977
  • Religious zealot, Airplane! (also known as Flying High), Paramount, 1980
  • The face on the cutting room floor, Coming to America, 1988
  • Television Work
  • Series
  • Creator, executive producer, and director, Police Squad!, ABC, 1982
  • Movies
  • Director, producer, and executive producer,... First Do No Harm, ABC, 1997
  • Television Appearances
  • Specials
  • Hearts of Hot Shots! Part Deux--A Filmmaker's Apology, HBO, 1993
  • WRITINGS
  • Screenplays
  • (With D. Zucker and J. Zucker) The Kentucky Fried Movie, United Film, 1977
  • (With D. Zucker and J. Zucker) Airplane! (also known as FlyingHigh), Paramount, 1980
  • (With D. Zucker, J. Zucker, and Martyn Burke) And lyricist, "Spend This Night with Me," Top Secret!, Paramount, 1984
  • (With D. Zucker, J. Zucker, and Pat Proft) The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, Paramount, 1988
  • (With Proft) Hot Shots!, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1991
  • (With others) Naked Gun 2-1/2: The Smell of Fear, Paramount, 1991
  • (With Proft) Hot Shots! Part Deux, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1993
  • Naked Gun 33-1/3: The Final Insult (also known as Naked Gun 3), Paramount, 1994
  • Jane Austen's Mafia (also known as Mafia!), Buena Vista, 1998
  • Television Episodes
  • (With others) Police Squad!, ABC, 1982

Further Reference

OTHER SOURCES

    Periodicals:
    • Chicago Tribune, December 2, 1988, .
    • Entertainment Weekly, August 9, 1991, p. 38.
    • People Weekly, April 17, 1995, p. 54.
    • Rolling Stone, October 2, 1980, .
    • Time, August 29, 1977, July 14, 1980; March 29, 1982; July 2, 1984; June 30, 1986; June 13, 1988.
    • Times February 9, 1989, (London)
    • Variety, August 9, 1991, p. 93.
    • Video Business, August 19, 1994, p. 58.
    • Village Voice, March 30, 1982, June 14, 1988.*