| Leslie Nielsen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Leslie William Nielsen February 11, 1926 Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Role | Det. Frank Drebin |
| Episodes | all |
| Films | all |
Leslie Nielsen was an Canadian-American actor, who portrayed Frank Drebin the main character of the series and the films. He also appeared in other ZAZ projects including Airplane! and Scary Movie 3. Currently he's known as a comedic actor but he started his career as a serious actor, acting in Academy Award nominated films such as Forbidden Planet and The Poseidon Adventure. After appearing in Airplane! Nielsen became more famous as a comedian, and so he build his career acting in comedies such as Dracula: Dead and Loving it, Spy Hard and Wrongfully Accused. Famous film critic Roger Ebert Stated in a review on Scary Moive 3 that Nielsen is the Laurence Olivier of spoofs. During his career Nielsen got two Emmy Award nominations and has a star on the hollywood walk of fame. Nielsen died on November 28, 2010 at age 84.
Role on Police Squad![]
- Main article: Lieutenant Frank Drebin
In 1982 Nielsen made his first appearence as Detective Frank Drebin in Police Squad!, according to tv.com this role was written especially for him, since the ZAZ already worked with him in The Kentucky Fried Movie and Airplane, in an interview Nielsen stated that the reason this part was written for him was because the ZAZ had detected the same humor they had in him. Even though the series only ran for six episodes, Nielsen got an Emmy Award nomination for his portrayal. In 1988 (six years after the shows cancellation) the first Naked Gun film was released, wich was a big success. Frank Drebin is one of the rare Police Squad! characters, that had only one portrayer through the series, films and any other appearances.
Filmography[]
Films[]
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | The Battle of Gettysburg | Narrator | |
| 1956 | Ransom! | Charlie Telfer | Film debut, as an actor |
| Forbidden Planet | Commander John J. Adams | First starring role | |
| The Vagabond King | Thibault | ||
| The Opposite Sex | Steve Hilliard | ||
| 1957 | Hot Summer Night | William Joel Partain | |
| Tammy and the Bachelor | Peter Brent | ||
| 1958 | The Sheepman | Col. Stephen Bedford / Johnny Bledsoe | |
| 1964 | Night Train to Paris | Alan Holiday | |
| See How They Run | Elliot Green | First television movie | |
| 1965 | Harlow | Richard Manley | |
| Dark Intruder | Brett Kingsford | ||
| 1966 | The Plainsman | Col. George Armstrong Custer | |
| Beau Geste | Lieutenant De Ruse | ||
| 1967 | Code Name: Heraclitus | Fryer | |
| Gunfight in Abilene | Grant Evers | ||
| The Reluctant Astronaut | Major Fred Gifford | ||
| Counterpoint | Victor Rice | ||
| Rosie! | Cabot Shaw | ||
| 1968 | How to Steal the World | General Maximilian Harmon | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. film |
| Dayton's Devils | Frank Dayton | ||
| Companions in Nightmare | Dr. Neesden | ||
| 1969 | Deadlock | Lieutenant Sam Danforth | |
| Trial Run | Jason Harkness | ||
| How to Commit Marriage | Phil Fletcher | ||
| Change of Mind | Sheriff Webb | ||
| 1970 | Four Rode Out | Mr. Brown | |
| Night Slaves | Sheriff Henshaw | ||
| The Aquarians | Official | ||
| Hauser's Memory | Joseph Slaughter | ||
| 1971 | Incident In San Francisco | Lieutenant Brubaker | |
| The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler | Harry Walsh | ||
| They Call It Murder | Frank Antrim | ||
| 1972 | The Poseidon Adventure | The Captain | |
| 1973 | Snatched | Bill Sutting | |
| Amanda Fallon | Mr. Cummings | ||
| The Return of Charlie Chan | Alexander Hadrachi | ||
| And Millions Will Die | Jack Gallagher | ||
| 1975 | Can Ellen Be Saved | Arnold Lindsey | |
| Threshold: The Blue Angels Experience | Narrator | ||
| 1976 | Brinks: The Great Robbery | Agent Norman Houston | |
| Project Kill | Jonathan Trevor | ||
| Grand Jury | John Williams | ||
| 1977 | The Kentucky Fried Movie | Man in Feel-O-Rama Movie | Uncredited cameo; Feel-O-Rama segment. |
| Day of the Animals | Paul Jenson | ||
| Viva Knievel! | Stanley Millard | ||
| The Amsterdam Kill | Riley Knight | ||
| Sixth and Main | John Doe | ||
| 1978 | Little Mo | Nelson Fisher | |
| The Mad Trapper | |||
| 1979 | The Albertans | Don MacIntosh | |
| Institute for Revenge | Counselor Hollis Barnes | ||
| Riel | Major Crozier | ||
| City on Fire | Mayor William Dudley | ||
| 1980 | OHMS | Governor | |
| Airplane! | Dr. Rumack | First comedy role. | |
| Prom Night | Mr. Raymond Hammond | ||
| 1981 | A Choice of Two | Unknown | |
| 1982 | Twilight Theater | Various Characters | |
| Murder Among Friends | Unknown | ||
| Creepshow | Richard Vickers | "Something To Tide You Over" segment | |
| Wrong Is Right | Mallory | ||
| Foxfire Light | Reece Morgan | ||
| 1983 | Prime Time | Unknown | |
| The Night the Bridge Fell Down | Paul Warren | ||
| Cave-In! | Joseph 'Joe' Johnson | ||
| The Creature Wasn't Nice (Spaceship) | Capt. Jamieson | ||
| 1985 | Blade in Hong Kong | Harry Ingersoll | |
| Striker's Mountain | Jim McKay | ||
| 1986 | Reckless Disregard | Bob Franklin | |
| The Patriot | Admiral Frazer | ||
| Soul Man | Mr. Dunbar | ||
| 1987 | Nightstick | Thad Evans | |
| Home Is Where the Hart Is | Sheriff Nashville Schwartz | ||
| Nuts | Allen Green | Final non-comedy role | |
| 1988 | Dangerous Curves | Greg Krevske | |
| The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! | Lt. Frank Drebin | ||
| 1989 | The Railway Dragon | Narrator | First animated film. |
| 1990 | Repossessed | Father Jedediah Mayii | |
| 1991 | The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear | Lt. Frank Drebin | Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss (shared with Priscilla Presley) |
| All I Want for Christmas | Santa Claus | Family holiday film | |
| Chance of a Lifetime | Lloyd Dixon | ||
| 1993 | Surf Ninjas | Colonel Chi | |
| Digger | Arthur Evrensel | ||
| 1994 | Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult | Lt. Frank Drebin | |
| S.P.Q.R.: 2,000 and a Half Years Ago | Lucio Cinico | ||
| 1995 | Rent-a-Kid | Harry Haber | |
| Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree | Willowby's butler | ||
| Dracula: Dead and Loving It | Count Dracula | ||
| 1996 | Harvey | Dr. Chumley | |
| Spy Hard | Dick Steele, Agent WD-40 | ||
| 1997 | Family Plan | Harry Haber | |
| Mr. Magoo | Mr. Magoo | ||
| 1998 | Safety Patrol | Mr. Penn | |
| Wrongfully Accused | Ryan Harrison | ||
| 1999 | Pirates 4-D | Captain Lucky | 4D Cinema Show presented at various Busch Gardens amusement parks |
| 2000 | Santa Who? | Santa Claus | |
| 2001: A Space Travesty | Marshal Richard 'Dick' Dix | ||
| 2001 | Camouflage | Jack Potter | |
| Kevin of the North (Chilly Dogs) | Clive Thornton | ||
| 2002 | Men with Brooms | Gordon Cutter | |
| 2003 | Scary Movie 3 | President Harris | |
| Noël Noël | English Narrator | ||
| 2006 | Scary Movie 4 | President Harris | |
| 2007 | Music Within | Bill Austin | |
| 2008 | Superhero Movie | Uncle Albert | |
| An American Carol | Grampa / Osama Bin Laden | ||
| Slap Shot 3: The Junior League | Mayor of Charlestown | ||
| 2009 | Stan Helsing | Kay | |
| Spanish Movie | Doctor | ||
| 2011 | Stonerville | Producer | |
| Unknown | The Waterman Movie | Ready Espanosa | Voice acting[1] |
Television[]
| Year | Title | Role | Other Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | Jukebox Jury | Himself | |
| 1958–1961 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Lloyd Ashley & DA Rudolph Cox | Two episodes |
| 1959 | The Swamp Fox | Colonel Francis Marion | |
| 1960 | Thriller | Alan Patterson (lead role) | Episode "The Twisted Image" |
| 1960, 1964 | Wagon Train | Jeremy Dow, Brian Conlin | Two episodes |
| 1960 | The Untouchables | Tom Sebring | Episode "Three Thousand Suspects" |
| 1960 | Route 66 (TV series) | ||
| 1961 | The Islanders | Howard Cavanaugh | Episode "Willy's Millionaire" |
| 1961 | The New Breed | Lt. Price Adams | Regular |
| 1963 | Channing | Professor Paul Stafford | Single episode |
| 1963–1965 | Kraft Suspense Theatre | Dr. David Cord & Paul Maytric | Two episodes: "One Step Down" & "The Green Felt Jungle" |
| 1963–1964 | The Fugitive (TV series) | Martin C. Rowland & Harold Cheyney | Two episodes |
| 1964 | Your First Impression | As himself | Single episode |
| 1964 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Steven Grainger | Single episode |
| 1964–1969 | The Virginian | Ben Stratton | Five episodes |
| 1965 | Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea | Capt. Wayne Adams | One episode "The Creature" |
| 1965 | Peyton Place | Vincent and Kenneth Marham (twins) | 19 episodes |
| 1965 | The Wild Wild West | General Ball | Single episode |
| 1967 | Bonanza | Sheriff Paul Rowan | Episode: "The Unseen Wound" |
| 1968 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | General Maximillian Harmon | Single episode "The Seven Wonders of the World Affair Pt 1 & 2" |
| 1969 | The Bold Ones: The Protectors | Deputy Police Chief Sam Danforth | Seven episodes |
| 1969 | The Big Valley | Sgt. Maj. Earl Conway | One episode "Town of no Exit" |
| 1969–1974 | Hawaii Five-O | Brent & Colonel Faraday | Two episodes |
| 1970 | Bracken's World | John Bracken | Fifteen Bracken's World episodes total |
| 1971 | Columbo: Lady in Waiting | Peter Hamilton | Two Columbo episodes total |
| 1971 | Bearcats! | Col. Ted Donovan | Episode "The Big Guns" |
| 1971 | Night Gallery | The Phantom, Col. Dennis Malloy | Two episodes: "Phantom of What Opera?" and "A Question of Fear" |
| 1973 | M*A*S*H | Col. Buzz Brighton | Episode "The Ringbanger" |
| 1973–1974 | The Streets of San Francisco | Ofc. Joe Landers, Insp. John T. Connor, & Big Jake Wilson | Three episodes |
| 1973-74 | Cannon | Gilbert, Elliott Strawn, Weller Dane, Eric Strauss ? | 3x14 Valley Of The Damned, 4x10 The Man who couldn't forget, 5x06 The Man who died twice |
| 1974 | Kojak | Michael Hagar | Single episode "Loser Takes All" |
| 1975 | Kung Fu | Vincent Corbino | Four episodes[2] |
| 1975 | Columbo: Identity Crisis | Geronimo | Two Columbo episodes total |
| 1975–1976 | S.W.A.T. | Larry Neal/Vince Richie | Three episodes |
| 1978 | The Love Boat | Dan | Episode "Parents Know Best; A Selfless Love; The Nubile Nurse" |
| 1979 | Backstairs at the White House | Ike Hoover | Three episodes |
| 1980 | The Littlest Hobo | Mayor Chester Montgomery | Episode "Romiet and Julio" |
| 1982 | Police Squad! | Det. Frank Drebin | Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series |
| 1984 | Shaping Up | Buddy Fox | |
| 1985–1986 | Murder, She Wrote | Captain Daniels & David Everett | Two episodes |
| 1987 | Highway to Heaven | Richard R. Benson | Episode "Gift Of Life" |
| 1988 | Who's the Boss? | Max | |
| 1988 | Day By Day | Jack Harper | Episode "Harper and Son" Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series |
| 1989 | Saturday Night Live | Himself | Single episode |
| 1992 | The Golden Girls | Lucas Hollingsworth | Series finale |
| 1993 | Herman's Head | God | Single episode |
| 1994–1999 | Due South | Sgt. Buck Frobisher | Four episodes |
| 1994–1996, 2001–2002 | Katie and Orbie | Narrator | |
| 1995 | Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree | Mr. Willowby's Butler, Baxter | Television Christmas special |
| 2000 | Santa Who? | Santa Claus | Television film |
| 2001 | Liocracy | Terrence Brynne McKennie | |
| 2002 | Chilly Beach | Santa Claus | Single episode |
| 2002 | This is America with Dennis Wholey | Himself, Panelist | Single episode |
| 2004 | Zeroman | Les Mutton / Zeroman | (Voice actor) |
| 2007 | Doctor*Ology | Himself, Host | |
| Lipshitz Saves the World | Lipshitz's mentor | Pilot | |
| Robson Arms | Cado Vasco | ||
| Family Guy | Dr. Barry Rumack | Blue Harvest |
Video[]
- 1993: Bad Golf Made Easier
- 1994: Bad Golf My Way
- 1997: Stupid Little Golf Video
- 1997: National Geographic Video: The Savage Garden
- Nielsen also appeared in a promotional video for Layman Allen's mathematics game called "Equations" and in the Seaworld San Antonio Summer Nights 4-D show "Pirates 4-D".