Airplane! (1980)

An airplane crew takes ill. Surely the only person capable of landing the plane is an ex-pilot afraid to fly. But don't call him Shirley.

Directors:

Jim Abrahams, David Zucker,

Writers:

Jim Abrahams (written for the screen by), David Zucker (written for the screen by),

Stars:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Julie Hagerty, Robert Hays

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar	...	Roger Murdock (as Kareem Abdul-Jabaar)
Lloyd Bridges	...	Steve McCroskey
Peter Graves	...	Captain Clarence Oveur
Julie Hagerty	...	Elaine Dickinson
Robert Hays	...	Ted Striker
Leslie Nielsen	...	Dr. Rumack
Lorna Patterson	...	Randy
Robert Stack	...	Rex Kramer
Stephen Stucker	...	Johnny
Otto	...	Himself
Jim Abrahams	...	Religious Zealot #6
Frank Ashmore	...	Victor Basta
Jonathan Banks	...	Gunderson
Craig Berenson	...	Paul Carey
Barbara Billingsley	...	Jive Lady

Storyline

Still craving for the love of his life, Ted Striker follows Elaine onto the flight that she is working on as a member of the cabin crew. Elaine doesn't want to be with Ted anymore, but when the crew and passengers fall ill from food poisoning, all eyes are on Ted.

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Plot Keywords:

airplane | pilot | spoof | basketball | disaster | 

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Taglines:

The craziest flight you'll ever take!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 July 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kentucky Fried Airplane

Filming Locations:

Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,500,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$83,400,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the scene with Johnny and Steve McCroskey, McCroskey says "Get me someone who won't crack under pressure." Johnny responds "How about Mister Rogers?" If you look carefully that was dubbed in after. 'Airplane!' was shot in August 1979. Stephen Stucker (Johnny) actually said "How about Mamie Eisenhower." The former First Lady died a few months later (in Nov. 1979) so the producers corrected it by dubbing in "Mister Rogers" out of respect for the Eisenhower family.

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Goofs

The Peace Corps scene is set in Africa, but the elephant is obviously an Indian elephant as indicated by the small ears.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Male announcer: The white zone is for immediate loading and unloading of passengers only. There is no stopping in a red zone.
Female announcer: The white zone is for immediate loading and unloading of passengers only. There is no stopping in a red zone.

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Crazy Credits

Worst Boy ... Adolf Hitler

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Connections

References Spartacus (1960)

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Soundtracks

"Respect"
By Otis Redding

User Reviews

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

In a tense moment where Ted Striker (Robert Hays) needs to land an airplane where the pilots (Peter Graves and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) have fallen sick, and several passengers need to get off the airplane for various reasons, all Striker can think to himself (with an echo in his mind, of course) is "I've got to concentrate... concentrate... concentrate... I've got to concentrate... concentrate... concentrate... Hello?... hello... hello... Echo... echo... echo... Pinch hitting for Pedro Borbon... Manny Mota... Mota... Mota..." That pretty much sums up the seriousness of Airplane!, the lampoon of the 1970s Airport movies, and pretty much every other disaster movie pumped out by Hollywood. The same guys who pieced together the Naked Gun movies write and direct this silly movie. Most of the jokes need to be seen to be properly experienced, the first rate actors are what brings the laughs. Robert Stack plays it straight, over-the-top straight, as a problem solver for the airline who happens to wear 2 pairs of sunglasses at all times. Stack's comedic timing and deadpan delivery bring out some of the biggest laughs of the film. Lloyd Bridges is the over-worked, over-stressed traffic controller who has picked the wrong week to stop drinking, smoking, and sniffing glue. And Leslie Neilson plays a doctor who has an acute sense for the obvious, surely one who could save the passengers and airline crew if they land safely, just don't call him Shirley. A few cheap laughs, a few misses, but over all, a pretty funny movie. If you like The Naked Gun, you'll like Airplane!