
Actor
Jim Abrahams
Born 1944 · Shorewood, Wisconsin, USA
Jim Abrahams (May 10, 1944 – November 26, 2024) was an American movie director and writer. Abrahams was born in Shorewood, Wisconsin, to a Jewish family, and attended Shorewood High School. He was known for the spoof movies that he co-wrote and produced with brothers Jerry Zucker and David Zucker, such as Airplane! (for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay) and The Naked Gun series. The team of Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (also referred to as "ZAZ") really began when the three men grew up together in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Abrahams later produced movies on his own such as Big Business, and further honed his skills in parody with Hot Shots! and its 1993 sequel Hot Shots! Part Deux.
Directed

Airplane!
Director · 1980

Hot Shots!
Director · 1991

Top Secret!
Director · 1984

Hot Shots! Part Deux
Director · 1993

Police Squad!
Director · 1982

Ruthless People
Director · 1986

Big Business
Director · 1988

Jane Austen's Mafia!
Director · 1998

Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael
Director · 1990

...First Do No Harm
Director · 1997
An Introduction to the Ketogenic Diet
Director · 1994
Acting

Airplane!
Religious Zealot #6 · 1980

Coming to America
Face on Cutting Room Floor · 1988

Top Secret!
German Soldier in Prop Room (uncredited) · 1984

Oscar
Postman (uncredited) · 1991

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty
Jim Abrahams · 2022

The Kentucky Fried Movie
Various · 1977

Kareem: Minority of One
Self · 2015

FAT: A Documentary
Self - Father / Founder, Charlie Foundation / Filmmaker · 2019

Cocaine Blues
Himself · 1983
Writing

Airplane!
Writer · 1980

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!
Writer · 1988

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear
Original Series Creator · 1991

Hot Shots!
Writer · 1991

Top Secret!
Screenplay · 1984

Hot Shots! Part Deux
Screenplay · 1993

Police Squad!
Writer · 1982

The Naked Gun
Original Film Writer · 2025

Scary Movie 4
Screenplay · 2006

The Kentucky Fried Movie
Writer · 1977

Jane Austen's Mafia!
Screenplay · 1998

Big John, Little John
Writer · 1976