Jim Abrahams, the writer-director who helped create comedy classics such as “Airplane!,” the “Naked Gun” movies, and the TV series “Police Squad!” has died. He was 80. Abrahams passed away of natural ...

Jim Abrahams, the writer-director who with brothers Jerry and David Zucker turned the comedy genre on its ear with such zany efforts as Airplane!, Police Squad! and The Naked Gun films, died Tuesday.

“Can you fly this plane and land it?” asks a physician named Dr. Rumack after food poisoning fells the flight crew of a jet heading from Los Angeles to Chicago. “Surely you can’t be serious,” says Ted ...

Journal Editorial Report: The week's best and worst from Kyle Peterson, Allysia Finley and Joe Sternberg. Photo: Getty Images When I learned of the death of Jim Abrahams, who along with Jerry and ...