Leslie Nielsen

From Regina to induction into both the Canadian Walk of Fame & Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Early Life

Born on February 11, 1926, in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, Leslie Nielsen and his three younger brothers, the sons of a Royal Canadian Mountie, were raised in a tiny hamlet near the isolated Arctic Circle, where supplies reached them only two months out of the year. Later, the family relocated to the town of Edmonton, where the Nielsen boys could attend school.

During World War II, Leslie Nielsen enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Following his discharge, he worked as a disc jockey and announcer at a local Canadian radio station.

Leslie Nielsen made his big screen debut in
Forbidden Planet.

Leslie William Nielsen was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters.

Nielsen was born in Regina, Saskatchewan. After high school, he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1943 and served until the end of World War II. Upon his discharge, Nielsen worked as a disc jockey before receiving a scholarship to study theatre at the Neighborhood Playhouse. He made his acting debut in 1950, appearing in 46 live television programs a year. Nielsen made his film debut in 1956, with supporting roles in several dramas and western and romance films produced between the 1950s and the 1970s.

Although his notable performances in the films Forbidden Planet and The Poseidon Adventure gave him standing as a serious actor, Nielsen later gained enduring recognition for his deadpan comedy roles during the 1980s, after being cast for the Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker comedy film Airplane!.

In his comedy roles, Nielsen specialized in portraying characters oblivious to and complicit in their absurd surroundings.Nielsen’s performance in Airplane! marked his turning point, which made him “the Olivier of spoofs” according to film critic Roger Ebert, and leading to further success in the genre with The Naked Gun film series, based on the earlier short-lived television series Police Squad!, in which Nielsen also starred. Nielsen received a variety of awards and was inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame and the Hollywood Walk of Fame.