Jim Abrahams cause of death: What did the director of comedies such as 'Airplane!' die of at 80?

The world of cinema, and especially comedy, has lost one of its great stalwarts of recent decades. Jim Abrahams, one of the most important directors of the comedy genre, has died at the age of 80 at his home in Los Angeles, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. As soon as the news was released, there was an endless stream of tributes.

Abrahams was married to Nancy Cocuzzo and had two children, Joseph and Charlie, as well as grandchildren Caleb, James and Isaac. He was raised in Wisconsin, where he met Jerry and David Zucker, with whom he formed a friendship that later led them to succeed wherever they went with their humor.

According to his son Joseph, who revealed the news to THR, the filmmaker died on Tuesday, November 26, at Jim Abrahams' home in Santa Monica, California.

A filmography full of laughter and success

Abrahams, along with Jerry and David Zucker, began his great career towards stardom with 'Kentucky Fried Movie' in 1977 and, since then, his fame grew and he made his way in the complicated industry. But his great era would come later, in the 1980s, with films that are now cult comedies such as 'Top Secret!' or 'Ruthless People'.

In the 1990s, the director went one step further and got behind the camera for films such as 'Hot Shots!' and its sequels, which would come in 1991 and 1993 respectively. He also worked as a screenwriter on 'Airplane!' and 'Coming to America', among others. One of his last great comedy films was 'Scary Movie 4' in 2006.