Inside the "Airplane!" production with Director David Zucker

MILWAUKEE — Director David Zucker is returning to his hometown of Milwaukee for a screening of his iconic 1980 film “Airplane!” on Saturday, March 16 at The Oriental Theatre. In anticipation of the event, Zucker joined 620 WTMJ’s Sandy Maxx on her program, What’s On Tap to discuss his influence, Wisconsin roots and his new book titled “Surely You Can’t Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane!”

Zucker, 76, was born and raised in the Milwaukee area and graduated from Shorewood High School. His filmography includes cult classic comedies including “Airplane!” and its sequel, “The Naked Gun,” “Kentucky Fried Movie” and three “Scary Movie” films.

So why was this the right time to publish a book about his beloved comedy classic? It was the right time to highlight the film’s unique path to production and all the incredible creatives it inspired, including Bill Hader, David Letterman and Adam McKay — all of whom are featured in his book.

“We came from Milwaukee. We went to Hollywood. We didn’t know anybody. We had no relatives in the business,” Zucker said. “We kinda figured it out as we went along, so in that way, it’s inspiring — not because we’re all that great, but because, I think people can look at our story and think ‘Hey, we can do this!'”

David Zucker has a unique brand of comedy cultivated by himself, Jim Abrahams & his brother, Jerry Zucker. He described it as similar to a spoof, but with ‘less satire than parody.’ This was heavily on his mind when they first began drafting the film in 1975 and through the production of “Kentucky Fried Movie.”

He told WTMJ that his team enjoyed making light of serious movies, and famously cast serious actors in comedic roles for “Airplane!” With comedic beats based on race and other cultural factors that have changed since it was released in 1980, Zucker said that he is commonly asked if the film could be made today.

“I get asked that all the time in Q&A, and I always give the same answer — ‘Of course we could! Just without the jokes!’ Zucker told WTMJ. “People had a better sense of humor, less sensitivities — I mean, the executives. I have great faith in the American public. They just laugh. Of course, there’s that 9% who don’t have a sense of humor and would let various sensitivities get in the way of their enjoying life, but that’s what happens. Probably was always that way.”

One of the most memorable aspects of the film was the inclusion of Milwaukee Bucks legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who turned down the film at first, according to Zucker. They managed to convince Kareem to be part of the role after an Executive Producer spoke with his Manager, confirming the NBA legend wanted to buy a high-quality $30,000 rug that would be shipped from Asia.

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They increased his salary to match the cost of the rug and the rest was history. Years down the line, Zucker was reading a Time Magazine feature on Kareem which included photos of his home, and in turn, that rug. This was the confirmation Zucker needed that this wasn’t merely a negotiation tactic from Kareem’s camp, but that the NBA’s second-leading all-time scorer actually wanted the rug.

Part of what made “Airplane!” a cultural touchstone in U.S. film history was that they cast actors without a comedic background to play comedic roles, defying expectations and ultimately drawing bigger laughs than otherwise expected.

“Who ever heard of a comedy without comedians, you know? Everybody said ‘You’re Nuts!’ I always loved doing things that were, I guess the expression is ‘out of the box,’ and I’m still doing it.”

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