Airplane! is a parody of the popular air disaster films that thrived in the 1970s. It was released on June 27, 1980, and was directed by Jim Abrams, David Zucker and Jerry Zuker. It starred many famous actors and celebrities, including Leslie Neilsen, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Barbara Billingsley, Frank Ashmore, Peter Graves and more. The PG rated film grossed $83,453,539 in the box office, yet its total production budget was $3.5 million.http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=airplane.htm The second film in the series, Airplane II The Sequel was also released in theaters, but only earned $27,150,534.http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=airplane2.htm

After both the pilot and co-pilot get sick from eating bad fish, it's up to Ted Striker, a discharged air force officer, to land the plane safely, all the while fighting back his bad memories of the war and impress the young stewardess who he is in love with.

• Robert Hays as Ted Striker
• Julie Hagerty as Elaine Dickinson
• Leslie Nielsen as Dr. Alan Rumack
• Peter Graves as Captain Clarence Oveur
• Lloyd Bridges as Steve McCroskey
• Robert Stack as Captain Rex Kramer
• Lorna Patterson as Randy, the blond stewardess
• Stephen Stucker as Johnny Henshaw-Jacobs
• Frank Ashmore as Victor Basta
• Jonathan Banks as Gunderson
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as Roger Murdock/himself
• Craig Berenson as Paul Carey
• Barbara Billingsley as Jive Lady
• Lee Bryant as Mrs. Hammen
• Nicholas Pryor as Mr. Jim Hammen
• Joyce Bulifant as Mrs. Davis
• Marcy Goldman as Mrs. Geline
• Barbara Stuart as Mrs. Kramer
• Ross Harris as Joey Hammen
• James Hong as a Japanese General
• Al White as Second Jive Dude
• David Leisure as First Krishna
• Otto as himself

Reviews from the site Rotten Tomatoes have given Airplane a 98% approval rating as of March 2010, with an average rating of 8.4 points out of possible 10.http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/airplane/ Janet Maslin reported to The New York Times in 1980, "At a time when throwaway gags seem like a luxury in any film, Airplane! has jokes—hilarious jokes—to spare. It's also clever and confident and furiously energetic."http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=EE05E7DF1738E762BC4A53DFB166838B699EDE Common Sense Media warns the film is "iffy" for younger viewers ages 12 and down, as Airplane contains partial nudity, drug references, violence, and lots of sexual innuendo.http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/airplane