Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (abbreviated to ZAZ) was an American comedy filmmaking trio consisting of

Jim Abrahams James Steven Abrahams (May 10, 1944 – November 26, 2024) was an American film director and writer, best known as a member of Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker. Life and career James Steven Abrahams was born on May 10, 1944, to a Jewish family in ...

and brothers

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

and Jerry Zucker who specialised in writing slapstick comedy films during the 1980s. Members of the team have often collaborated with writer Pat Proft.

History

David Zucker,

, and Jerry Zucker knew each other as children while growing up in Shorewood, Wisconsin and while attending Shorewood High School, which is sometimes referenced in their work. While attending the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

, the trio founded a small theater known as The Kentucky Fried Theater in 1971 which led to their

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...

film '' The Kentucky Fried Movie'' in 1977. This was followed by the trio's breakout hit ''

Airplane! ''Airplane!'' (alternatively titled ''Flying High!'') is a 1980 American disaster film, disaster comedy film written and directed by Jim Abrahams and brothers David Zucker, David and Jerry Zucker in their List of directorial debuts, directoria ...

'' in 1980, which remains a revered comedic milestone. Subsequent collaborations include '' Top Secret!'', '' Ruthless People'', and '' The Naked Gun''. All of their projects relied heavily on parodies, visual gags and breaking of the fourth wall, and established a strong 1980s cult following. The notable stylistic exception is ''Ruthless People'', a more traditional farce that was directed by the trio but unlike their other productions, not written by them. The trio's status as a three-person team of co-directors is highly unusual, although some of their later projects were directed by David Zucker working solo and with Jerry Zucker and Abrahams credited only as producers and/or writers. The trio split up in the 1990s for fiscal and creative reasons, stating that there were "too many guys sitting in the same chair". They also said that they had been treated unfairly by the studios that produced their films, claiming that they failed to see any profits from ''Ruthless People''. Nevertheless, the three still maintained a close friendship until Abrahams died in 2024.

Filmography

Television

Film

References

External links

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Finger Lickin' Funny
about the original Kentucky Fried Theater {{DEFAULTSORT:Zucker, Abrahams And Zucker Jewish American entertainers Slapstick comedians Comedy trios Film directors from Wisconsin Film collectives American parodists American comedy film directors Parody film directors American television show creators Surreal comedy