Leslie Nielsen died this weekend. Everyone should know who he is, or was and if they aren't familiar with his work, I suppose they aren't fans of my blog. Leslie Nielsen was completely unique in his craft. So much more than the straight man, he was the setup and punchline all at once while being seemingly aloof to the joke all at the same time. He was, it was said, funny without being funny.
Look at the picture of Leslie Nielsen from back in the day when he was still vying for straight rolls and you can see a little glimmer of irony in his eye, even while he was trying to be sultry. He was never handsome, but he was striking, which he would use to his advantage throughout his career. Few faces could say so much while moving so little.
His voice, deep and mellifluous could have been used to calm crowds or to instill menace. This vocal presence was rendered completely ironic given the level of sheer idiocy most of his characters conveyed.
This was a simple device that he employed time and time again for 30 years in various comedic roles and it worked more often than not. The times it did not work, there was typically a failure of writing. You could not write funny lines for Leslie Nielsen, they would not come out funny. It is hard enough to write comedy, even harder to intentionally write unfunny lines trying to conceive of how they will sound coming out of Leslie Nielsen.
When it worked it worked very well and regardless of individual successes or failures, he was a singularity. There will never be one like him and woe be tied to anyone who tries. Leslie Nielsen was like a wire hanger, an implement built and intended to perform a single function, which of course is to hang garments, but over the years came to be appreciated for being able to do so many things for which it was never intended, like a car antenna... it works surprisingly well, but sure does look funny doing it.
Goodbye, Shirley. Thanks for the good times.
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