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2 Monday, November 29, 2010 Surely, gifted man made us laugh ft Actor Leslie Nielsen, who died yesterday, turned idea of "Police Squad" into a trilogy of movies after his success in "Airplane!" (below 1994 sequels. Nielsen was born in Canada and came to New York in the 1940s on a scholarship to the Neighborhood Playhouse. He also studied at the Actors Stu BY DAVID HINCKLEY DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER his clueless straight-man roles in "The Naked Gun" and "Police Squad," died yesterday in a Fort Lauderdale hospital. He was 84. Nielsen was 54 and well established dio and got his first role in a 1948 mm "Studio One" episode that also tea tured Charlton Heston.

He acted in live television for years betore i breaking into the movies with the 1956 cult classic "For DAILY NEWS NYDailyNews.com Tram revamp set to soar to Roosevelt Is. THE ROOSEVELT Island tramway will be back on the move tomorrow after a nine-month overhaul. The new and improved aerial link between Roosevelt Island and Manhattan, at 59th St. and Second got the green light from the Roosevelt Island Operation Commission after a massive maintenance and renovation project that began in March. The state-of-the-art system now features new gondolas with bigger windows, longer seats and the promise of better views and seating during the three-minute ride high above the East River.

"The windows go almost down to your feet so the views are going to be absolutely soaring," said Leslie Torres, president of the Roosevelt Island Operation Commission. The reworked system was designed to be more stable in high winds and includes operational and electrical backups to eliminate electrical and mechanical malfunctions. A power outage in 2006 left 69 commuters danglingfor hours. Jane H. Furse with News Wire Services Top cop sees hurt mechanic in hosp AN NYPD mechanic injured on the job got a visit from Commissioner Raymond Kelly at Harlem Hospital.

Tom Horn, 50, was working on a car engine at Police Service Area 5 in East Harlem around 4 a.m. yesterday when a belt broke, spraying him with anti -freeze, police said. He is in stable condition with first- and second-degree burns on his arms and chest. Kelly visited Horn for about 25 minutes yesterday afternoon, donning a hospital gown to help minimize the risk of Horn's burns becoming infected. "His spirits are good," Kelly said after the visit.

"He just wants to get back to work." Simone Weichselbaum and Barry Paddock from hundreds of modest movie and television roles before he almost accidentally stumbled into "Airplane which was released in 1980 and launched one of the un-likeliest, goofiest and giddiest second careers in modern movie history. A satiric sendup of disaster flicks, "Airplane!" became a pop culture phenomenon that spawned a series of catch phrases -many of them from Nielsen's Dr. Rumack bidden Plan et." Most of his roles were modest before and that streak continued after "The Naked IjBJjLgjHjj Gun," when his projects includ ed a series of satiric videos called "Bad Golf Made Easier." Nielsen's friends and associates said yesterday he was always known off-camera for his sense of humor, but that his tall, classic profile steered him for years toward serious charac ters. When someone told him, "Surely, you can't be serious," Rumack responded, "Of course I'm serious. And don't call me Shirley." Nielsen's deadpan approach made him seem like a character who had wandered in from another movie, often speaking in absurdities and non sequi-turs.

When he was called upon to deliver an inspiring speech, he butchered the famous Knute Rockne "Win one for the Gipper" speech, telling his listeners someday to "win one for the Zipper. I don't know where I'll be then, Doc, but I won't smell too good. Two years after "Airplane!" he played a similar role as Lt. Frank Drebin in the television show "Police Squad." A joke that sustained a two-hour movie didn't hold up well as a television series, but six years later Nielsen resurrected Lt. Drebin for a movie, "The Naked Gun," which became another hit and spawned 1991 and Nielsen was married four times and is survived by two children.

He is also survived by the memory of Dr. Rumack, who said a woman had to be taken to the hospital, causing a stewardess to reply with alarm, "A hospital! What is it?" "It's a big building with patients," replied Dr. Rumack. "But that'snot important right now." dhinckleynydailynews.com DAILY NEWS NYDailyNews.com DAILY NEWS MOBILE Get the latest news, sports, gossip, photos and more on your iPhone, BlackBerry and smartphone. Text MOBILE to DNEWS(36397)orgoto nydailynews.commobile GOT A PHOTO? Did you capture that perfect New York moment? We want it! Send your picture to: deskdailynewspix.com Monday, November 29, 2010 Vol.

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