Pat Proft

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Patrick "Pat" Proft (born April 3, 1947 in Columbia Heights , Minnesota ) is an American screenwriter , actor and film director . With Police Academy he developed one of the longest-running comedy film series in film history.

Career

Proft began writing television series in the 1970s and was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1977 as one of the writers of Van Dyke and Company . He also worked on Robi Robi Robin Hood , Welcome Back, Kotter and Mary (with Mary Tyler Moore ). In addition, he appeared in various television series in small roles, as well as in John Carpenter's Treasure, You Shine! . As an actor, he and the ensemble were nominated for All Commercials… A Steve Martin Special for the WGA Award in 1981.

Proft first worked with ZAZ in the early 1980s and wrote scripts for their television series The Naked Pistole . However, this was discontinued after six episodes, and the paths initially parted again. Two years later he wrote the screenplay for Police Academy . The film became a worldwide hit, which was followed by seven more parts. Proft was no longer involved in their scripts, but is named as the creator of the series in all subsequent films. In 1985 he wrote and produced Traffic School - The Sheet Metal and Roof Damage Company , in which he tried to transfer the Police Academy recipe for success to a driving school . However, the film nowhere near reached its popularity.

The second collaboration with ZAZ led to another global success; In 1988 he wrote the screenplay for Die nackte Kanone , the theatrical adaptation of the television series The Nackte Pistole , on which he had already worked in 1982. The naked cannon 2½ followed three years later . Jim Abrahams hired Proft for the Hot Shots produced without the Sugar Brothers ! Films in 1991 and 1993, and the following year ended with Die nackte Kanone 33⅓ Proft's most successful period as a writer.

Proft began writing a few more movie parodies in the vein of his earlier successes from the mid-1990s, but the concept seemed to have worn out, particularly his only film as director , Leslie Nielsen Is Very Suspicious, which was not particularly successful despite the popular Naked Gun lead. It was not until 2003, when David Zucker hired him for Scary Movie 3 , that he was able to record another success, he then wrote for the fourth part of the series.

Filmography (selection)

As an author

As an actor

  • 1973: The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour
  • 1975: Robi Robi Robin Hood
  • 1981: All Commercials… A Steve Martin Special
  • 1981: Honey, you shine so much! (Modern Problems)
  • 1984: Bachelor Party
  • 1991: Hot Shots! - The mother of all films (hot shots!)
  • 1998: Leslie Nielsen is very suspicious (Wrongfully Accused)

As a director

  • 1998: Leslie Nielsen is very suspicious (Wrongfully Accused)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Proft, Pat
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Proft, Patrick (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American screenwriter, actor and director
DATE OF BIRTH April 3, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH Columbia Heights , Minnesota