Leslie Nielsen, the ruggedly handsome, Canadian-born leading man who first made an impact as a dramatic actor then later became a comedy star, died on November 28.  His nephew, Doug Nielsen, told TMZ that his uncle passed away due to complications from pneumonia at age 84, stating he just fell asleep and never woke up.  Nielsen got his start on New York TV dramas after a stint as a DJ in Saskatchewan, Canada.  He wanted to get as far away as possible from his abusive father, who was an officer in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  He got his first big break when MGM, who had just signed him to a contract, cast him to star as a space ship captain in the sci-fi classic "Forbidden Planet".  He continued doing such roles until he starred as the ship's captain in the original version of "The Poseidon Adventure".  In 1980 he was asked to spoof his tough-guy image in the airport tragedy send-up "Airplane!", and a new comedy star was born.  Following in the same vein, Nielsen starred on the TV series "Police Squad!", for which he was nominated for an Emmy.  His comedic star shone brightly in the film series "Naked Gun", based on his "Police Squad!" role, and cemented his position as a funny man.  Most recently he starred as a wacky President in the "Scary Movie" franchise.