The comic actor, best known for his roles in Airplane! and The Naked Gun, passed away at a hospital near his home in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, where he was being treated for pneumonia.
Nielsen's nephew Doug announced the news on Canadian radio station CJOB, saying: "Just in this last 48 hours, the infection has gotten too much and today at 5.30am, with his friends and his wife by his side, he just fell asleep and passed away."
Nielsen's agent John S. Kelly later confirmed the news.
The actor, born in Saskatchewan, served in the Royal Canadian Air Force before making his debut on US television in the late '50s, and eventually appearing in a string of hit comedy films in the '80s and '90s.
