Police Squad! (1982– )

Sight-gags and non-sequiturs dominate this spoof of police dramas. The six episodes formed the basis for later very successful "Naked Gun" movies.

Creators:

Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker

Stars:

Leslie Nielsen, Alan North, Rex Hamilton

Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Leslie Nielsen	...	Det. Frank Drebin (6 episodes, 1982)
Alan North	...	Capt. Ed Hocken (6 episodes, 1982)
Rex Hamilton	...	Abraham Lincoln (6 episodes, 1982)
Ed Williams	...	Mr. Olson (6 episodes, 1982)
William Duell	...	Johnny (6 episodes, 1982)
Peter Lupus	...	Norberg (4 episodes, 1982)

Storyline

Marginally a "straight" police drama in the Jack Webb/Quinn Martin school, Police Squad occurs in a strange universe where everything is taken literally (when a name "rings a bell" we here bells go off everytime someone mentions it), non sequiturs occur (a mime tries to spell out a ransom note, and Officer Nordberg guesses "Theme From a Summer Place") and sight gags abound (while looking for a corpse, someone wants to know the time and the dead man's hand drops out of a tree).

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Plot Keywords:

police | spoof | cult tv | police detective | police officer | 

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Taglines:

There are 8 million stories in the Naked City. Here are six.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 March 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

Agárralo como puedas - La serie original

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (6 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original video release of the series (before DVD) seems not to have obtained the rights to all the songs used in the original show. Songs such as "Happy Birthday" (that are copyrighted and therefore require a royalty) were replaced with alternates that were presumably royalty-free.

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Quotes

Det. Frank Drebin: [running gag] Cigarette?
Various: Yes, I know.

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Crazy Credits

The closing credits of each episode included the narrator inviting viewers to "tune in next week for another exciting adventure". The only episode not to feature this voiceover was the final episode.

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Crawling Eye (1989)

User Reviews

Cigarette? Yes...It is!

Proof that TV execs don't always know a good show when they see it (See "Family Guy"), all you have to do is look at "Police Squad!" A VERY short lived show (Only 6 episodes were aired) with humor that still holds up 20 yrs later. Leslie Neilsen as Frank Drebin is incredibly funny, with his partner, The late Alan North as Ed Hocken. My favorite episode is "Rendezvous at Big Gulch," (Or, as the announcer says, "Terror In The Neighborhood.")when Drebin runs a locksmith business to check out the thugs (Next to the keys, are "Florida Keys, Francis Scott Keys,""Turkeys," and "Pot Roast."). Too bad the network didn't get a clue to the humor of the show, but at least it inspired 3 very funny movies based on the series! If you haven't seen the movies or the show, you should check out the inspiration behind the movies!