Barney Miller

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Barney Miller

Through the 1970s and 1980s there were many police shows on television. Most were action shows full of car chases and shootouts, or shows dealing with the serious dramas of contemporary society. Barney Miller was different. From 1975 to 1982, this situation comedy presented the human stories of the detectives and officers of the 12th Precinct in New York (Greenwich Village Area) as well as the stories of the criminals and victims that they dealt with. Though it had its share of serious topics, it managed to let its characters develop and grow and let us laugh at the results. The main action was restricted to the detectives' office and the small connected office of Captain Barney Miller on the upper floor of an old police building. The show's set was sparse, limited to the detectives' old desks, a holding cell, a coffee maker, and a restroom.

The 12th Precinct detectives' office was comprised of a diverse group of mostly men: Capt. Barney Miller (Hal Linden), Philip Fish (Abe Vigoda), Stan Wojciehowicz (Max Gail), Ron Harris (Ron Glass), Arthur Dietrich (Steve Landesburg), Chano Amengule (Gregory Sierra), Nick Yemana (Jack Soo), Inspector Frank Luger (James Gregory), and Officer Carl Levitt (Ron Carey). Several episodes included temporary women detectives (one played by Linda Lavin, who would soon move on to Alice), but the show focused predominantly on male police. The characters changed somewhat after the first few seasons, as the show focused exclusively on the office and away from any other storyline (originally the story was to be about the office and home life of the captain, but this aspect was phased out). Chano left, as did Fish, to be replaced by Dietrich. Jack Soo died during the series, and his character was not replaced.

Barney Miller was notable for other reasons as well. Critics Harry Castleman and Walter J. Podrazik explained that "Real-life police departments have praised Barney Miller as being one of the most realistic cop shows around. The detectives rarely draw their guns, and spend more time in conversation, paperwork, and resolving minor neighborhood squabbles than in blowing away some Mr. Big drug king." After the first season, Barney Miller rarely depicted anything outside of the squad room. Any action that did take place did so out of the audience's sight. For example, viewers learned about the crimes, the disagreements, and the ensuing action second-hand from the police detectives and other characters.

In contrast to other police shows of its time, Barney Miller showed viewers the more mundane aspects of its detectives' work lives, including their bad habits, passions, and their likes and dislikes, all with one of the finest ensemble casts of working people in television. Detective Harris developed and wrote a novel, "Blood on the Badge," over the years, and viewers learned about Fish's wife but almost never saw her. Viewers came to know about Wojo's personal life and Barney's divorce, but never saw them outside of the office.

For the most part, laughs came from the dialogue and watching the characters' responses to specific situations. Topical issues of the day, from women's rights, to gay rights, and nuclear weapons, were also addressed in humorous contexts. Many episodes dealt with the work life of the police, including questions from Internal Affairs, problems with promotions, and on-going troubles with an old building. Most stories, however, dealt with small crime and the day-to-day work of policing.

Barney Miller's lasting legacy might be the shows that developed following its gritty working ensemble mold (Night Court, for example), or the effect it had on future police shows, such as Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, and Homicide. In fact, NBC Chief Brandon Tartikoff presented his concept for Hill Street Blues to Steven Bochco as "Barney Miller outdoors." With 170 episodes to Hill Street's 146, Barney Miller may have had a lasting impact all on its own.

—Frank E. Clark