Considering the era in which it originally aired, on a network known at the time for “jiggle TV” and light entertainment, the fact “Barney Miller” ever made it to air and found success was nothing short of miraculous.
Created and produced by television veteran Danny Arnold (“Bewitched”, “That Girl”) and with a stellar cast headed by professional clarinetist Hal Linden as the title character, “Barney Miller” was set in a dirty, dingy New York Police Department squad room in the fictional Twelfth Precinct.
When I was younger and this show was airing new episodes, I remember our family watching it and I knew some of the characters’ names. It wasn’t until later on I realized just how good this situation comedy really was.
What is interesting is the program began as a two-hour film called “The Life and Times of Captain Barney Miller,” which featured many of the same characters who found their way to the weekly series but was initially more focused on balancing Barney’s home and work life.
By the time the series began in 1975, Linden became perhaps the most dignified straight man in television history as the Barney Miller character dealt with the personalities of his staff, the people who were brought in off the street, city politics (such as being passed over repeatedly for a promotion), paperwork, and city problems.
Working at the ol’ one-two (the nickname for the precinct used by Inspector Lugar, an old-timer played to perfection by James Gregory) along with Barney included the earnest, striving Detective Stanley Thaddeus “Wojo” Wojciehowicz (Max Gail); clotheshorse and aspiring author Detective Ron Harris (Ron Glass); gambler and bad coffee-making Sergeant Nick Yemana (Jack Soo); overly knowledgeable with humor-on-wry Detective Arthur P. Dietrich (Steve Landesberg); and the perpetually troubled by his wife, and his hemorrhoids, Sergeant Phil Fish (Abe Vigoda). Other main characters included Chano Amenguale (Gregory Sierra) and Carl Levitt (Ron Carey).
There was enough going on with those guys in the squad room to justify a sitcom, but this series had a stable of character actors who were used in various roles as arrestees over the years. Each episode usually includes someone being hauled in for one crime or another — while a lot of the perpetrators are into the regular stuff such as theft or prostitution, occasionally someone is picked up who claims they are a werewolf or when our guys have to throw a ventriloquist’s dummy into the slammer.
“Barney Miller” had its fair share of standout episodes. People often cite the silly third season highlight, “Hash,” in which the squad unknowingly partakes in drug-laced brownies baked by Wojo’s girlfriend. There’s also more serious material such as “The Harris Incident,” from season five, in which Harris is in the process of arresting a felon when two white police officers shoot at him.
Each character was so well-written and pitch-perfect. And in the way the show played out, even the “bad guys” were treated like human beings. Everyone was shown to have worth, even people who maybe didn’t even believe in that fact themselves.
“Barney Miller” thoughtfully tackled it all, in real time, what was happening in the late 1970s and early 1980s: politics, age discrimination, nuclear power, economic issues, racism, gender identity, sexuality, and more.
Like a stage play, most of the action took place in a single room. The immediacy of the presentation brought the viewer right into what was going on, making every episode engaging.
I might add the theme song by Allyn Ferguson and Jack Elliott features the best bass guitar lick and rhythm section groove in television history. The theme is also presented over the credits, with a garbage barge being towed down the river in the shadows of the Manhattan skyline — a perfect analogy for what is happening on the program itself.
The show ran for eight seasons, and by the time it was over, every single actor had received at least one Emmy nomination.
I discovered recently my teaching partner, Mrs. Kelley Hill, and her husband, Dr. Adam Hill, were binge-watching “Barney Miller.” It just so happened I was doing the same, watching an episode or two every night.
I had re-familiarized myself with many of the episodes during the COVID-19 quarantines of 2020 after finding them on Amazon Prime, but since then, they have also appeared on Tubi as well as broadcast channels FeTV (Family Entertainment Television) and Antenna TV. So there’s no excuse – turn on your television and cue up some “Barney Miller” for a few laughs with the fellows down at the ol’ one-two.
Michael Bird is a music teacher for Tallassee City Schools.