Brian of Pizzaspotz
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Written by Brian of PizzaSpotz.com with a little help from the staff
Sometimes it’s nice to eat pizza, hot from the oven at home, delivered to you from your local pizzeria, or even leftover cold pizza, while sitting in front of your television. At PizzaSpotz, we’ve often told you of the best movies to watch while eating pizza, whether those are gangster movies, chick flicks, 80s movies or romantic movies, but some of us really enjoy television sitcoms. Here is our list of Police Sitcoms to watch while eating pizza. This was not an easy list to create. It seems like this genre of situation comedy is not the most popular to produce. Below, please leave your ideas for what should have been on this list. Ideally, this list would consist of only 30 minute shows, but as you’ll see, I did have to add a couple one hour comedy/dramas.
Top Ten Police Sitcoms
10. Fish
Fish was a spin-off television series of the sitcom Barney Miller. It starred Abe Vigoda as New York Police Department Detective Phil Fish. But unlike the police sitcom Barney Miller, this show took place mostly at home where Fish and his wife were raising some unwanted children. The focus of this show was the personal life of a police detective. Unfortunately, our list of funny police television shows is stretched mighty thin because producers for some reason did not make many police sitcoms. This show lasted two seasons and had 35 episodes filmed. The only way one can see this today is by purchasing the entire Barney Miller 25 DVD set. A bonus in that set is the first season of Fish on DVD.
9. Bakersfield P.D.
Bakersfield P.D. is a short-lived American television comedy series that aired on the Fox network in 1993-94. This police sitcom starred actors Giancarlo Esposito, Ron Eldard, Chris Mulkey, Tony Plana, Jack Hallett, and Brian Doyle-Murray. The show aired on FOX from 14 September 1993 – 18 August 1994, airing only one season and producing only 17 episodes. The show was written by Richard Dresser and Stephen Godchaux and directed by Michael Engler and Bryan Gordon.
8. Sledge Hammer!
Sledge Hammer! was an American satirical police sitcom produced by New World Television that ran for two seasons on ABC from 1986 to 1988. This police comedy was created by Alan Spencer and starred David Rasche, Anne-Marie Martin and Harrison Page. There were 41 episodes of Sledgehammer filmed and it can now be purchased on DVD. Get Sledge Hammer! The Complete Series
7. Carter Country
Carter Country was an American television police sitcom that ran from 1977 to 1979 on ABC. The cast included Victor French, Kene Holliday, Richard Paul and Harvey Vernon. Carter Country was written by Douglas Arango, Phil Doran, David Garber, Kevin Hartigan and Barry Meadow. Forty-four episodes were filmed over two seasons. Some people have described Carter Country as a rural version of Barney Miller which also aired on ABC.
6. The Andy Griffith Show
Watch The New Housekeeper from Season One (affiliate link)
Andy Griffith was a fine actor and portrayed a local sheriff in the fictional town of Mayberry, North Carolina. The Andy Griffith Show aired for 8 seasons beginning in October 1960 and ending in April 1968. While not an actual police sitcom, Andy Griffith’s character Andy Taylor was a sheriff who could solve almost any problem that came his way and had a bumbling deputy played by Don Knotts, who left the show after the 1965 season. There were a total of 249 episodes filmed and every one of them had quality storylines. After the show ended, a continuation of the series called Mayberry RFD aired in its place for three more years.
5. Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. Psych is not your ordinary funny police sitcom, but is more of a comedy drama police detective show. The show stars stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department. His father from a young age taught him to be super observant and his skills have convinced some he has psychic abilities to solve crimes. This is one of the funniest shows on television today.
4. Car 54 Where Are You?
Car 54, Where Are You? was an American sitcom that ran on NBC from 1961 to 1963. This police sitcom, possibly the first, starred Joe E. Ross and Fred Gwynne. The show was on for two seasons and 60 episodes were filmed. The show was filmed on location in the Bronx, New York and at the Biograph Theater. Occasional director for the show, Nat Hiken won an Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Emmy Award for his work on the series in 1962. As of February 2012, The show airs in the early morning hours of Sundays on the Me-TV network.
3. Monk
Monk is another show on our list that doesn’t fit the police sitcoms category exactly. This is an hour long police show and can be classified as a drama/comedy. Adrian Monk suffers from OCD and is a paid consultant to the police. After the death of his wife, Monk was psychologically unfit to return to do duty as a San Francisco policeman. Part of the plot includes his desire to get mentally fit so he can be re-instated.
Monk was originally produced for ABC but was handed off to USA as their first hour long series. USA is now owned by NBC but in 2002, they had a relationship with ABC. Monk was on for 8 seasons and there were 125 episodes produced. Monk also holds the record for the most watched scripted drama episode in cable television history. Monk set the record with “Mr. Monk and the End – Part II”, its series finale, with 9.4 million viewers; 3.2 million of them in the 18–49 demographic.
2. Police Squad
Police Squad is more of fall down slap yourself silly police show than a normal police sitcom. However you decide to classify it, Police Squad met an early death on ABC. The producers of Airplane, a spoof on all airplane disaster movies created Police Squad. ABC cancelled the show after only 4 episodes had been shown and the remaining two episodes aired in the summer. The reason for the cancellation, the head of ABC entertainment said they canceled the police sitcom because people had to actually “watch” the show to understand the comedy. He meant that viewers had to pay attention because the gags and wordplay were too difficult for people to understand if they didn’t pay 100% attention. TV Guide said their reason for cancellation was “the most stupid reason a network ever gave for ending a series.” You can still watch Police Squad by purchasing the entire first season on 1/3 of a DVD. But you still have to pay full price, due to the unique packaging.
And finally, our number one police sitcom to watch while eating pizza is …..
1. Barney Miller
Barney Miller is the ultimate police sitcom. That’s why it’s here, at the top of our list. Barney Miller ran from 1975-1982 on ABC. The last evening it was on was probably one of the most sad in my adolescence. When I was growing up here in the Dallas, Texas area, Barney Miller aired live on WFAAA – channel 8 on Tuesday nights at 8:00 p.m. It aired on channel 4 at 4:30 p.m. every day and on WGN at 6:00 p.m. every evening. I was a Barney Miller addict.
The show starred Hal Linden, Barbara Barrie (1975–1976), Abe Vigoda (1975–1977), Max Gail, Ron Glass, Jack Soo (1975–1979), Gregory Sierra (1975–1976), James Gregory, Steve Landesberg (1976–1982) and Ron Carey (1976–1982).
Barney Miller ran for 8 seasons which produced 168 episodes. The highlights of the show are many and the writing was brilliant. On nights when the show was taped (the early years were taped in front of a live audience), the cast sometimes finished re-taping and revised scenese until 2:00 a.m. or sometimes later (after the audience had left). Acerbic wit and banter filled each script, with most of the funniest lines going to either detectives Harris or Dietrich.
The actors continued on after the show ended. Gregory Sierra who played Sgt. Chano Amangual went on to play Lieutenant Lou Rodriguez on Miami Vice; he asked to be written out of the series after just four episodes. He also played on the ABC sitcom Soap and also had regular roles on the TV shows Zorro and Son, Something is Out There, and Common Law.
Hal Linden went on to do much work on Broadway and make appearances in shows like Gilmore Girls, Golden Girls, The Drew Carey Show, Will & Grace, Hot in Cleveland and many more.
Steve Landesberg went onto make guest appearances on the TV shows Law & Order, Saturday Night Live, The Golden Girls, Ghost Whisperer, That 70’s Show and Everybody Hates Chris. He appeared in the motion pictures Wild Hogs, Leader of the Band, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
Abe Vigoda went on to die (if you do not know what this references, Google it).
Ron Glass went on to make guest appearances in shows such as Amen, 227, Family Matters, Murder She Wrote, Friends and CSI NY.
Max Gail now runs Full Circle Production company which produces documentaries. He went on to star in D.C. Cab (one of my favorite movies) and make guest apearances on shows like Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Due South, The Drew Carey Show, Quantum Leap, and NCIS.
If you’re looking for a great police sitcom, you must begin with the greatest of all time, Barney Miller. Great writing, brilliant acting, there’s nothing more you can ask for from a situation comedy.
Get all 168 episodes of Barney Miller plus the one season of Fish w/ Abe Vigoda 
Oh yeah Bernard, I remember that one. Loved it. That dead pan reaction of Dietrich’s was amazing. And what about when he was talking to Inspector Luger, I think it was when Dietrich had been arrested for protesting against nuclear weapons. The Inspector is at the jail cell talking to Dietrich. The Inspector says something which should have been the end of the discussion and Dietrich answers back. The Inspector says, “You always have to get the last word in, don’t you?” Dietrich answers, “Yes.”
I absolutely loved that show. I may have even shed a tear the night it ended.
Thanks for sharing a favorite Barney Miller moment.
One of my alltime favorite TV lines was when Dietrich was talking to an FBI
agent and asked how J Edgar Hoover would react to something. The FBI Agent looked at him, pitying such ignorance, and said, “Hoover is dead.” Dietrich looked at him a moment, then quietly said, “Is that what they told you?”