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Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Sensible, fatigued straight man Captain Barney Miller (as portrayed by Hal Linden)

2 votes

Old, grumpy, and Jewish Det. Sgt. Philip K. Fish (as portrayed by Abe Vigoda)

3 votes

Naive, endearing, and Polish Det. Stanley "Wojo" Wojciehowicz (as portrayed by Max Gail)

2 votes

Slick, ambitious, and black Det. Sgt. Ron Nathan Harris (as portrayed by Ron Glass)

1 votes

Sleepy, ironic, and Japanese Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana (as portrayed by Jack Soo)

3 votes

Hardworking, gung-ho, and Puerto Rican Det. Sgt. Chano Amanguale (as portrayed by Gregory Sierra)

1 votes

Intellectual, droll, and Jewish Det. Arthur Dietrich (as portrayed by Steve Landesberg)

5 votes

Edgy DC Dec 21 2010 06:11 PM

Your wallet gets pinched in the Greenwich Village. You walk into the police station to file a report and all of a sudden it's the seventies and you're in Barney Miller's dysfunctional station house. Which detective do you want taking your case?

DocTee Dec 21 2010 06:33 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Landesburg looking good in that picture.

Fman99 Dec 21 2010 06:48 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I'm a Harris guy.

dgwphotography Dec 21 2010 06:51 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Harris and Dietrich played off each other perfectly.

HahnSolo Dec 21 2010 06:57 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I went with Chano. But I know if I got Yemana he'd find me a good cup of coffee.

Edgy DC Dec 21 2010 08:11 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I was surprised to find out everybody (except the intellectual, interestingly enough) was a detective sergeant. That's a lot of chiefs.

Edgy DC Dec 21 2010 08:14 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Why go with Chano? They wrote that guy out after two years.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 21 2010 09:26 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Throwing my vote to Wojo.

G-Fafif Dec 21 2010 11:05 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I went with Fish. He got a spinoff.

sharpie Dec 22 2010 07:11 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Wojo for me, please.

soupcan Dec 22 2010 07:20 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Yemana was my guy.

Edgy DC Dec 22 2010 07:41 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

DocTee wrote: Landesburg looking good in that picture. That's Barney's wife Elizabeth. She left him midway through season two to raise Dave Stoller to be the operatic cyclist only she believed he could be.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 22 2010 07:42 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Edgy DC wrote: DocTee wrote: Landesburg looking good in that picture. That's Barney's wife Elizabeth. She left him midway through season two to raise Dave Stoller to be the operatic cyclist only she believed he could be. Damn, I knew she looked familiar.

HahnSolo Dec 22 2010 08:01 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Edgy DC wrote: Why go with Chano? They wrote that guy out after two years. If my wallet was really pinched in the Village, I thinks Chano's got the best chance of getting it back. Now, if the question is who is funniest, I go with the droll Dietrich.

MFS62 Dec 22 2010 08:06 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I voted for the old, grumpy Jewish guy. Something about that rings true with me. I wonder what it is? Later

Willets Point Dec 22 2010 10:17 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I thought Dietrich was more of an agnostic.

Edgy DC Dec 22 2010 10:25 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Probably, but I designate him as such ethnically, if nothe theologically, as the ethnic breakdown of the squad was an important part of the premise. I can't think of too many other TV shows called The _____ ______ Show, where the name derived not from the lead actor's name but from his character's name. There was The Larry Sanders Show, but that was a show about a show. Same with The Jackie Thomas Show.

Lefty Specialist Dec 22 2010 01:34 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

If I want my wallet back rather than be entertained, I go with Wojo. He seemed dumb, but for some reason always caught the bad guy.

Edgy DC Dec 22 2010 01:41 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

That's a good point. He did seem to have a good clousre rate.

G-Fafif Dec 22 2010 01:54 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Let us not forget Officer Leavitt was promoted to detective in the series finale. Surely he'd go for your wallet.

Edgy DC Dec 22 2010 02:11 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Yabbut that wasn't the seventies.

G-Fafif Dec 23 2010 05:17 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Edgy DC wrote: that wasn't the seventies. Oh, so it's the seventies you want, big boy? Detective Wentworth here can help you out. She'll have you know she wasn't always a glamorous nightclub singer in the greater Phoenix area.

dgwphotography Dec 23 2010 08:13 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

G-Fafif wrote: Edgy DC wrote: that wasn't the seventies. Oh, so it's the seventies you want, big boy? Detective Wentworth here can help you out. She'll have you know she wasn't always a glamorous nightclub singer in the greater Phoenix area. I thought she was a waitress...

Edgy DC Dec 23 2010 08:40 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Yes, a few detectives joined the squad room for only a few episodes, including (checking Wikipedia) Detective Janice Wentworth (Linda Lavin), Detective Maria Battista (June Gable), and Detective Eric Dorsey (Paul Lieber). Chicks apparently, weren't allowed to be detective sergeants like all the dudes were. Barney Miller was one of those shows (All in the Family and Hill Street Blues were others) where actors join the cast as regular or semi-regular characters after first appearring as guests in another role. It's like they decide after a guest spot that this actor belongs in this universe and they write a new character for them. Landesberg first appeared as a priest. A droll priest.

Willets Point Dec 23 2010 08:44 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Don't forget that Harry Morgan first appeared on M*A*S*H as a crazed general before returning as Col. Potter.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 23 2010 09:07 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Steele. Three E's, not all in a row.

Edgy DC Dec 23 2010 09:07 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Good call.

Edgy DC Dec 23 2010 09:16 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Willets Point wrote: I thought Dietrich was more of an agnostic. Bullseye. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TthgTwGHaNw

cooby Dec 23 2010 09:44 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

In your description of Barney Miller, you forgot to mention "hot as hell". He gets my vote

TheOldMole Dec 23 2010 11:25 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

I went with Barney. Shameless plug -- series creator Ted Flicker plays a role in Nick & Jake.

G-Fafif Dec 23 2010 11:37 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

dgwphotography wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Edgy DC wrote: that wasn't the seventies. Oh, so it's the seventies you want, big boy? Detective Wentworth here can help you out. She'll have you know she wasn't always a glamorous nightclub singer in the greater Phoenix area. I thought she was a waitress... Day job. Just you wait for her big break. There's a new girl in town and she's looking good!

cooby Dec 23 2010 11:49 AM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

That Alice theme always cracked me up...if that's an aspiring lounge singer, I could be Kate Smith

G-Fafif Dec 23 2010 12:04 PM Re: Who's Your 12th Precinct Detective?

Janice Wentworth/Alice Hyatt, hashing out "It Had To Be You," at Mel's, here. In the realm of actress/singers (or detective/waitresses), she was no Andrea True Connection.