Since I saw a great discussion in my earlier thread about “Hogan’s Heroes” inconsistencies, I have to throw another similar one out regarding “Barney Miller.” When Jack Soo died, he was written out of the show. However, at some point Gregory Sierra’s character of Chano is no longer on the series and nothing is ever mentioned of him again. Why did Gregory Sierra leave the show and was Chano’s disappearance from the 12th Precinct ever explained? Also, my own personal favorite character was Inspector Luger played by James Gregory. While James Gregory played Inspector Luger as a rather devoted but often clueless boob, I have to wonder: If Inspector Luger was such a boob, how would someone like that be promoted to the position of Inspector?
I don’t remember what they did with the Sierra character. Did they bring in a woman detective to as an alternative Hispanic character for a while?
The inspector was supposed to the old days of the NYPD with restricted hiring and patronage policies. But he wasn’t presented as a total boob, I think it was more of someone older and losing it from old age, though probably not the brightest bulb to start with.
Notably the show featured a gay character in a small role.
I take it you’ve never had a boss?
More seriously, another famous police show is The Wire. Lot’s of incompetent/corrupt higher ups. But based on David Simon’s real life experience as a police reporter in Baltimore. Luger looks like a genius compared to some of those people.
As to Sierra, he was an in-demand actor, even given a (short-lived) TV series a couple years later, A.E.S. Hudson Street. He apparently had eyes on bigger roles than what BM could give him. Plus rumors of friction on the set.
He was there at the end of Season 2 and not seen again. The only later references were regarding Barney Miller trying to find a replacement and such.
I always thought Luger was meant to be more of a fossil than a boob.
Chano was mentioned, briefly.
He had transferred downtown.
I got the Complete DVD set. 
Which episode was it mentioned that Chano had transferred to another precinct?
Don’t recall.
The last season, though.
They blew him up in his car.
I always figured Luger was so close to retirement that the department just found the least demanding job they could for him (Fish was also ancient, but he hadn’t worked his way that far up the promotion list.
However, I do remember one episode where Barney was being investigated by Internal Affairs or something. James Gregory’s snapping off the line “I’ll need your badge and your gun” was a perfect blending of weary regret and someone determined to do the rottenest part of their job with brutal efficiency.
It says a lot about how much TV I watched in the seventies that I immediately got that joke.
If I remember correctly, Chano shot a suspect While he was in the right he had a hard time with his actions.
Growing up in the seventies in Kansas City as the son of a cop, LOTS of people blew up in cars. In some neighborhoods, it was considered “natural causes”.
Abe Vigoda was about fifty at the time - he just looked 90 years older than God.
In the Chicago area, too (big surprise). What I suppose is jarring to younger viewers of Barney Miller is how blase they are about terrorist bombings. IIRC, between the FALN and others there were stretches of the '70s where they were nearly daily in NYC.
I seem to recall an episode about a husband being accused of raping his wife, and their doubts about how that could be possible.
Sitcoms were different in the 70s.
There was also an early episode where they had a woman come in with obvious bruising on her face, accusing her husband of beating her. She waffled back and forth about pressing charges on him, and it was played all very lightly.
Disturbingly real job of makeup on the bruising too.
That’s not to say real spousal beating victims don’t waffle back and forth about turning their violent spouses in, but the whole scene was played for laughs.
I assume Loach was making a specific reference though. Gregory Sierra, who played Chano on Barney Miller, had been a guest star on All in the Family. He played a guy who got blown up in a car.
She signed the complaint at the end.
Yes. An episode that has stuck with me all these years.