# Barney Miller rocks **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 11, 2010, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048 "2010-03-11T00:23:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/41 "2010-03-12T00:58:14Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Luger is awesome, especially when he reminisces about the old days (Foster, Brownie, Kleiner), and the way he stamps his foot when he shakes your hand or makes a point. Or, how he always refers to Levitt as ‘Levine’. 🙂 It actually had a kind of sweet final version in the final episode as Luger’s giving everybody their new assignments. Wojo I remember was reassigned to the K9 division, Harris and Dietrich etc to X and Y division, then he says LUGER: Levine, you’re going to… LEVITT: Inspector, for the last time, it’s Officer _Levitt_… LUGER: No, actually it’s now _Detective_ Levitt. He finally got promoted. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/42 "2010-03-12T00:59:35Z")
_Barney Miller_ is one of my favorite TV shows. I watched it every chance I got when I was growing up, and having watched a bunch of them on [hulu.com](http://hulu.com) in the past year, my youthful enthusiasm seems to have been totally justified. I heard quite a lot that police officers consistently vote this show as “the most realistic” cop show ever, and I never have had cause to doubt that. [ > [@wkipedia](#): > > Decades after its cancellation, Barney Miller retains a devoted following among real-life police officers, who appreciate the show’s emphasis on dialogue and believably quirky characters, and its low-key portrayal of cops going about their jobs. During his appearance on Jon Favreau’s Independent Film Channel talk show Dinner for Five, Dennis Farina, who worked as a Chicago policeman before turning to acting, called Barney Miller the most realistic cop show ever seen on television. Hal Linden has told interviewers that he is still occasionally called “Captain” by working police officers. ]([Barney Miller - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Miller)) I mean, how cool is that? Twenty or thirty years after the show, and people still refer to him as “Captain Miller”. That fucking rocks. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/43 "2010-03-12T01:02:45Z")
Trivia: when Max Gail first started on the series he was, understandably, leary about buying a house he couldn’t afford, but he did buy a lot with an ocean view in Malibu. Since just the lot took everything he could afford, he lived on it in a teepee! As the show went on he began building a house, doing much of the work himself (he had a background in construction) and still lives there. There was [an episode of Bob Villa](http://video.bobvila.com/m/21319504/visit-to-max-gail-s-home.htm)a few years ago that toured the home. (The wife on that tour is his second; his first wife died of cancer soon after Barney Miller ended and he became a stay at home dad.) ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/44 "2010-03-12T01:31:12Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > There was [an episode of Bob Villa](http://video.bobvila.com/m/21319504/visit-to-max-gail-s-home.htm)a few years ago that toured the home. I remember that episode, and thinking Gail’s house rocked. P.S., “a few years ago” in this case is “something like 15 years ago.” ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/45 "2010-03-12T02:20:34Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Johnny Angel writes: > > \> But that was in 1991, before CSI: Miami. > > Whereas now we now that all police units contain at least one member who, before making a dramatic speech, cocks his head to the side and takes off his sunglasses. That totally oversimplifies the character. If his sunglasses happen to be off when he delivers his speech, then he puts them back on. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/46 "2010-03-12T04:41:29Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Also some great recurring characters: the wolfman who later decides he’s Jesus (or vice versa) > [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > I don’t think he was supposed to be the same guy, they just wound up using the same character actors over and over. He was Mr. Kopechne as the werewolf, and he was also Mr. Kopechne as a possessed guy. IIRC, in the latter episode, someone says, “You were here a few years ago, weren’t you, Mr. K?” or words to that effect. > [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I guess I’m a minority of one here, but I like Levitt. The rest did treat him somewhat condescendingly, which did get my sympathy. But he did have his bad moments. The worst was talking to Barney about an opening in the squad when one of the others was reported as shot, I think. Seriously clueless and horrible timing. But I loved the episode where he interprets the deaf hooker’s signing. Her lawyer signs high praise for Levitt (via him) to Barney, including, “I’m surprised that such a talented man is still a patrol officer” or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/47 "2010-03-12T05:11:41Z")
Inspector L hears Nick was shot “in the cheek” (“Not that cheek”) “They shot him just because he is Japanese?” ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/48 "2010-03-12T05:14:35Z")
In case you ever wondered if Harris was gay, [this clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSFCyb8lqBc) where he chokes Wojo’s chicken should answer it. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/49 "2010-03-12T17:30:51Z")
As a professional baker myself I liked the episode when someone complained about a local bakery that was selling pastries in “obscene shapes.” The funniest part was that they were never shown or described. You just saw the look on people’s faces when they saw them. I think it was Yemana who said, “I never would have thought of putting poppyseeds _there_.” ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/50 "2010-03-12T18:16:27Z")
There’s one episode that epitomizes to me why Barney Miller wasn’t just a good show, but one of the greats. My description won’t give it justice. The perp of the week is a ventriloquist who takes his dummy everywhere. The funny bit has been done by other shows, where the characters find themselves responding to the dummy, who consistently insults everyone, much to the chagrin of the ventriloquist. It’s the ending that was great, though. There was a heartwarming scene where Barney convinces the ventriloquist that he has to learn to speak for himself, and to let the dummy go. It’s kind of hearbreaking when the ventriloquist finally lays the dummy down. Then, after a few seconds of silence, you hear the dummy croak, “Water.(cough cough) Water.” And the ventriloquist ecstatically hugs the dummy. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/51 "2010-03-12T20:43:28Z")
> [@](#): > > My favorite lines were from the hash brownie episode- > > Nick: Barney… Barney… Barney… was your mother from Kelearney? > > and later > > Nick: Mushy mushy. > > Both were of the “you have to see it to know why it’s funny”. Both good. But my favorite line from that episode was Yemana throwing his arm around Barney’s shoulder and saying “Hey, let’s go down to the beach and shoot some clams.” ---
**Author:** ![DivineComedienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c67d28/32.png) [@DivineComedienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DivineComedienne)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/52 "2010-03-12T23:54:19Z")
I always thought Hal Linden was incredibly hot - that great smile and sexy eyes. Even though I was in high school when this show was on, I thought he was a fabulously sexy “older man”. My favorites were the ones when the guys cross-dressed to work “park detail” - especially Harris, who fought it because he had to shave his mustache. When he came out dressed like a woman, the rest of the guys were stunned! Barney told him he “looks lovely”! And Harris said something to the effect of, “I want to look good…but not BETTER.” Classic TV, I wish they would bring it back on TV Land. ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/53 "2010-03-13T03:20:11Z")
I loved this show back in the '70s and I’m loving it now on the reruns. Two things I’ve been noticing on rewatching: First, Barney _was_ hot. This totally went over my head back in the '70s when I was a teenager. But now? Ding-DONG! Second, most everybody was _so_ average looking! Modern cops shows have pretty unrealistic looking casts. The female cops all look like super-models, and half of the male cops look like pretty boys… On _Barney Miller_ everybody just looked like plain folks. Hot as Barney was, he was still normal-people-hot, not ridiculously-Brad-Pittesque-hot. Wojo was supposed to be the squad hottie and he wouldn’t even make 3rd-tier hot status on a modern cop show. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/54 "2010-03-13T03:24:56Z")
Just watched the hash brownie episode on DVD. Barney: “Harris, go home until you feel better.” Harris: “I’ll go home, but I ain’t never gonna feel no better!” ---
**Author:** ![oliversarmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/eb8c5e/32.png) [@oliversarmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oliversarmy)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/55 "2010-03-13T06:32:06Z")
I started watching Barney Miller when I was 17. By the time it was over, I was married. I don’t think I missed an episode, but a lot happened in that time. One thing I liked about the show was the topical humor. It was funny then. It’s funny now. And that’s the striking part. The only difference, based on premise, is that Lexington and 59th may not be the hell-hole it once was. But I don’t live in NYC and I can only go by the dialogue. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/56 "2010-03-13T06:45:53Z")
I’m surprised they’ve never done a reunion show. I’m not talking about one with a plot and writers but the kind where the cast sits around and talks about the shows. For a show that went off the air almost 30 years ago it’s surprising how many of them are still alive; the only regulars I can think of who have died since the show left the air are Levitt and Luger. I only vaguely remember the spin-off _Fish_. I know it was cancelled quickly, which would imply Barney fans didn’t care for it, and I know it involved Fish and Bernice (Florence Stanley, who is dead) taking in foster kids- never a good sign- but does anybody know if it was any good? ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/57 "2010-03-13T10:47:54Z")
The writing made it work. I’ve been collecting the DVD sets, too. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/58 "2010-03-13T11:48:47Z")
I remember watching Fish for half a season or so, did nothing for me. Fish himself, though beloved by many Barney Miller fans, was only mildly amusing to me, and Bernice I could do without. Add a bunch of unfunny, bratty kids and you have a show that, to me, holds no interest whatsoever. It actually lasted two seasons (and is not on DVD). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/59 "2010-03-13T17:14:40Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I remember watching Fish for half a season or so, did nothing for me. Fish himself, though beloved by many Barney Miller fans, was only mildly amusing to me, and Bernice I could do without. Add a bunch of unfunny, bratty kids and you have a show that, to me, holds no interest whatsoever. It actually lasted two seasons (and is not on DVD). Yes, they took an amusing minor character and killed his appeal by making him the center of a show. ---
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048/60 "2010-03-13T20:41:06Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > There needs to be an all Night Court/Barney Miller network. That would be my go-to channel FOREVER. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barney-miller-rocks/532048.md?page=4)