Since we've been doing all this recasting. . .

Cafe Society
1

Let’s do Barney Miller
Given that we wouldn’t *REALLY * want to mess with perfection, but if we *had * to, who would be your choices?

This is a lot tougher, for me anyway, than the others we’ve done, so I’ve only partially cast it.

Barney Miller - Greg Kinear
Max Wojciehowicz (“Just like it sounds.”) - Adam Baldwin
Nick Yamana - ??
Phil Fish - Richard Belzer
Ron Harris - Michael Boatman
Chano Amenguale - ??
Arthur Deitrich - ??
“Li’l” Carl Levitt - ??
Inspector Frank Luger - ??
Janice Wentworth - ??
Okay, you pop-culture fanatacists - Have At It

2

Muppet Miller

Barney Miller - Kermit
Max Wojciehowicz (“Just like it sounds.”) - Fozzie Bear
Nick Yamana - Lew Zealand
Phil Fish - Waldorf
Ron Harris - Gonzo
Chano Amenguale - Pepe the Prawn
Arthur Deitrich - Bunson Honeydew
“Li’l” Carl Levitt - Rizzo
Inspector Frank Luger - Statler
Janice Wentworth - Miss Piggy

3

Barney Miller - Richard Dean Anderson or Bruce Campbell
Max Wojciehowicz (“Just like it sounds.”) - Adam Baldwin (can’t improve on that)
Nick Yamana - Donald Li
Phil Fish - Ed O’Neill
Ron Harris - Grand L. Bush
Chano Amenguale - John Leguiziamo
Arthur Deitrich - David Duchovny
“Li’l” Carl Levitt - David Faustino
Inspector Frank Luger - Hal Linden (I like the symmetry)
Janice Wentworth -

4

Phil Fish - Abe Vigoda.

Let’s face it, he’ll outlive Fidel Castro, Dick Clark, and most of us.

5

elmwood, I actually had that in my list, with the comment that there will never be a need to recast that role.

6

I like your casting of Duchovny as Deitrich, and the symmetry of using Hal Linden again, but do you really think he could pull off “borderline addle-pated”?

7

oh, and if it helps at all - Wentworth was originally played by Linda Lavin

8

Thank you. Dietrich was tough - I needed someone who could deliver wry but in a near monotone.

Hal was a good TV character actor, and for all we know, he wouldn’t have to stretch his skills at this stage of his life.

I know Wentworth came in late in the series, but I really don’t remember the character.

9

She was a tough “gotta be better than the guys in order to make it in this profession” type person, and was briefly involved, romantically, with Wojo

10

In that case, Michelle Rodriguez (who, although she can’t act, I could look at all day).

11

Actually, Wentworth was introduced in the first season. She was very gung ho and extremely frustrated that “the boys” didn’t trust her. She thought it was because she was a woman. Barney claimed it was because she hadn’t become part of the team yet (but it did seem to be at least partly because she was a woman). Linda Lavin played it very hyper and keyed up.

12

Molly Price.

13

[Looming ominously]Yeah…yeah, you really don’t want to…

I’ll be keeping my eye on you…[/Looming ominously]

Hey! What’s that gun held to my head thing? When did that become appropriate? Well, hey, if you insist…

Excellent choices so far:

Ron Harris - Michael Boatman
Chano Amenguale - John Leguiziamo
Arthur Deitrich - David Duchovny (toughest role to cast, IMHO)

Wary “maybe”:

“Li’l” Carl Levitt - David Faustino (dunno what he looks like these days)
Phil Fish - Ed O’Neill (right vibe, but I dunno…isn’t he too young for the role?)
Dark Horse: Phil Fish - Abe Vigoda (Yeah, I agree, he could still do it)

No fucking way:

Inspector Frank Luger - Hal Linden (my head would explode)
Phil Fish - Richard Belzer (too hyper)
Barney Miller - Greg Kinear (good straightman in “As Good As It Gets”, but no way, and too young)

I got nothing:

Max Wojciehowicz - Not familiar enough with Adam Baldwin to say
Nick Yamana - Nobody did Dawn of the Deadpan like Jack Soo
Janice Wentworth - Is this really necessary, though?

14

We had sort of decided **Nathan Fillion ** would make a decent Barney, but if you’re not familiar with Adam Baldwin, you may not know **Nathan ** either

15

He’s older than Abe was at the time.

16

Hmmm…well, I’ll be damned, your right. He was 54 when the series started. Thing is, though, he gave off a cranky old man vibe much older than his 54 years, so yeah, O’Neill is older (60), but he simply doesn’t have that “hey! Get the hell off of my lawn” thing going on that you really need.

17

All he has to do is go in “Get the hell away from my daughter!” mode.

18

Duchovny for Dietrich is a great choice.

It’s gotta be Clifford for Harris. Then Gonzo (the whatever) can be Yamana. How about Kermit’s nephew Robin for Levitt?

19

My mistake - Nathan was cast as Andy Travis in the WKRP thread

20

Brace yourselves. Get any sensitive family members to the nearest fainting couch.

Barney Miller - Dennis Farina

Yeah, I know he’s known mostly for drama. But I’ve seen him in interviews and he seems like a pretty personable guy who could handle the role. He’s the right age, gives off the right vibe (at least in the interview), and he was a cop in real life. What’s not to like?