| Adam-12 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Police procedural |
| Created by | |
| Starring | |
| Composer | Frank Comstock |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 7 |
| No. of episodes | 174(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Jack Webb |
| Producers |
|
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | September 21, 1968 (1968-09-21) – May 20, 1975 (1975-05-20) |
| Related | |
| Adam-12 (1990 TV series) | |
Adam-12 is an Americanpolice proceduralcrime drama television series created byRobert A. Cinader andJack Webb and produced byMark VII Limited andUniversal Television. The series followsLos Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Pete Malloy and Jim Reed as they patrolLos Angeles in theirpolice cruiser, assigned thecall sign "1-Adam-12".Adam-12 starsMartin Milner andKent McCord, with several recurring co-stars, the most frequent beingWilliam Boyett andGary Crosby. The series ran over seven seasons from September 21, 1968, until May 20, 1975, airing 174 episodes.
Like Webb's other series,Dragnet andEmergency!,Adam-12 was produced in cooperation with the actual department it was based on; in this case, the LAPD.Adam-12 aimed to be realistic in its depiction of policing and helped familiarize the American public with police procedures and jargon. Asyndicatedrevival byThe Arthur Company aired from 1990 to 1991 for two seasons, featuring new characters and an updated setting.
Set in theLos Angeles Police Department's Central Division,Adam-12 follows police officers Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) and Jim Reed (Kent McCord) as they patrol Los Angeles. The plots of most episodes follow Malloy and Reed as they handle the variouscalls for service that they are assigned to or come across, ranging from intense incidents such aspursuits,standoffs,shootouts,hostage-takings,gang violence,terrorism, andundercover assignments, to the mundane (and far more common) routine happenings liketraffic stops, disputes,disturbances,narcotics crimes,DUI arrests, fights, andthefts.
At the start of the series, Malloy, intending to resign after the death of his previous partner, is assigned tofield train Reed, an inexperienced rookie. After Reed disobeys Malloy's orders but singlehandedly arrests a group of armed suspects during a high-risk shooting call, Malloy sees potential in Reed and decides to remain on the force to guide him through his nine-monthprobationary period. The first and second seasons are not chronological, with Reed's stated time in the LAPD varying in each episode. Starting with the third season, the series was organized chronologically, and Reed completed his probationary period, with him and Malloy remaining partners. Throughout the series, and especially in later seasons, Malloy and Reed began patrolling other divisions and working on different assignments (such as divisions assigned to patrol neighborhoods likeVenice andHollywood,airport detail,Metropolitan Division,Air Support Division, and even desk duty), occasionally explained as them filling in for other officers or being part of police experience programs. Malloy sometimes fills in for Sergeant William MacDonald as the watch commander in the show's final season. At the same time, Reed finds himself partnered with probationary officers, mirroring Malloy's original role as hisfield training officer. In the series finale, Reed receives theMedal of Valor for saving Malloy's life and completes an examination to become adetective, while Malloy is set for a promotion tosergeant.
The personal lives of Malloy and Reed came up on occasion and were often tied into their duties, though they rarely extended past conversations, episode subplots, or brief scenes. Malloy is a bachelor who has at least five girlfriends (not simultaneously) over the course of the series. Reed is married to a woman named Jean (played by several actresses, including Mikki Jamison andKristin Nelson); in the second season, they are shown to have a son, Jim Jr. (or Jimmy). Occasionally, Malloy and Reed are depicted socializing outside their work, but such scenes are rare. Although both characters are serious-minded and “by-the-book” officers, Malloy is more realistic when dealing with non-violent offenders while Reed is more rigid.
The police cars used in the series were central to the show; Webb "wanted the vehicle itself to be considered a character".[1] As patrol officers, Malloy and Reed spent most of their time in their cruiser, and scenes set in or relating to their cruiser were central to the series. Most officers in the series drove recent-modelsedans, while Sergeant MacDonald always used astation wagon version of Adam-12's vehicle.
In the pilot episode, Adam-12 used a1967 Plymouth Belvedere; for the rest of the first season, a1968 Plymouth Belvedere was used instead, later updated to a 1969 Plymouth Belvedere for the second and third seasons. In the fourth season, Adam-12 used a1971 Plymouth Satellite. Starting with the fifth season, and for the rest of the series, Adam-12 used a1972 AMC Matador.[2]
"1-Adam-12" is anLAPD call sign that combines three elements: the unit's patrol division, the type of patrol unit, and the daily assigned reporting district.
The "1" means the patrol car operates in Division 1 (Central Division), servingDowntown Los Angeles.[3] The LAPD assigns two-officer patrol units the letter "A"; in theLAPD phonetic alphabet, the letter "A" is spoken as "Adam".[4][5] The "12" comes from the daily assigned reporting district, orbeat. Adam-12's "shop number"—afleetvehicle identification number custom to thecity government, located below thecity seal on the front doors—was "80817" on the Belvedere, "83012" on the Satellite, and "85012" on the Matador.
Though the "1-Adam-12" radio call sign identified it as a Central Division unit, the police station Malloy and Reed worked from belonged toRampart Division, which serves sections west of Downtown and uses "2" as its prefix number.[3] There was also never a standard patrol unit with the call sign of "1-Adam-12", as all LAPD reporting districts are odd-numbered.[6]
Universal Studios co-produced the show withMark VII Limited. The series' first episode, "Log 1: The Impossible Mission", was filmed in September 1967, a year before the pilot was picked up.[8]
The production ofAdam-12 involved showing all aspects of correct police procedures. Many elements in the show changed to reflect new policies and regulations in the real LAPD; for instance, when the LAPD switched from the 6-inchSmith & Wesson Model 14 to the 4-inchSmith & Wesson Model 15 in 1970, the service revolvers in the show similarly changed starting in the fourth season. Police cruisers played a central role, as "Webb wanted the vehicle itself to be considered a character".[1] The show's routine use ofpolice radio communications and jargon helped reinforce "the sound of radio as an anti-crime technology."[9] The police vehicles used in the production of the show were purchased from local dealerships and outfitted by the prop department to accurate LAPD cruiser specifications.
The driving scenes were filmed on public streets using a dedicated camera platform mounted to the cruiser's hood, which was towed by a station wagon. The platform held three cameras: the center camera would film both Milner and McCord in one shot, while the left and right cameras would film Milner and McCord, respectively, on a cross-angle. All three cameras were remote-controlled and would roll simultaneously. For the pilot, Webb did not like the reflections of the sky on the windshield (which made Milner and McCord difficult to see), so the windshield of the vehicle was removed; however, this made the actors' hair blow and caused issues with the audio recording equipment. The prop department's solution was to reinstall the windshield and build an overhead shield that extended over the hood and windshield of the car to block the reflections. Sides were added to create a large "black box" over the front of the vehicle with both ends "open", which allowed for more controlled filming circumstances.[8] During filming, thescript supervisor would lie on the floor in the back of the car to read script dialogue for the voices coming from the police radio, which Milner and McCord would respond to. The director and the sound man would sit in a rear-facing seat in the back of the station wagon towing the police car.
Most scenes in the older seasons were filmed at theUniversal Studios Lot, mostly inCourthouse Square andColonial Street. Starting with the third and fourth seasons, the series gradually shifted to filming in actual locations in Los Angeles and theSan Fernando Valley. The garage used tow trucks from the LAPD's North Hollywood Division that was located near Universal Studios.
The police station used in the series was the Rampart Police Station, located at 2710 West Temple Street. The station was built in 1966, two years before the series began, and could thus be considered "state of the art" for most of the series' run. Rampart Police Station was closed in 2008, and Rampart Division moved to the newer and larger Rampart Community Police Station. The old station was renovated to serve as the headquarters for theLAPD Metropolitan Division. The renovated building, now known as the LAPD Metropolitan Division Facility, opened in 2016.[10][11]
In 1974, during the production of the seventh season, Martin Milner signed to play Karl Robinson on the short-lived television seriesThe Swiss Family Robinson, taking him offAdam-12. Several options were tested during this season, which would allow the series to continue should the production of a proposed eighth season move forward.Jo Ann Pflug,Mark Harmon, andMichael Warren were tested for their potential to replace Milner in episodes where McCord served as their training officer or partner. Another idea proposed that the series be continued with Officer Ed Wells, played by Gary Crosby, replacing Malloy, who would be written off with a promotion to Sergeant at another division. However, the birth of Kent McCord's son three days before the seventh season's finale aired took McCord off the show as well, forcing the series to end with the seventh season.[12]
The police vehicles were central characters in that "mobile patrol units [became] associated with the black and white units made famous in such television shows asAdam-12".[13] It was one of the shows that portrayed "the professionalism of the officers and police departments".[14] Ronald Wayne Rodman pointed out that the theme ofAdam-12 referred to a "military-style topic while portraying a sense of contemporary action".[15]Douglas Rushkoff noted, "Adam-12 also marked [the] last gasp of the righteous style of cop TV." Their set was not a squad room or an office, but the actors "watched the changes in American culture through the windshield of their squad car".[16] "12", aslangnickname for police, likely originated fromAdam-12, in a manner comparable to the similar nickname "five-O", which originated fromHawaii Five-O.[17]
In 2003, the Los Angeles Police Department activated an actual unit with the 1-Adam-12 call sign, in service with the Central Division. The unit was not a standard patrol unit and was only assigned to officers who demonstrated "outstanding duty performance".[18]
Milner and McCord madecameo appearances as theirAdam-12 characters in several episodes of the fifth season ofRowan & Martin's Laugh-In, including one that parodied the series' in-cruiser dialogue scenes.[19]
Western Publishing'sGold Key Comics published anAdam-12 comic book from 1973 to 1976.[20]
Nashville Beat, a 1989television film about an LAPD detective teaming up with his former partner to stop a dangerous gang inNashville, Tennessee, starred Milner and McCord. Though the pair being former partners in the LAPD is a nod toAdam-12, the characters have different names, and the show is not otherwise mentioned or referenced.
Milner and McCord would make two appearances in arevival ofAdam-12 that ran over two seasons from 1990 to 1991. In one episode, both actors made cameo appearances as store owners. In the season one episode "Crack House", Milner guest-starred as Malloy, now a captain; in the following episode, "R.T.D. 211", McCord guest-starred as Reed, now a lieutenant.
In 1999,Mattel produced adie-cast toy police car based onAdam-12 as part of their "Star Car" series.[21]
In a scene fromThe Matrix Reloaded, "1-Adam-12" can be heard over a police radio feed.
In the fourthOVA episode ("Revenge Road") of the 1987animeBubblegum Crisis, the call sign of an AD Police helicopter is "Adam-12".
Adam-12,Dragnet, andEmergency! are set in the same universe and depict different aspects of the public safety infrastructure of Los Angeles. Each series has severalcrossover episodes with characters from other Mark VII shows.
Malloy and Reed appear in theDragnet episode "Internal Affairs: DR-20", as well asThe D.A. episode "The People vs. Saydo" (the conclusion to a crossover that begins in "The Radical"). Sergeant MacDonald appears in theDragnet episode "Personnel: The Shooting".
TheAdam-12 episode "Lost and Found" was set at Rampart General Hospital and featured theEmergency! cast. Malloy and Reed appeared in theEmergency! pilot movie, "The Wedworth-Townsend Act". Despite the apparent relation between these shows,Adam-12 is shown to be a television show in oneEmergency! episode, contradicting the officers' physical appearances.
Several years afterAdam-12's finale, Kent McCord was to appear in a planned third series ofDragnet, playing Sgt. Friday's partner, but the project was canceled due to Jack Webb's sudden death in December 1982. Since none of the scripts Webb wrote for the project were ever produced or released, it is not clear if he intended for McCord to play Jim Reed or a different character, though in the final episode ofAdam-12 — the two-part "Something Worth Dying For" — Reed mentions applying to join the Detective Bureau.
A revival ofAdam-12 byThe Arthur Company, titledThe New Adam-12, aired in first-runsyndication in tandem withThe New Dragnet, another revival of a Jack Webb series. LikeThe New Dragnet,The New Adam-12 had different characters, music, and presentation compared to the original series, and starredEthan Wayne as Officer Matt Doyle andPeter Parros as Officer Gus Grant (seemingly unrelated to the Motor Officer Gus Grant seen in the original show, played byWilliam Elliott).
Fifty-two episodes were aired over two seasons. The first season aired from September 24, 1990, to March 18, 1991; the second season aired from March 25, 1991, to September 16, 1991.
Many famous performers and some who achieved fame later appeared in various episodes ofAdam-12.
Universal Studios released Season 1 ofAdam 12 on DVD in Region 1 on August 23, 2005.
In fall 2008,Shout! Factory acquired the distribution rights through an agreement with Universal. They have subsequently released the remaining 6 seasons, with season 7 packaging titled "The Final Season".
In Region 4, Umbrella Entertainment has released the first two seasons on DVD in Australia.
| DVD name | Ep # | Release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | Region 4 | ||
| Season 1 | 26 | August 23, 2005 February 13, 2018 (re-release) | May 11, 2011 |
| Season 2 | 26 | September 30, 2008 | August 3, 2011 |
| Season 3 | 26 | August 11, 2009 | TBA |
| Season 4 | 24 | February 23, 2010 | TBA |
| Season 5 | 24 | August 10, 2010 | TBA |
| Season 6 | 24 | January 17, 2012 | TBA |
| Season 7 | 24 | April 10, 2012 | TBA |
From January 5, 2015 to December 27, 2019, episodes ofAdam-12 aired onCozi TV. The series had been airing onMeTV from May 2013 until January 1, 2015, when its place in the network's weekday afternoon lineup was taken byAdventures of Superman.[22]Adam-12 previously aired on Me-TV's competitorAntenna TV until April 2013, onRetro Television Network, and oni: Independent Television before that.[23] On January 1, 2020, the show returned to MeTV as part of their afternoon block of programming alongsideDragnet at 5/4C PM (Dragnet aired periodically in the morning at 6/5C AM).[24] On April 3, 2023,Adam-12 started to air onFETV. As of 2025,Adam-12 airs in the early morning on MeTV weekdays at 6am EST[25] and late nights on FETV every night at 10:25pm and weekends at 5:40pm and 6:20pm EST.[26]
All episodes fromAdam-12 were available for online streaming onAmazon Prime'sFreevee streaming service until it was removed.Seasons 1-7 are available on Philo streaming service .
