Nat Hiken skewered the military with The Phil Silvers Show, aka You'll Never Get Rich, aka Sgt. Bilko. So what could he do for an encore? How about a buddy comedy about cops?
In the early 60's, the screen was filled with police dramas, and so the genre was ripe for comedy. Enter Car 54, Where Are You?, which centered on two patrolmen, Gunther Toody (Joe E. Ross) & Francis Muldoon (Fred Gwynne), although, like Bilko, the ensemble was just as valuable.
Toody was about as sharp as a broken thumbtack. Muldoon was a by-the-book officer who had to try to keep Toody in line as best as able. Difficult to do over the course of the series' run. The cast also included Charlotte Rae (later of Diff'rent Strokes & The Facts of Life), Al Lewis (who would join Gwynne in The Munsters and achieve cult icon status), & Nipsey Russell, who wasn't reciting poetry on the show.
Car 54 lasted two seasons, and spawned a feature film version more than 30 years after it ended, with actor-singer David Johansen, aka Buster Poindexter, in a lead role. Small wonder that it flopped.
Following is the episode, "Remember St. Petersburg", with guest star Larry Storch (pre-F-Troop):
Joe E. Ross would parlay his signature "Oooh! Oooh!!" into a brief career in cartoons in the 70's for Hanna-Barbera, landing few live-action roles post-Car 54. Now, that's one mystery I'll never solve.
Rating: B.
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