Joseph Wambaugh

In this pilot film that preceded the short-lived series, a street cop in his last week on the force before his retirement investigates the murder of his partner.

In the first of a potential series of films inspired by the real-life experiences of Los Angeles police officer turned bestselling author Joseph Wambaugh, an on-the-skids detective, with memories of having accidentally shot and killed his partner while they were pursuing a pair of bank robbers, tries to put his life back in order.

Joseph Wambaugh wrote his first novel 'The New Centurions' while still active as a member of the Los Angeles Police Department, and his fact-based, painfully realistic book became a nation-wide bestseller when it came out in 1971. Replacing heroic cops with struggling, psychologically damaged characters, Wambaugh changed crime literature forever. Richard Fleischer’s filming of Wambaugh’s novel, also called THE NEW CENTURIONS, followed a year later and, in turn, revolutionized crime movies. Featuring newly filmed interviews with writer Joseph Wambaugh, star Stacy Keach, technical advisor Richard E. Kalk (Wambaugh’s real-life LAPD partner) and assistant cameraman Ronald Vidor, COP STORIES: THE MAKING OF RICHARD FLEISCHER’S THE NEW CENTURIONS chronicles the production of that landmark film in all its stages from script to screen.

Police Story is an anthology television crime drama. The show was the brainchild of author and former policeman Joseph Wambaugh and represented a major step forward in the realistic depiction of police work and violence on network TV. Although it was an anthology, there were certain things that all episodes had in common; for instance, the main character in each episode was a police officer. The setting was always Los Angeles and the characters always worked for some branch of the LAPD. Notwithstanding the anthology format, there were recurring characters. Scott Brady appeared in more than a dozen episodes as "Vinnie," a former cop who, upon retirement, had opened a bar catering to police officers, and who acted as a sort of Greek chorus during the run of the series, commenting on the characters and plots.

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under The Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night. For its first ten years, Carson's Tonight Show was based in New York City with occasional trips to Burbank, California; in May 1972, the show moved permanently to Burbank, California. In 2002, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was ranked #12 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.