Police Academy (TV series) explained

Alt Name:	Police Academy: The Animated Series
Genre:	Animated comedy police comedy
Based On:	Police Academy, by Pat Proft & Neal Israel
Voices:	Ron Rubin Dan Hennessey Howard Morris Greg Morton Len Carlson Don Francks Denise Pidgeon Tedd Dillon
Theme Music Composer:	Scott Thomas Canfield
Opentheme:	"They Wear the Blue", performed by The Fat Boys
Composer:	John Debney
Country:	United States Canada
Language:	English
Producer:	Larry Huber
Company:	Ruby-Spears Enterprises Warner Bros. Television
Num Seasons:	2
Num Episodes:	65
List Episodes:	List of Police Academy episodes
Runtime:	22 minutes
Network:	Syndication (United States)

Police Academy (also known as Police Academy: The Animated Series) is a 1988 animated television series based on the Police Academy series of films.^[1] The show was produced by Ruby-Spears Enterprises for Warner Bros. Television. It aired weekdays and lasted two seasons for a total of 65 episodes.^[2]

Some episodes feature a crime boss named Kingpin. His keen intelligence, girth, and stature are very similar to the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Other new characters were added to the show as well. Among them were a group of talking police dogs called the Canine Corps. They were made up of Samson (the bulldog leader), Lobo (the noble yet clumsy husky), Bonehead (the dimwitted giant St. Bernard), Chilipepper (the excitable chihuahua), and Schitzy (the only female golden retriever with an identity crisis). The theme song is performed by the Fat Boys, who also make an appearance in two episodes as House's Friends: Big Boss, Cool and Mark. Robert Folk's theme for the movies is used, uncredited, over the closing credits.

The animated series was more popular in Europe, especially in Italy. It was especially popular in the Arab world, where it was broadcast on Spacetoon and Al Aoula. In Japan, the animated series was shown on TV Tokyo and then TV Asahi.

Synopsis

The animated series takes place chronologically between the fourth and fifth films.

Thirteen characters are re-created for this animated version, including a team of Academy graduates led by Carey Mahoney, a likeable rogue bachelor boy, who unconsciously—and consistently—does his best to make life miserable for Captain Harris and his knucklehead assistant Sgt. Proctor.

Mahoney's friends include the aptly named Moses Hightower, sound effects master Larvell Jones, trigger-happy Eugene Tackleberry, sweet and timid Laverne Hooks, hardened Debbie Callahan, colossal House, and the duo of reformed gang member Zed McGlunk and his best buddy, Carl Sweetchuck.

Eric Lassard is the highly respected (albeit dreamy) Commandant, and Academy newcomer The Professor is also on hand, and also the cadets new friends, the K-9 Corps, a group of police dogs, and stocking the crime-fighting heroes with an endless supply of wacky gadgets as they combat a motley crew of Kingpin and other recurring villains such as Numbskull, The Claw, Mr. Sleaze, Lockjaw, and Amazona.

Characters

• Cadet Carey Mahoney – The most clever among the officers. Mahoney is always ready to lend a hand to his companions. He is also the patrol partner of Larvell Jones.
• Cadet Larvell Jones – Mahoney's usual sidekick. He is a master of the martial arts and his main talent, beatboxing. He is also able to imitate all manner of noises, including sirens, gunfire, helicopters, and so forth.
• Cadet Carl Sweetchuck – The shortest member with a cowardlike personality. He is very accident prone and oblivious to the harm caused by his clumsiness.
• Cadet Zed McGlunk – The messy and unkempt hillbilly. He usually drags his patrol partner, Sweetchuck along in his wily, but erratic pursuits.
• Cadet Moses Hightower – The group's strongman who is well known for his great size and strength. His stature often comes into play when the characters find themselves in situations in which bars must be bent or walls need to smashed through.
• Cadet Laverne Hooks – A small, soft-spoken, and passive woman. However, Hooks has shown herself capable of being extremely forceful and loud in situations in which whatever she gets provoked. She is Hightower's patrol partner.
• Cadet Thomas "House" Conklin – A very obese man who is well known for his large frame, big appetite, and congenial nature. He patrols with Sweetchuck and Zed to often accompanies them in their escapades.
• Cadet Eugene Tackleberry – A weapons fanatic with a pronounced jawline who almost always wears sunglasses and a helmet. Tackleberry often uses the police's armored car, which he usually wrecks. He is fond of using a bazooka.
• Sergeant Debbie Callahan – The statuesque beauty of the group who is extremely resilient and has a beautiful singing voice. She has a weakness for her fellow patrol partner, Tackleberry.
• Captain Thaddeus Harris – The Police Academy's captain. Harris sometimes carries a walking stick around with him and is often tries to humiliate the officers in order to gain a promotion, but fails miserably.
• Sergeant Carl Proctor – Harris' dimwitted sergeant and sidekick who is almost always in the company of his captain.
• Sergeant Ernie Bowser - A sergeant and head of the K-9 corps. He became good friends with Mahoney and his gang. He acts similar to Hurst when facing up to Harris' shenanigans. He speaks in dog-like sounds.
• Commandant Eric Lassard – The easygoing and idealistic commandant.
• Finnegan - Commandant Lassard's loyal pet goldfish.
• The Professor – He is the inventor of numerous devices.
• K-9 Corps – A team of trained dogs. They can talk, but only to themselves and other animals.

Other characters

Villains (criminals)

• The Clown Gang - A trio of clown-themed criminals. Their plan is to sneak into the Police Academy and disguise themselves as new recruits for their looting schemes. They sometimes talk about their boss, Freddie The Fence.
  • Wiz - The trio's leader.
• The Claw - A wanted cat burglar who uses his gadgets to break into buildings and rob people of their jewelry. He speaks in cat-like sounds. He is a male parody of DC Comic's Catwoman.
  • Mouser - The Claw's loyal pet cat.
• Kingpin – The world's largest overlord in various episodes of the series. Together, him and the four escapees formed a supervillain teamup known as The Council of Crime. He is a parody of Marvel Comic's Kingpin. He is also drawn as overweight, bald, and always wearing a white suit.
  • Weasel & Wooley – Kingpin's low-level henchmen.
• The London Bridge Gang - A group of British crooks from London.
  • Hack London - The group's boss. His scheme is to use the Professor's new Supercar that they swiped so he could break into The Tower of London and steal the Royal Chalice.
  • Reggie McDuff & Leroy "Lugnut" Lonningan - London's henchmen. They stole the Supercar to get their boss out of jail.
• LeStarla - An obsessed fan who disguises himself as The Phantom of The Opera to kidnap an opera singer for his own selfish desires.
• Phoenix Amazona - An intelligent, but beautiful strongwoman who loves to take gold objects for money. She is Sweetchuck's former crush. She is also a parody of Marvel Comic's Titania.
  • Big Mike & Fuji - Amazona's wrestling henchmen.
• Seedy McLeech - An outlaw wanted by the old western town.
  • Snake, Maggot, & Annie Violey - McLeech's gang of bandits.
• Cleveland - A treasure hunter who impersonates a cursed mummy to scare everyone away and find King Fut's artifacts.
  • Kroak - One of Cleveland's henchmen.
• Numbskull - A not-too-bright thug who uses a few trick helmets to puncture through the walls of his robbery targets.
• Mr. Sleaze - An infamous crime boss with a weaponized necktie.
  • Beast - One of Sleaze's henchmen.
  • Foofoo - Sleaze's ugly, but loyal pet dog.
• The Highway Robbers - A gang of robbers and Zed's family.
  • Big Bertha - The leader of the Highway Robbers and Zed's aunt. She came up with the family recipe for Hokeyfenokee Stew.
  • Ned and Ed - Zed's long-lost cousins. They always race around the road in their souped-up hot rods.
• The Land Pirates - A gang of notorious gypsies.
  • Madame Zelda - A fake fortune teller and the gang's leader. She jinxes Sweetchuck with bad luck, until this so-called "curse" turns against her.
  • Lazlo & Grimsky - Two of Zelda's henchmen.
• Fredrick Wilhelm - A phony film director who wants to take a gigantic robot gorilla known as Awesome Ape for his heist ideas.
• The Magnificent Mystopholes - A crooked hypnotist who cures Hightower of his dentophobia and mesmerizes him to steal three special keys for a massive diamond known as the Cyclops' Eye.
  • Hunk - Mystopholes' short henchman.
• Lockjaw - A cyborg with crushing steel jaws that allows him to gnaw through anything inorganic. He used to have a crush on Callahan. He is a parody of He-Man & The Masters of The Universe's Trap Jaw.
• Dr. Vice - A doctor-turned-supervillain who overridden the space shuttle's controls so he could send his stolen paintings to the orbiting sattelite. He is a parody of James Bond's Dr. No.
• Mr. Bimmelman - The owner of a toystore who is actually a spy plotting to steal top-secret documents with his dangerous and destructive toys. He is a parody of DC Comic's Toyman.
• Flung Hi - A martial artist and scientific genius with an arsenal of inventions he uses for his nefarious purposes.
• The Hang Ten Gang - A group of surfer-like thieves with hovering surfboards.
  • Brad - The group's leader.
  • Bambi - Brad's girlfriend.
  • Bull - Brad's friend who is as strong as Hightower.
• Kane - A high-tech crook who is trying to get specialized transistors hidden inside a rattle.
• Mr. Glitch - A suspected burgular who once stole a microchip from a space lab, but he drops it into Finnegan's fish bowl.
  • Cagey - Glitch's henchman.
• Waxen Wayne a.k.a The Chameleon - The wax museum's curator and chemist who creates a special "wax formula" that allows him to mold his face into anyone he sees. He is a parody of Marvel Comic's The Chameleon.
• The Diamond Gang - A group of small-time gangsters. Their boss gave the Professor a Jeckyll-Hyde makeover, as well as altering his personality via Anti-Crime Formula so he can build weapons for them to pull off big jobs.
  • Sharky Diamond - The group's boss and grandson of Lucky Diamond.
• Muggsy Maggoy - A midget-sized mobster who was caught by the young Lassard after hiding one of the Emerald Wingtips which he took from a safe inside the jewelry store. 40 years later, he came out of retirement to finish the job.
• Skeets - A prison inmate at the state penitentiary who is the mastermind of the diamond thefts.
  • Louie - Skeets' henchman.
  • Lamar - One of Skeets' henchmen with size and strength equal to Hightower.
• The Neptune Gang - A group of criminals dressed as fish people to strip their victims of his or her valuables.
  • Mr. Bard a.k.a. King Neptune - The group's leader who dresses himself as a chef and the legendary king of the seas.
  • Romeo - Bard's henchman who dresses himself as a waiter and a fish man.
  • Juliet - Bard's henchwoman who dresses herself as a maid and a fish woman.
• The Gamester - A card-based villain who enjoys playing games, robbing everything, and leaving complex clues behind. He is a parody of DC Comic's Riddler.
  • Queenie - The Gamester's henchwoman and girlfriend.
  • Jester - The Gamester's henchman.

Voice cast

Main

• Ron Rubin as Sgt Carey Mahoney
• Dan Hennessey as Officer Zed McGlunk / Sgt Eugene "Tack" Tackleberry
• Howard Morris as Officer Carl Sweetchuck / The Professor
• Greg Morton as Sgt Larvell Jones / Sgt Moses Hightower
• Len Carlson as Captain Thaddeus Harris
• Don Francks as Officer Thomas "House" Conklin / Lieutenant Carl Proctor
• Denise Pidgeon as Lieutenant Debbie Callahan / Sergeant Laverne Hooks
• Tedd Dillon as Commandant Eric Lassard

Additional

• R. Nelson Brown as Elwin Bixby
• Dorian Joe Clark
• Anthony Correa
• Gary Crawford
• Catherine Gallant
• Charles W. Gray
• Rex Hagon as Captain Ernie Mauser
• Elizabeth Hanna
• Suzette Myers as Anchor
• Greg Swanson
• Frank Welker
• Noam Zylberman as Bobby / Bill

Crew

• Howard Morris - Voice Director

In other languages

• Italian: Scuola di polizia (Police School)
• Spanish: Loca academia de policía/locademia de policía (Crazy Police Academy)
• Hungarian: Rendőrakadémia (Police College)
• Lithuanian: Policijos akademija (Police Academy)
• Arabic: أكاديمية الشرطة (Police Academy)

Other media

Home video releases

VHS

Police Academy was released through chronological volumes on VHS. At least 6 volumes were released, each including two episodes:

• 1° The Good, the Bad, and the Bogus + Cops and Robots
• 2° The Phantom of the Precinct + My Mummy Lies Over the Ocean
• 3° Worth Her Weight Gold + Westward Ho Hooks
• 4° Numbskull's Revenge + Mr. Sleaze Versus Lockjaw
• 5° Proctor, Call a Doctor! + Puttin' on the Dogs
• 6° Little Zed & Big Bertha + Lights, Action, Coppers

DVD

On December 11, 2012, Warner Archive released a DVD containing 30 episodes.^[3]

Action figures

Kenner produced a line of Police Academy action figures based on the animated series. Each features multiple points of articulation and comical accessories. Two accessories, included with Claw and Eugene Tackleberry, would be reused for the Joker figures in Kenner's Dark Knight Collection.^[4] Five of the vehicles and playsets planned were left unproduced; however, the Copper Corner playset would later be released through the Argentinian company Josca.^[5]

Series 1 (1988)

• Carey Mahoney and Samson Dog
• Claw with Mouser Cat
• Eugene Tackleberry with Armed Flak Vest
• Larvell Jones and Bullhorn
• Moses Hightower and Meter Reader Scooter
• Mr. Sleaze with Foofoo Dog
• Numbskull with Smashing Helmets
• Zed and Police Skateboard

Series 2 (1988)

• Captain Harris (mail-away)
• S.W.A.T. Eugene Tackleberry with Fistzooka
• Flung Hi with Crazy Karate Gear
• Kingpin with Thief-Trap Safe
• Karate Larvell Jones

Special Assignment Rookies (1989)

• Undercover Carey Mahoney
• Snack Attack House with Hoagie Blaster
• Stakeout Sweetchuck (mail-away)
• Sky Glidin' Zed with Hang Glider

Vehicles and playsets (1988)

• Crazy Cruiser
• Crash Cycle
• Precinct Police Station
• Copper Corner (released through Josco)

Comic books

Based on the cartoon series, Marvel Comics released six issues of a comic book series that published under the main company's name but also featured a "Star Comics Present' byline on the spash page.

Stations

City	Station
Atlanta	WGNX 46^[6]
Baltimore	WNUV 54
Baton Rouge	WVLA 33
Bloomington	WYZZ 43^[7]
Boston	WLVI 56^[8]
Charlotte	WJZY 46^[9]
Chicago	WPWR 50^[10]
Cincinnati	WSTR 64^[11]
Cleveland	WBNX 55^[12]
Detroit	WXON 20^[13]
Dubuque	KOCR 28^[14]
Flint	WSMH 66^[15]
Fort Worth	KTXA 21^[16]
Green Bay	WGBA 26^[17]
Houston	KTXH 20
Huntsville	WZDX 54^[18]
Indianapolis	WXIN 59^[19]
Jacksonville	WNFT 47
Lexington	WDKY 56^[20]
Los Angeles	KCOP 13
Louisville	WBNA 21
Miami	WDZL 39^[21]
Milwaukee	WVTV 18^[22]
	KTMA 23^[23]
Montreal	CFJP 35^[24]
New York	WPIX 11^[25]
Norfolk	WTVZ 33^[26]
Oklahoma City	KOKH 25^[27]
Orlando	WKCF 18^[28]
Pensacola	WJTC 44^[29]
Philadelphia	WPHL 17^[30]
Phoenix	KUTP 45
Pittsburgh	WPTT 22^[31]
Providence	WPRI 12^[32]
Raleigh	WLFL 22
Red Deer	CKRD 6^[33]
Savannah	WJCL 22^[34]
Seattle	KTZZ 22^[35]
St. Louis	KDNL 30
Tampa Bay	WFTS 28
Toronto	CIII 41^[36]
Washington, D.C.	WDCA 20^[37]
Waterbury	WTXX 20^[38]
Winston-Salem	WNRW 45^[39]
York	WPMT 43^[40]

External links

• STA: Police Academy (Kenner)

Notes and References

1. Book: Erickson . Hal . Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 . 2005 . 2nd . McFarland & Co . 978-1476665993 . 630–631.
2. Book: Perlmutter . David . The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows . 2018 . Rowman & Littlefield . 978-1538103739 . 470.
3. Web site: Police Academy: The Animated Series - A 'Volume 1' DVD Has Been Scheduled by the Warner Archive!. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121201151908/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Police-Academy-Volume-1/17798. 2012-12-01.
4. http://batmanytb.com/actionfiguresanddolls/actionfigures/movies/thedarkknightcollection/ Action Figures - Movies - The Dark Knight Collection
5. http://www.toyarchive.com/PoliceCopperCorner1.html STA: Police Academy: Produced!!! Copper Corner Playset Boxed
6. Web site: Retro: Atlanta, GA, Monday November 6, 1989 3 Independents. March 22, 2015. Radio Discussions.
7. Web site: WYZZ FOX 43 Bloomington, IL - Monday 06/11/1990. September 29, 2007. Radio Discussions.
8. Web site: RETRO BOSTON TV- THANKSGIVING 1989. September 22, 2006. Radio Discussions.
9. Web site: Retro: Spartanburg, SC, Friday, April 6, 1990. June 30, 2018. Radio Discussions.
10. Web site: Retro: Chicago, Friday, December 7, 1990. December 1, 2018. Radio Discussions.
11. Web site: Retro: Cincinnati/ Dayton, Ohio...Tuesday November 20, 1990. May 10, 2014. Radio Discussions.
12. Web site: Retro Cleveland/Akron: Tuesday, February 20, 1990. January 11, 2011. Radio Discussions.
13. Web site: Retro: Detroit, MI, Monday October 1, 1989 3 Independents. December 23, 2014. Radio Discussions.
14. Web site: Retro: Cedar Rapids-Dubuque, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 1990. January 18, 2010. Radio Discussions.
15. Web site: Retro: Owosso, MI, Wednesday, December 20, 1989. July 8, 2017. Radio Discussions.
16. Web site: Retro: Dallas/Fort Worth, Wednesday, Apr 25, 1990. April 23, 2020. Radio Discussions.
17. Web site: Retro: Northern WI/Western UP MI Wed July 31, 1991. October 23, 2007. Radio Discussions.
18. Web site: Retro: Florence/Huntsville, AL, Monday, October 30, 1989. August 21, 2017. Radio Discussions.
19. Web site: Retro: Indianapolis/Terre Haute/Lafayette, IN - Tuesday, January 23, 1990. May 6, 2018. Radio Discussions.
20. Web site: Retro: Louisville/Lexington/Cincinnati, Monday, 9/10/90. December 1, 2005. Radio Discussions.
21. Web site: Retro: WDZL 39 in Miami, FL, Monday, October 9, 1989. November 27, 2014. Radio Discussions.
22. Web site: Retro: Milwaukee, WI, Monday October 2, 1989 2 Independents. March 27, 2015. Radio Discussions.
23. Web site: Cartoons on syndication in Minneapolis, MN from 1983-1994. May 14, 2014. Radio Discussions.
24. Web site: Retro: New Brunswick Sat, May 22, 1993. May 22, 2013. Radio Discussions.
25. Web site: Retro: Norwalk, CT, Tuesday, July 30, 1991. February 25, 2018. Radio Discussions.
26. Web site: Retro: Norfolk-Portsmth-Newpt Nws-Hampton Rd- Tuesday, April 16, 1991. June 7, 2019. Radio Discussions.
27. Web site: Retro: Oklahoma City - Week of October 15, 1989. January 5, 2019. Radio Discussions.
28. Web site: Retro: Orlando and Central FL, Tue. December 4th, 1990. December 2, 2013. Radio Discussions.
29. Web site: WJTC schedule, July 1991. February 10, 2015. Radio Discussions.
30. Web site: Cartoons that aired in Philadelphia from 1987-1996. November 21, 2014. Radio Discussions.
31. Web site: Retro: Pittsburgh/Ohio & Mahoning Valleys Mon, May 20, 1991. May 7, 2013. Radio Discussions.
32. Web site: Retro: Boston/Manchester/Providence Sat, Feb 23, 1991. February 22, 2010. Radio Discussions.
33. Web site: Retro: Calgary Wed, July 21, 1993. July 21, 2011. Radio Discussions.
34. Web site: Retro: Savannah, GA, Wednesday, January 10, 1990. October 28, 2017. Radio Discussions.
35. Web site: Retro: Seattle/Tacoma, Wednesday, Jan. 9th, 1991. September 27, 2012. Radio Discussions.
36. Web site: Retro: Southern Ontario Thurs, May 30, 1991. May 30, 2011. Radio Discussions.
37. Web site: Retro: Baltimore/DC/Lancaster, Tuesday, December 12, 1989. December 8, 2018. Radio Discussions.
38. Web site: CONNECTICUT TV- Tuesday March 13, 1990. February 17, 2006. Radio Discussions.
39. Web site: Retro: North Carolina, 9/14/91. August 25, 2005. Radio Discussions.
40. Web site: Retro: Baltimore/DC/Lancaster, Wednesday, August 22, 1990. November 4, 2017. Radio Discussions.