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Here's why the idea of being ''average'' was important on Adam-12
While it was anything but average, Adam‑12 still appealed to the average viewer.
Adam-12 was the kind of TV series that wasn’t just entertainment. It offered educational value and, more importantly, a purpose.
The series followed two Los Angeles police officers, Malloy and Reed, as they patrolled the city and responded to crimes and everyday emergencies. The series emphasized realistic police work and life on the streets.
According to a 1968 interview with the Scrantonian Tribune, Martin Milner, who played the role of Officer Pete Malloy, said the purpose of the series was to show the type of calls and work police officers get in an "average district."
"There’s tragedy and comedy nearly every day in such an average community, and the average pair of policemen handle five to fifteen incidents in an eight-hour day," Milner said. "What we hope to do is just tell it like it is."
Part of being as authentic as possible was making Adam‑12’s two stars educated in police work, as well as looking and acting the part. That’s where creator Jack Webb came in.
Webb worked just as hard as his actors did to make the series feel real and to make Milner and McCord believable not just to average viewers but to the police force as well.
"You could put him (McCord) in any L.A. department inspection group, and I don’t think even the chief would be able to spot him as an actor," Webb said.
Like most actors, Milner didn’t know much about police work or the law. He was an actor first and foremost and had a squeaky‑clean record at the time. His experience with the police was limited. However, he dedicated himself to the series and to the role.
"Now I’m no longer detached about it," Milner said. "I’ve been out in the patrol cars with the patrolmen; I know what they have to go through. I’m strictly on the side of law and order — and I think our new show will help bridge the gap between ordinary citizens and the law, to show what police work really is."
The average policeman for the average TV viewer — that was the whole purpose of Adam‑12. In fact, Adam‑12 helped change the way people saw the police force and how it operated, even inspiring a whole new generation of young policemen and women.
"…TV programs about the police seem to be fascinating to the average viewer," Milner said. "And would you believe it — the biggest audience is kids between twelve and seventeen?"
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