Cagney & Lacey

Unlike most cop show on TV, "Cagney and Lacey" did not try and dazzle us with car chases, mind-bending mysteries to be solved or sex kittens posing as police officers (mind the nails!) . It was always about the characters. It was their experiences and reactions to the case and the crime around them, the pressures of the job, the conflicts with each other, that was the focus of the show. And the "Perps", or criminals, had their story, too. At its best, the crime-of-the-week drew you into an issue, a POV , a social problem, whose solution was dramatically argued through the reactions of the police officers involved - primarily the leads, of course.

Besides the writing, what made this work was that we cared about the leads, and we cared what they thought. We especially cared what happened to them. Outstanding, often stunningly realistic, acting from Sharon Gless (Christine Cagney) and Tyne Daly (Mary Beth Lacey) made us feel like we knew these 2 people, and they made us root for them. Their acting rapport was such a lucky happenstance; they complimented each other's styles and characters beautifully. You can't buy that kind of performing chemistry.

Can you tell I'm a fan? Yes, if you want your crime drama with a large dose of humanity, wit, and intelligence thrown in with the obligatory car chases, check it out where you can!

Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly redefined female relationships. No, they were never lovers and the thought had never occurred back in the 1980s. They were partners, allies, friends, and comrades in a man's profession. They were unlikely heroines. Mary Beth was married to Harvey with two sons and a daughter. Christine was the troubled single woman. Partnered together, they formed a dynamic duo with the likes of Starsky and Hutch and Miami Vice but with estrogen and a women's touch. As Cagney and Lacey, the audience realized that women can be more serious and intelligent than the other female duo of Laverne and Shirley. No, this show was serious, thought-provoking, and entertaining. We loved Cagney and Lacey and it was a show that it's audience fought to bring back to the airwaves with passion. Unfortunately, shows like Cagney and Lacey probably wouldn't come back. The idea of having mature, plain women like Daly and Gless is gone. Although the show garnered plenty of honors including Emmys for both Daly and Gless, it is hard to imagine that nowadays a show like Cagney and Lacey wouldn't be more Police Woman and less serious. On screen, Daly and Gless proved to be a dynamic duo. You knew you had two strong actresses giving the performance of their lives as female cops. Gone was the glamor and present was the seriousness that women should be taken more seriously. Unfortunately, actresses like Daly and Gless who are terrific American actresses of the highest caliber who can turn any guest appearance into an Emmy nomination should not be forgotten and discarded like yesterday's garbage. Daly and Gless proved that audiences didn't always go for glamorous, attractive, but a realistic portrayal of women in a man's department. It's still a man's world but Cagney and Lacey proved that they had what it took to make it there after all.

Cagney and Lacey was an amazing television series that addressed several tough issues through the eyes of two women protagonists. One of the only dramas on television to star two women, Cagney and Lacey was remarkable in portraying women as serious participants in a tough and dangerous profession. The series starred Tyne Daly (4 Emmys) and Sharon Gless (2 Emmys) - in my opinion the best acting team on television. The show featured two very different women bickering, laughing, crying together and backing each other up through a series of triumphs and crises. The women were not victims - they were ordinary women doing a rough job and doing it well. The characters and the story line developed over the run of the show. Mary Beth had a baby; almost lost a son and fought cancer. Chris struggled through a series of unsuccessful relationships; was promoted to sergeant and faced her alcoholism. This show wasn't just a cop show - it was a show about two women who happened to be cops. The series was canceled three times and has the distinction of being the first series to returned to the schedule because of massive fan protest at the original cancelation. Well worth watching if you get the chance. It is, however, rarely shown on television.

It's too bad that Harvey Atkin (Desk Sgt. Ronald Coleman) wasn't invited to the 4 Cagney & Lacey reunion movies. He was a good actor. This show was great and thanks to TNN for showing the reruns of the show.

I like Tyne Daly (Juddging Amy) as Lacey ,and Sharon Gless as Cagney. I like John Karlen(Dark Shadows)he was talented. Martin Kove, Carl Lumbly, and the late Sidney Clue was great.

I was great.

I give it *****.

This show was unique in that it was the first time that two basically average looking women played the leads in a TV show that was not about the fact that they were just average looking women. The show was also ground-breaking in that both detectives in the partnership were women - smart, capable women. Women had gradually been integrated into TV police forces over the 15 years prior to this series, but they were usually part of a crime-solving team such as on "Ironside". The balance in this show was not through the well-known old cop/young cop formula. Instead, both detectives were 30-something women. The contrast came in the form of their marital status and their personal situations. Lacey was married and a mother, and Cagney was single.

There was a pilot and six episodes during the 1981-1982 season starring an actress other than Sharon Gless as Detective Christine Cagney. In the 1982-1983 season the show settled into the dynamic that made it so popular and which most people remember.