Adam 12 Series is Perfect For Kids

Adam-12 was first run between 1968 and 1975 as a half hour drama series. The series follows two cops: Officer Pete Malloy and Jim Reed as they patrol the streets of Los Angeles. Officer Pete is the senior officer in charge and Office Jim is his trainee. Throughout the entire series, Officer Pete acts more like a teacher/instructor/mentor than a partner and Officer Jim gladly accepts the role of “student”.

The series is nothing like the televised cop series of today which can make the series seem a little dull in comparison, but when you take into account that the series follows the lives of two ordinary cops on their daily route, you begin to see the series in a different light. What keeps Adam-12 entertaining, despite the lack of fast-paced action and things blowing up, is that the show appears authentic and real. Not every day, as a police officer, is about finding a murderer or solving a conspiracy or finding a serial killer or breaking up a money laundering ring. Sometimes, it’s about the little things like fender benders, domestic disputes, and local robberies.

While I am not sure the series would make it on today’s prime time circuit, I truly believe that Adam-12 would be a great series to show to today’s elementary students as it would teach the children to respect the law and to respect the enforcers of the law. It would also teach them the difference between right and wrong and the real consequences that would lie ahead if they, too, chose a life of crime—not the glorified lifestyles criminals seem to have on today’s television.

The series also includes a bonus audio feature in which retired police officers comment on the changes that have taken place in the police department since Adam-12 was first made, how accurate the series was to real police life, how the actor’s goofed up a few times, and finally, how the show influenced many good cops to become police officers.