TVSquad

If you need one example as to how 1950s television was different than 2000s television, here it is: this show ran for three years and they made 117 episodes.

This is a complete set in the most literal of ways. It has every single episode of the show, and they got them not just by digging into studio archives but by also asking fans for help. This set was originally going to be a "best of" set because they didn't have all of the episodes. But fans actually filled in the gaps with episodes that they had on tape for one reason or another. So now this is truly a set that was "completed." So you get to see every episode of a show that was rather groundbreaking.

And you also get to see where the cult classic Police Squad! got a lot of its structure.

If you're under the age of 30, you probably only know Leslie Nielsen as a comedic actor. It's understandable, as he's only done a small handful of dramatic roles since he was in Airplane! twenty-six (!) years ago. It seems like almost every role he's taken since then has been a variation on Det. Frank Drebin, the bumbling cop he played in Police Squad! and the Naked Gun movies. Sometimes that gets good results, sometimes it's God awful, as anyone who's seen the Scary Movie series can confirm.

So I don't know what to make of the news that Nielsen has signed on to the pilot Lipshitz Saves the World, an NBC comedy pilot written by Cars writer Dan Fogelman. He'll play the part of the man to help the 17-year-old outcast in the title become the savior that he is supposed to be. Fogleman wrote the part with Nielsen in mind, so it may be a part that gives Leslie a little more room to roam. Hopefully, at his advanced age -- he turned 80 this year -- he'll be able to read lines better than he was able to play game shows, because the poor guy looked a little lost when he was on Gameshow Marathon earlier this summer.

No, I didn't put that exclamation point in the title because I'm overly excited, it's actually part of the Police Squad title. Like Smackdown!

It's been a long time coming, but Police Squad! - The Complete Series hits your favorite store shelf and internet shopping place on November 7, just in time for Christmas. The set will include all 6 episodes, plus extras: an interview with Leslie Nielsen, commentaries, a behind the scenes feature, and a gag reel. Wow, a gag reel for Police Squad! That should be interesting.

That's the word from tvshowsondvd.com. They have confirmation from Paramount Home Entertainment last week that the show is finally coming to DVD next year (no specific info on the date or extras or anything like that).

This is really good news, since I'm sure hardcore Police Squad fans have played their videotapes over and over and over again, until the tapes have been stripped bare. There were only six episodes of the show made, so we'll probably see them all on one DVD. The movies just weren't as good as the TV show, in my opinion, and even though I have them on DVD, I don't think I've watched them half as much as I've watched the episodes of the show, so this release news is great indeed.