Police Squad! "TV Guide" ranked it #7 on their list of 60 shows that were "Cancelled Too Soon". "Police Squad!" was created by Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker, who had all previously worked together on "The Kentucky Fried Movie" and "Airplane!". Despite critical acclaim, the show was cancelled by ABC after just six episodes. The show gained a strong cult following through repeat broadcasts, which led to "The Naked Gun" film series. Alan North played the role of Captain Ed Hocken on the show; in the films, the role was played by George Kennedy. Peter Lupus co-starred as Officer Norberg, but in the
Police Squad! The final two episodes were aired that summer. According to the DVD Commentary of "A Substantial Gift" (episode 1), then-ABC entertainment president Tony Thomopoulos said "Police Squad!" was cancelled because "the viewer had to watch it in order to appreciate it." What Thomopoulos meant was that the viewer had to pay very close attention to the show in order to get much of the humor, while most other TV shows did not demand as much effort from the viewer. In its annual "Cheers and Jeers" issue, "TV Guide" magazine called the explanation for the cancellation "the most stupid reason a