For years I've watched as 1980's TV classics made their way onto DVD— Miami Vice, Night Rider and Hart to Hart to name but a few. Don't get me wrong. People loved those shows, but I always liked more intellectual/character study dramas myself. My favorite was Cagney and Lacey. Each Monday night, I tuned in to see the New York 14th precinct detective duo of Christine Cagney (Sharon Gless) and Mary Beth Lacey (Tyne Daly) fight crime. Truth be told, C&L is still my favorite TV drama after 25 years…and now it's finally made its way to DVD thanks to the diligent efforts of Executive Producer Barney Rosenzweig to bring it back to the small screen. When I saw Full House, which never captured an Emmy award, going into it's sixth season DVD release, and we STILL had no C&L, I have to admit, I got annoyed. I began to research where I could send my ‘angry letters’ on why the C&L fans were being left out in the cold. During my search, I found good news! I learned that MGM now owned C&L, and through Fox, it would release 'The True Beginning' on May 8th, 2007 (P.S.: Don't be fooled by the date that appears on sites such as Amazon.com that say its release is 2010). I was pleased to see it in time of the 25th anniversary but also overjoyed by it's May release making it the perfect Mother's Day gift— not only for my mom, but for me too. It's the best bought Mother's Day gift my daughter could ever give me. (My favorite gift was the handmade card of a big 'M' and a cute poem, which I still have, but I digress).

As a young woman growing up in the 80's, Cagney & Lacey was monumental to me. I finally had heroines who didn't have to wear low cut tops and tight miniskirts to save the day. And sometimes, like in real life, they didn't always come through— sometimes there were unhappy endings. These two characters had convictions, beauty, brains and guts. They had vices, flaws and fears too. In other words, they were real women. Growing up I wanted to be Cagney— brave, single, career minded and independent. Instead, I became Lacey— married at 19 to a sweetheart of a guy like Harvey (John Karlen), a mom at 21 and doing a job that made getting out of bed each morning worthwhile. The series filled me with the belief that, although I was a girl, I could still set goals and achieve them with sweat and the right attitude. I didn't have to look like a fashion model to have self worth. It taught me the road of life will have bumps, but by taking action and having perseverance, you can succeed. How many shows on TV today can say they play a pivotal role in the positive development of the young female psyche?

So getting this set of DVDs is more than just a walk down memory lane for all of the fans. It’s something empowering we can pass on to the next generation of young women, which sadly, is lacking today in the world of entertainment. Incidentally, my daughter is around the same age today as I was when I started viewing C&L and I look forward to sharing the series with her. To fully understand what the four disc set contains, we really have to delve into the history of the series. Cagney and Lacey first arrived as a TV-movie back in 1981 starring Daly and Loretta Swift as Chris Cagney. Based on its highly successful ratings, CBS ordered up a series. Swift was already working on M*A*S*H, so Meg Foster filled the role of Cagney. Producers wanted Sharon Gless from the start but, like Swift, she was already committed to another series, House Calls. After six episodes CBS decided to cancel the series, but producers convinced the network execs to reinstate the show. CBS relented, but the producers were told that the role of Cagney would need to be recast as part of the deal. As fate would have it, House Calls was cancelled during that time and Sharon Gless was finally free to step into the role. But the saga doesn't end there.

At the end of the 1982 to 1983 season, the series was canceled yet again, due to low ratings. But then something unprecedented in television history happened. Viewers wrote to CBS protesting the cancellation. Other fans picketed in front of CBS headquarters and the show's producers and stars went to various U.S. cities to drum up support. The media got wind of a grass roots effort to save the TV show and over summer reruns people began to tune in to see what all the 'fuss' was about. As a result, the Nielson ratings went up and they stayed up. CBS had a change of heart. They apologized for the cancellation and the series was reinstated again until its final season in 1988. Later in the 1990's, Gless and Daly reprised their roles in a string of TV movies, including Cagney and Lacey: The Return, which proved to be one of the highest rated TV-movies of 1995. As a side note, for those who are interested in the show's colorful history, Barney Rosenzweig has a book also coming out this May titled 'Cagney and Lacey…and Me', which discusses the trials and tribulations of Hollywood and putting on an Emmy winning production.

But now that you've had your Cagney and Lacey 101 education, the box set being released will feature episodes only starring Gless and Daly. The first six shows with Foster have been omitted. As a fan, I'd love to have all the episodes from start to finish. But I know that beggars can't be choosers in this world, so I'll happily take what I can get. In a memo on the official Cagney and Lacey website, www.cagneyandlacey.com, Mr. Rosenzweig addresses the reason why the 'Gless only' episodes are featured. As he explains, 'It was these 22 episodes that brought about the famous write-in campaign…" He notes that perhaps one day the TV movie that started it all, and Foster’s episodes, might be available for purchase too. One can hope. So the set, although touted as The True Beginning, in truth, is actually season two. But if you consider the cancellation, the reinstatement, the cancellation, the reinstatement, etc. etc. finding the proper name for this box set was quite a challenge. But no matter what you call it, the set is simply fantastic with such classic episodes as 'Witness to An Incident', which puts Cagney and Lacey on opposite sides regarding what they saw in a police shooting. Other favorites include 'Internal Affairs' where the duo have to investigate their fellow officers, 'The Grandest Jewel Thief of Them All' featuring Cagney trying to nab Albert Grand, a world-famous jewel thief and 'Burn Out' where Mary Beth succumbs to the demands of work and family and goes AWOL.

To my knowledge C&L is the only series in Emmy history to capture the category of best actress in a dramatic series and hold that title for its entire run. It won a slew of other Emmy's over the years, including best dramatic series, as well as Emmy's for writing, directing and a best supporting actor award going to John Karlen. And that's not even counting the Golden Globes, other press awards and countless humanitarian organization accolades. It’s funny, but I remember reading a review about the show that was printed years ago. The reviewer said, and I’m paraphrasing here, that Cagney and Lacey was nothing more than an issues show and it wouldn’t stand up to the test of time for that reason. They tackled subjects like racism, sexism, abortion, alcoholism and cancer, just to name a few. It’s a good thing we solved all those issues, isn’t it?

Aside from the fact the reviewer was dead wrong, what offended me the most was that he didn’t see past the exterior to get to the heart of the show. It wasn’t about the issues, although they did feature issues that are still prevalent today. The series was built around two strong women, their relationship in the world and with each other. It was about how they faced those challenges and issues, not the issues themselves. In a nutshell, C&L wasn't about hip music and trendy clothes. There was no talking car or beautiful married people solving crimes and drinking Champaign. It was a ground breaking television drama— one that celebrated womanhood and the bonds of friendship. It was far more than just an ‘issues show.’ It was a series, the likes of which, no network has been able to duplicate…and chances are…never will. And it's high time to see it come to DVD. UB
 

Distributed by: MGM Home Video
Genre: Television Series
Rating:

Cast
Tyne Daly
Sharon Gless
Al Waxman
Carl Lumbly
Karen Arthur
Allen Baron

DVD Features
Box set, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC, Language: English, Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only), Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1, Number of discs: 4


www.cagneyandlacey.com/

 

Nadine Meeker, devout generation X’er and confirmed campy TV addict, lives in Michigan with her hubby of 17 years and their 14-year-old daughter. She left a career in journalism when she knew more than her college instructor did but got happily sucked back in by UPBEAT Entertainment News Syndicate. 
 

Home | UPBEAT Staff | Contact Us | Submit Content

Copyright ©2007 Bridget Petrella Media Relations. All Rights Reserved.