Can You Match the TV Cops to Their Job Title?

Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) had a whole lot more on his plate than being a small town sheriff. During the show’s run (1960 – 1968), he was also an agent of the State Bureau of Investigation, a Postal Inspector and a Justice of the Peace.

Daniel J. Travanti played the role of Captain Frank Furillo from 1981 – 1987. He appeared in all 7 seasons and in 144 out of the show’s 146 episodes. Hill Street Blues is, by far, Travanti’s most popular role to date.

Carl Otis Wilson (C.O.W.) is a dedicated police officer who moves up the ranks as the show progresses. Wilson (Reginald VelJohnson) goes from Sergeant to Lieutenant and ends the series as Captain. You go Carl!

Detective Kenneth “Hutch” Hutchinson (David Soul) might have been the brains of the duo but his car certainly left a lot to be desired. It was no good as an undercover car since its horn went off at the worst times, alerting everyone of the detective's presence!

Cagney & Lacey (1982 – 1988) was quite a groundbreaking show and the 6 consecutive Emmy’s won by its leading ladies prove it. For her part, Tyne Daly, who played the role of Detective Mary Beth Lacey, won four of the awards and received an equal number of Golden Globe nominations (although she did not win any of those).

From 1973 to 1978, Telly Savalas as Detective Lieutenant Theofilides “Theo” Kojak solved many different crime scenarios with his catchphrase "Who Loves Ya, Baby?" Kojak also had a special liking for Tootsie Roll lollipops but thankfully, those never quite caught on as a fashion statement.

Homicide detective Lieutenant Columbo (Peter Falk) liked asking all the necessary questions to solve any case. Just don’t ask him his first name, however, since all you’ll ever get as a reply is “Lieutenant!” Luckily for viewers, in a few episodes, the name Frank Columbo is distinguishable on his ID card.

NYPD Blue’s Detective Sergeant Andy Sipowitz is, by far, the role for which Dennis Franz is best known for. Franz appeared in every one of the show’s 261 episodes.

Raymond Burr, who acted as Chief Ironside for 8 seasons (1967 – 1975), was already a famous actor long before the NBC hit show. He had spent 9 seasons portraying the hard-hitting criminal-defense lawyer Perry Mason (1957 – 1966) on the CBS drama of the same name.

Portrayed by Lance Reddick, the character of Cedric Daniels was a previous lieutenant for several drug cartel units. The Wire was beloved by many fans and is still considered one of the greatest cop dramas of all time.

Detective David Starsky (Paul Michael Glaser) was the moody, hipster half of the Starsky & Hutch duo (1975 – 1979). Glaser would be “promoted” years later when he portrayed Captain Jack Steeper on the crime drama Third Watch (2004 – 2005).

For 5 seasons, The Mod Squad was one of the most popular shows on TV. Even people who weren’t in the habit of saying “Groovy!” liked the show for the counterculture vibes it portrayed. Among its young hip stars was Michael Cole, who portrayed undercover Detective Pete Cochran.

Oh, those short shorts! Once you’ve seen actor Thomas Lennon as Lieutenant James "Jim" Ronald Dangle in his trademark attire, it’s kind of hard to get the image out of your head. Rest assured, however, that this dedicated public servant only wears them for “mobility” reasons.

True Detective was a hit show with fans and expanded its main cast in Season 2 with actors like Rachel McAdams and Taylor Kitsch. The show was also filmed in Louisiana and California.

Matthew McConaughey played the role of Rust Cohle, alongside Woody Harrelson. The show went on for 3 seasons and garnered several awards and nominations.

As the Police Chief of Springfield, Clarence "Clancy" Wiggum has big responsibilities. His way of classically bumbling through those responsibilities, however, provides many of the show’s humorous moments. Chief Wiggum is voiced by Hank Azaria, who also provides the voices of many other characters in the show, including tavern owner Morris "Moe" Szyslak.

Leslie Nielsen’s iconic portrayal of Detective Lieutenant Frank Drebin in the Naked Gun film series all began with him playing the character in Police Squad! Many of the show’s fans are still disappointed that the TV show only lasted 1 season of 6 episodes.

Odafin "Fin" Tutuola (Ice-T) began appearing on NBC’s Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in the show’s second season and has remained one of its main characters. Tutuola has gone from being a Junior Detective to a Senior Detective and than on to the rank of Sergeant.

Colin Farrell portrayed Detective Raymond "Ray" Velcoro on season 2 of True Detective. He was also joined by Vince Vaughn, Rachel McAdams and Kelly Reilly, who also came on board during season 2.

Michael Chiklis portrayed Detective Vic Mackey on The Shield. The show premiered on FX from 2002 to 2008.

Fans of Hill Street Blues will never forget Sergeant Phil Esterhaus whose catchphrase “Let's be careful out there,” echoed the sentiment of all those who became totally engrossed in the show. Actor Michael Conrad, who portrayed the veteran cop, was rewarded with 2 Emmy Awards for the role.

Adam-12 was co-created by Jack Webb who also created and starred in Dragnet. Adam-12’s stars, Officers Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) and Jim Reed (Kent McCord) can also be seen in 7 episodes of Dragnet, as well as in 3 episodes of Adam-12’s spinoff show, Emergency!

When Miami Vice premiered in 1984, it immediately became TV’s most “colorful” cop show. That was due, in part to the fashion-forward colors of the suits worn by Detectives James “Sonny” Crockett (Don Johnson) and Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs (Philip Michael Thomas).

Detective Christine Cagney was portrayed by a total of 3 actresses during Cagney & Lacey’s run on CBS. In the movie which served as the pilot for the series, the actress was Loretta Swit, then Meg Foster took over for the series’ first 6 episodes. Sharon Gless starred as Cagney for the rest of the show’s 7 seasons and won 2 Emmy awards for her work.

Detective Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs (Philip Michael Thomas) and his partner Detective James “Sonny” Crockett (Don Johnson) rose to become fashion icons of the 1980’s. Their Ferrari Daytona and Ferrari Testarossa cars also became hot items, thanks to the show.

Portrayed by Idris Elba, John Luther is a Detective Chief Inspector on BBC's Luther. The show is also the recipient of 11 Primetime Emmy Award nominations.

Captain Ray Holt (Andre Braugher) heads a team of effective, though fragmented at times, NYPD detectives. They work out of the 99th precinct in Brooklyn, hence the show’s title: Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Officer Jim Reed (Kent McCord) and his partner Officer Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) patrolled the streets in their squad car, 1-Adam-12, from which the show gets its name. The series ran on NBC for 7 seasons (1968–1975) and returned over a decade later as The New Adam-12 with different lead characters.

Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) is in charge of the LAPD’s Major Crimes Division. Johnson is quite skilled at her job but not so smart when it comes to her cat. She only realizes it’s female AFTER it has kittens!

Sarah Lancashire plays Police Sergeant Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley. The show has also received many awards and nominations.

Law & Order ran for 20 seasons and 456, making it one of the longest-running TV series of all time. Lieutenant Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson) appeared on the show from its 4th to 20th seasons. Her 390 episodes made Lieutenant Van Buren the longest-running character on the show.

Justified is a popular show that aired on FX from 2010 to 2015. The show stars Timothy Olyphant, Nick Searcy and Joelle Carter.

Portraying the character Captain Arthur Fancy on NYPD Blue was not the only time actor James McDaniel took on the role of one of the boys in blue. He was Officer Franklin Rose and Sergeant Jesse Longford, respectively on the short-lived ABC dramas Cop Rock and Detroit 1-8-7.

Lieutenant Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) has been a main character on Law & Order: SVU since the show’s inception in 1999. She holds the distinction of being the only person from the very first season to still be a cast member of the series.

Played by Patrick Wilson, Lou Solverson is a State Trooper on the hit TV show Fargo. There are currently 3 seasons of the show, and it is aired by the FX Network.

Commissioner Gordon (Neil Hamilton) was one of the few people Bruce Wayne (Batman) trusted in Gotham City. It was Gordon’s daughter, Barbara, who went on to become Batgirl.

Detective Sergeant Joseph “Joe” Friday has made his way from radio to television and on to the big screen. The character was originally created by Jack Webb for a 30-minute radio series which ran for 9 seasons (1949 – 1957). Webb then starred as Friday in the 1951 – 1959 TV series. The 1987 Dragnet film starred Dan Aykroyd as Friday.

Hal Linden portrayed Captain Bernard "Barney" Miller throughout all 8 seasons of the show. In the final episode Captain Miller makes it to the rank of Deputy Inspector – a post he had yearned for during the entire series.

Actor Terry Crews portrays Detective Sergeant Terry Jeffords on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Crews also had a role as a Detective in the 2008 film Street Kings.

Gus Grimly, played by Colin Hanks, is a Duluth police officer and later a mailman in the TV show Fargo. He helps solve a series of murders on Season 1.