Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 2, 1994 TAG: 9407020073
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LYNN ELBER Associated Press
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Medium
And "Bakersfield P.D.," a Fox Broadcasting Co. police comedy, didn't pull the audiences of, say, ABC's hit police drama "NYPD Blue" this season.
But Fox is giving viewers a second chance to discover the sly, satirical charm of "Bakersfield," a rare sitcom that dares to fly without a laugh track.
The series' summer run begins Thursday (9:30-10 p.m. EDT). Fox will show four unaired episodes, then repeat at least some of the critically lauded but low-rated 13 which aired previously.
Larry Levin, who created the odd lot of comic officers and detectives thrown together in a Bakersfield police station, would like to see audiences at least give the series a shot.
"I just want the show to get sampled," Levin said. "If it had some huge audience in the beginning and then it dropped off I would say, `Well, maybe this show's sensibility doesn't work on a mass level.'
"But to get the reviews it did and then get (such low ratings) - no one's ever seen it," he said.
"While I've been pretty self-effacing ... I firmly believe this could catch on if people would take the time to watch it and get into the rhythm of it. It's a rhythm unlike other TV shows."
Levin, whose credits include the comedies "Arresting Behavior" and "It's Gary Shandling's Show," shies away from labeling "Bakersfield" a parody - although it clearly has the skewed vision of one.
"I hope it's not just that," he says. "Parody means you're making fun of people, and I don't think I'm making fun of these people. I like all of them; I find their foibles or vulnerabilities charming and accessible."
Giancarlo Esposito stars as Paul Gigante, a big-city cop accustomed to the excitement of Washington, D.C., but now mired in what he considers a town barren of real crime or real culture.
He's also Bakersfield's rare black resident, as the show paints it: when he first arrives and seeks directions from an older white couple, the husband fumbles frantically to raise the automatic windows.
Paul's new partner is Wade Preston (Ron Eldard), a near-bumpkin who draws his view of law enforcement from TV cop shows. He has the eagerness of a puppy and equivalent social skills.
In one episode, Wade is hurt when he's doesn't get to tag along on Paul's evening out with a visiting cop buddy.
"Why wasn't I invited?" Wade asks. "It's a black thing, is that it? It's a white thing? It's a half-black, half-white thing?"
Their not-so-fearless leader is the querulous Capt. Stiles (Jack Hallett), who can't make a move without the counsel of patient Sgt. Hampton (Brian Doyle-Murray).
Stiles is clearly unnerved when Hampton announces his plans for an early retirement, prompting the sergeant to comment: "I just feel I've wronged you in some way."
"No more than when I was 6 years old and my mother walked out on us," a petulant Stiles replies. "I guess SHE took early retirement, too."
Asked about the source of his offbeat comic vision, Levin casts about for an answer.
"I don't know. Growing up a Jew in Texas, growing up short. I've always had this twisted little ironic tone about everything . .. it's the way I've waded through my life."
It was Levin who made the bold decision to film in a one-camera cinema technique instead of the usual three-camera tape method common to most sitcoms.
"I just like the form," says Levin. "To me it looks more interesting, gives me more flexibility ... and allows me to be a bit more subtle.
"I also enjoy the people that work on one-camera films," he said. And Levin has drawn on directors, art directors and music supervisors who typically work on movies, not in television.
There is also no studio audience or canned laughter blazing a path for viewers; with "Bakersfield P.D." folks at home get to decide what really tickles them.
"It was agreed when I pitched the show to Fox that there wouldn't be a laugh track; they were fine with that," Levin said.
Why not?
"If they sound bad in a studio, they sound really bad on a one-camera film show. It would be like adding a laugh track to a movie," he said.
"I know it makes it a tougher sell. But I think the audience is smart enough to know when to laugh and just enjoy it for what it is."
by CNB