List of Police Academy characters

This page is a list of characters in the Police Academy film and television series.

Main characters

Cadet/Off./Sgt. Carey Mahoney

Played by: Steve Guttenberg

Mahoney is the lead character of the first four movies and cartoon of the series. A troublemaking, womanizing cad with a heart of gold. His worst habit is retaliating against insults in bizarrely effective ways. For instance, the last straw before his police career was when he was a parking lot attendant when he was forced to park a car for an abusive customer in a full parking lot; he put the car into a side-wheelie, crashed it between two cars and proudly proclaims, "It fits!". Since his father was a decorated police officer, Mahoney was given the choice of the police academy or jail by his father's former boss, Captain Reed, who didn't want Mahoney's antics to reflect poorly on his father. He is best known for protecting Cmndt. Lassard and playing practical jokes on Harris, Mauser and Proctor as the three view Mahoney to be unworthy of being a police officer due to his carefree attitude about life. Despite his womanizing and his habit of breaking the rules, Mahoney is portrayed as being a good and courageous person willing to help those in need, regardless of the consequences. The fact that he graduates with a decoration for bravery speaks to that personal valor. By the third movie, Mahoney's dedication and love for his job as a police officer comes out as he continually stands up for his cadets, and even gives a speech highlighting how important the cadets are to the Academy and to his peers which inspires the cadets to work harder and achieve their potential. In 4, Mahoney successfully lobbies to have two skateboarders, Arnie and Kyle, to be placed in the "Citizens on Patrol" program as an alternative to jail time, reminiscent of how Mahoney himself started in the Academy and had his life turn around for the better.

Mahoney is in the animated series, almost every time along with his partner Jones (when in action). He is absent from the last three films, a change that is unexplained, but according to the producers, he was originally in the script for the fifth film, his absence explained as he moved to Miami to join the police there, but he declined the part.

Cadet/Off./Sgt./Lt. Moses Hightower

Played by: Bubba Smith

Featured in all but the seventh film, Hightower was a florist before joining the academy. He is best known for his immense stature and inhuman strength (Hightower practices for his driving test by ripping the front seat out of a compact car [a 1977 Honda Civic owned by Copeland], and steering comfortably from the back). However, he is the most soft-spoken of all the characters. Despite his gigantic size, Hightower has sometimes admitted that he lacks self-confidence, such as when he tells Mahoney that he has not driven a car since he was twelve years old, and fears failing out of the police academy as he will not pass the driving test. His character often breaks things or uses force to threaten the bad guys. Other examples of him using his strength were when he lifted up the practice squad car with Copeland inside, who had insulted his friend Hooks by calling her a "dumb fat jiggaboo" (both Hooks and Hightower are black, Copeland is white). He can also drop easily into bad-cop mode, to gain the trust of crooks he's about to arrest. However, he too graduated from the academy with a decoration for bravery, and eventually made Lieutenant after wrestling an alligator in order to save Harris' life.

In the sixth movie, in pursuit of the Wilson Heights Gang, the only time he actually acknowledges himself being angry is when he is almost injured in by the largest of the Wilson Heights Gang criminals. When he gets up after having construction zone items fall on him, Hightower notices that his name pin was displaced and says to himself, "Now I'm mad."

Hightower is also in the animated series, along with Laverne Hooks.

Cadet/Off./Sgt./ Eugene Tackleberry

Played by: David Graf

Eugene Tackleberry

Tackleberry is in all seven films and is best known for his love of firearms, the military and direct action.^[1] He had been a veteran of the US military and a security guard prior to joining the police academy. He joined the police force to see more action but has a poor grasp of the difference between the military and civilian life. Tackleberry is a bit trigger-happy; a tendency which would have had him court-martialed long ago had it not been for the fact that he actually has good aim. Tackleberry was also known for getting the job done, but with overkill and naiveity; example being aiding a little old lady who lost her money in a pay phone by shooting it and making a bunch of money fall in his hands "Can you identify your quarter, Ma'am". In the second film, which he was assigned to work as a motorcycle policeman, it is revealed that although Tackleberry exerts an image of toughness and masculinity, he is still a virgin. However, upon meeting his police partner, a beautiful and equally gun-obsessed woman, Sgt. Kathleen Kirkland (played by Colleen Camp), he falls in love with her. They get married (driving off in a Bigfoot truck after their wedding) and have a son, Eugene Tackleberry Junior (featured in the sixth film). This leads to a series of gags involving the Kirkland family, featuring Eugene's father- and brother-in-law whose jibes and admonishments are usually punctuated by a good-natured-yet-brutal punch to the jaw. The mother sees the sadistic horseplay as all in good fun.

Tackleberry always carries the biggest sidearm he can lay his hands on, and has a predilection for using excessively heavy equipment (like a chainsaw for cutting down a tree which a truant boy had fled onto); in the sixth movie, posing undercover as a taxi driver, he scares off a patron trying hire his cab by brandishing a grenade. He uses military slang such as "affirmative" and "negative", and the military time system; his personal catchphrase is "...NOW, Mister!"(in the fifth movie, he went so far as to wade into the ocean off Miami, draw his gun on an invading shark, and order "LEAVE the swimming area NOW, Mister!"). He is happiest weighing the benefits of penetration vs. stopping power. Tackleberry is at heart a benevolent person with a tough exterior, he wants to bury his heavy equipment in anyone he encounters; although he did get selfish when he was allowed to test out certain new firearms at the Annual Police Display in Miami, not wanting to share the guns with other officers. He only gave them up when Callahan coaxed him to give them over, promising Tackleberry that she would "get some of [his] very own, just as soon as [they] get home."

In the animated series he used the bazooka, and is seen with Callahan. Tackleberry's bazooka was often used for comic violence rather than destruction, an example being on an undercover job as an ice cream salesman, then loading the ice cream into his bazooka to cover the escaping crooks in a mess. In the "Team Tack" episode of Police Academy: The Series Tackleberry was a Captain, and mentions his wife Kathleen was one as well. Jones and Tackleberry are the only characters to appear in all of the movies, the animated series and the television series. Also, he is the very first character seen in the first Police Academy film.

Cadet/Off./Sgt. Larvell Jones

Played by: Michael Winslow

Jones was one of the key characters in the series and is famous for making sound effects with his mouth. He is one of the characters often remembered from the films as he uses his ability to make noises to play pranks and deceive both criminals and authority figures. Jones is able to clearly imitate such sounds as a flat tire, a couple noisily eating fast food, gunfire, and, memorably, a badly dubbed martial arts star when he defeats a pair of hoods bullying an Asian grocer. This revealed Jones' expertise in martial arts, which he continues to use throughout the series to great success, oftentimes mimicking kung fu voice over as he does so. Other times he uses his sound effects ability solely to amuse himself, such as one time at the academy when he imagines himself playing a game of Pac Man and makes all the known sound effects from that video game. In the sixth movie, he leapt onstage at a nightclub during a blackout (in uniform, declaring "The Metropolitan Police Department proudly presents... me."), and launched into a string of impressions, thus keeping the audience from rioting. He also has an ability to communicate with parrots, training them to call Captain Harris a "dork." Jones and Tackleberry are the only characters to appear in all of the movies, the animated series and the television series.

Cadet/Off. Carl Sweetchuck

Played by: Tim Kazurinsky

Sweetchuck joined as a cadet in the third movie. A stereotypical nerd, Sweetchuck's diminutive size and geeky appearance provided many gags, usually in relation to his physical weakness or as a foil for fellow recruit Zed.

Sweetchuck first appeared in the second film as a shop owner terrorized by Zed and his gang. In the third film, Sweetchuck decides to join the police force; unfortunately, his former tormentor Zed joins at the same time and in the same class, and the two become mismatched roommates. After just a few days, Sweetchuck was unable to take anymore of Zed's antics and attempted to leave the academy, but was convinced by Tackleberry to stay. He and Zed eventually got along better as time went on, though Sweetchuck still gets mad at Zed for one thing or the other.

Sweetchuck is in the animated series (along with Zed). He has a brother named Doug.

Cadet/Off. Zed McGlunk

Played by: Bobcat Goldthwait

In the second film, Zed was portrayed as a hyperactive, antisocial gang leader with eccentric mannerisms, appearance, and taste. Many gags are based around Zed's fondness for things that contrast with his wild-man image, such as Family Affair (actually crying at dramatic moments) and Mickey Mouse watches. Zed is almost like a child, admonishing his cronies to "act their age" while they trash a supermarket and thanking the cashier for the "great bargains" (as his gang trundle shopping carts full of food out of the store). When his gang disrupts an anti-crime street fair sponsored by the Mayor, he tells her "I voted for you!" Zed was caught at the end of the second film.

In the third film, a reformed Zed (who explains his change of heart by saying "I used to be a real jerk! But now I'm a people guy!") joins the police force. He often brings trouble to Sweetchuck, who was the subject of harassment during their civilian years. They become roommates while they are both training at the Police Academy and they manage to get along (to an extent) with each other in time. He suffers from an inability to speak properly and often squeaks or swallows his words. It is also discovered he is immune to the effects of teargas, and apparently even enjoys it. He falls in love in the fourth film with Laura, one of the Citizens On Patrol. His bad breath and screaming, potent enough to blow down a door, are far more potent weapons than any firearm.

Zed is in the animated series (along with Sweetchuck). Several family members make guest appearances: Auntie Bertha, the cousins Ed and Ned, and his hillbilly parents. His surname is McGlunk.

A very Zed-like character (also played by Bob Goldthwait) appeared in several Twisted Sister videos.

Cadet/Off. Thomas "House" Conklin

Played by: Tab Thacker

House would appear in movies 4 and 5. He would join the academy first under the COP program in the fourth film, and later become a full time cop at the start of the fifth film. He is tremendously overweight due to his love of food, and this at times is used as a source of jokes: on the flight to Miami, House moves over to Hightower to show him an article in a magazine, and the plane begins to tilt. The plane is only able to return to level flight when the flight attendant convinces House to return to his seat, as the in-flight meal is about to be served. When he was a child, Hightower would babysit him and bounce him on his knee: but even the immensely strong Hightower could not recognize the giant House as the same child he once effortlessly lifted. Like Hightower he is strong, but is not as focused upon it like Hightower.

House appears in the animated series and often has Zed and Sweetchuck as his partners.

Cadet/Off./Sgt. Laverne Hooks

Played by: Marion Ramsey

Hooks is a diminutive, soft-spoken and unassertive woman with a very high-pitched voice, who often has trouble putting people in line. However, she is known for becoming aggressive and authoritative when frustrated or otherwise pushed to her limit, punching people out or pulling her service weapon, screeching the memorable phrase: "Don't move, dirtbag!" The word "dirtbag" is possibly something she inherited from her days in the Police Academy, under the training of then-Lieutenant Harris. She appears in the first six films of the franchise and in the animated series. She is seen with Hightower in the 5th and the 6th films and in the animated series.

Sgt./Lt./Capt./D.A. Debbie Callahan

Played by: Leslie Easterbrook

This character is best known for her pure sex appeal, specifically her large breasts, which provided the series with countless sight gags, and penchant for wearing tights. A more serious version of Tackleberry, Callahan is portrayed as a stoic, no-nonsense officer who is both physically and sexually aggressive. She along with Harris trained the cadets in the first film, but does not show the outright hostility towards the cadets that Harris does.

In her role as a teacher to the cadets, she usually gets into situations where after explaining or demonstrating the lesson, she is usually flanked by the male cadets volunteering to be her next test subject. For example, in the fourth movie, she teaches a lesson about saving drowning victims, in which she plays the drowning victim: After she dives in the pool, swims to the middle, and surfaces with her white t-shirt hugging tight to her body, she asks, "Now, who is going to save me?". Immediately, all the male cadets jump into the pool and swim after her, while she frantically tries to get away. Another example is in the first movie, where she demonstrates self-defence: Leslie Barbara is her test subject, whom she swiftly takes down and sits on his chest. When she asks for volunteers, all the male cadets promptly and eagerly volunteer.

She is an avid weightlifter and also knows martial arts and has a good singing voice. In the first film, she has a relationship with Cadet Martin; in the third and fourth film, she has a relationship with Japanese foreign-exchange cadet, Nagata. She is seen with Tackleberry in the 4th and the 5th films and in the animated series. She appears in every film except the second, and is promoted to Lieutenant and then Captain.

In the Police Academy: The Series episode "Dead Man Talking" Callahan has retired from the Police Force and has been elected District Attorney.

Her name is a reference to Harry Callahan, the star of the Dirty Harry series of films.^{[original research?]}

Sgt. Nick Lassard

Played by: Matt McCoy

Nephew of Eric Lassard, he appears in the fifth and sixth films. Nick is an officer in the Miami police department in the fifth film, where he falls in love with another cop. In the sixth film, Nick replaces Mahoney's character as the lead prankster and womanizer. He is also a skilled gymnast: at the end of Police Academy 6 he escapes injury by swinging on an overpass and landing in a speeding Bigfoot. Mahoney and Nick's characters are very similar, as much as Harris and Mauser.

Cmndt. Eric Lassard

Played by: George Gaynes

Main article: Eric Lassard

Eric Lassard is Commandant, or head, of the Metropolitan Police Academy (sometimes also called the Midcity Police Academy). He is initially not into the politics of the police department. When Chief Hurst and Lieutenant Harris are denouncing the new female mayor's policy change to remove the barriers from academy admissions, he plays along with them and quickly dismisses their comments once they've left the room. A few years later, however, he will initiate a program known as Citizens on Patrol (COP), which is a community outreach course. Lassard featured in all seven films. He is often portrayed as benevolent yet clueless, fond of his accident-prone goldfish and of making longwinded, optimistic speeches about the future of the academy.

Lt./Capt. Thaddeus Harris

Thaddeus Harris

Played by: G.W. Bailey

"Mister Nasty" of the police academy, he always attempts to discredit Lassard and his men, but ends up being the butt of most of the jokes. Starting with Police Academy 4, he inherits Proctor from Mauser. He generally seems to be success-driven, at the cost of Lassard and his men. Started as Lieutenant in the first film but is promoted to Captain in other films to come. His catchphrase is "Move it! Move it! Move it!" He is also deathly afraid of heights, as evidenced in an undercover stakeout in the sixth film, in which his and Proctor's covers are window washers for a high-rise office tower. He derives pleasure from tormenting and belittling his subordinates - first the cadets he instructs at the academy, then Lassard's men whom he outranks. Although he is generally disliked by his colleagues because of his treatment of them, those same people end up rescuing him.

Despite his role as antagonist, some scenes display Harris's genuine desire to see graduates become good cops. His initial dislike of Mahoney is based in part on his belief that he is disrupting the development of people, "who might make pretty good police officers". Later, in the seventh movie, Harris and the rest of the team develop a 'peace' of sorts, with Harris joining them in the rescue attempt of Callahan and providing the team with the necessary equipment to track the criminals. He even demonstrates trust in Tackleberry by requesting he be the one to shoot a locator bullet into the bad guy's car, notably calling him by his nickname "Tack" when doing so.

He works with Proctor in the fourth, fifth, and sixth films and the animated series. In the animated series Captain Harris is portrayed as gruff but not as sadistic as he was in the movies, and generally more competent. He also seems to take out his dislike of Mahoney through red tape rather than direct action. When Captain Harris was tasked with investigating a string of crimes at the beach, he is also responsible for getting all the officers undercover assignments, to which Mahoney and Jones are assigned to be sanitation workers picking up litter. While Jones accepts his assignment, Mahoney complains that Harris gave them this work to express his dislike of them.

Sgt./Lt./Acting Capt. Proctor

Played by: Lance Kinsey

Lt. Proctor

Lt. Proctor (whose full name is never revealed) is a gullible sidekick to Mauser in Police Academy 2 and 3 and Harris thereafter. In his debut in the second movie, he is originally assertive and staunchly supports Mauser but is also a dimwit and in subsequent appearances portrayed even more so. In 3, is the second-in-command of Mauser's police academy. Despite losing his job after Mauser's academy is shut down, he gets another job as Captain Harris' underling. Proctor seems to bear the brunt of some of the biggest pranks, such as being lifted by crane while he is inside an outhouse and placed onto the field of a sporting stadium. When Proctor hears the national anthem, he stands up immediately and shocks everyone in the audience. He is generally nicer than Harris or Mauser and is often just following orders, which he mostly manages to screw up. Another aspect of Proctor is his childlike attitude in some adult situations, like when he thought the Blue Oyster Bar was a seafood joint or saying to a bartender "Could I get a pink -- no make it a green -- umbrella?" before he introduces himself to a couple of bathing beauties in Florida. Although Proctor has been subject to pranks and slapstick stunts, unlike Harris, he does not appear to show a vicious attitude towards Mahoney and his friends, either because he is too stupid to realize Mahoney was behind the pranks or he is very forgiving. In Police Academy 5, it is revealed that he and Harris are related through the marriage of Proctor's sister and Harris' nephew. Also appears along with Harris in the animated series, in which Proctor was temporarily promoted to Acting Captain in one episode, due to Harris being hospitalized. [1]

Lt./Capt./Cmndt. Mauser

Played by: Art Metrano

Mauser (or Miser in the series; Bouser in the animated series) is a similar character to Harris, and his role in the movies is essentially the same. Playing a ruthless and demeaning, success-driven officer, Mauser is often the butt of many of the jokes played by Lassard's men. His lackey is also Proctor. He only appeared in Police Academy 2 and 3. In Police Academy 2, he tricks his way into becoming Captain of the Precinct. In Police Academy 3, he is the Commandant of the rival police academy.

However, in the animated series, he becomes a good character, and is head of the K9 Corps.

Recurring characters

Cadet/Off./Sgt. Douglas Fackler

Played by: Bruce Mahler

Bespectacled and accident-prone police officer who unknowingly causes injury and havoc to just about everyone and everything in his path. In the first film, he unknowlingly starts a chain reaction of events when he discards an apple core which hits a biker, causing the biker to accuse a rival gang member (who is holding a bag of apples) of hitting him, which ignites a fight, then culminates into a riot. He appears in the first, second, third, and sixth movies. He was seen driving a station wagon to register at the police academy in the first film, where his wife climbs on the hood to discourage him, but he drives with her outside. In a parody of the scene with his wife's reluctance to let him be a policeman, he shows similar opposition to his wife (played by Debralee Scott) joining the new recruits in the third film, by jumping on the hood of his squad car and riding it from their home to the police academy.

He did not appear in the animated series.

Sgt./Lt. Kathleen Kirkland-Tackleberry

Played by: Colleen Camp

Sergeant Kathleen Kirkland started on the second film as a trainer, and eventually married Eugene Tackleberry. Authoritative and gun-crazy, she makes the perfect match for Tackleberry. She is from an active family, her father was a boxer and her brother is also a police officer and they engage in regular play fights. She is best known for her army-style mannerisms and commands.

Cadet/Officer Bud Kirkland

Played by: Andrew Paris

Kathleen's younger brother who enjoyed roughhousing with her, their mother and their father. He appeared as a civilian in the second film, (possibly still in high school or college), as a cadet in the third film, and as an officer in the fourth.

Andrew Paris is the real-life son of actor-turned-director Jerry Paris, who directed the second and third films.

Police Chief/Commissioner Henry J. Hurst

Played by: George R. Robertson

Initially chief of police, he was later promoted to commissioner. Initially he is opposed to the new rules from the mayor that the Police Academy should be open to all people, regardless of age, sex, physical ability, etc. However, after the initial successes of Lassard's academy graduates, he grows to love and respect them, and goes around to special events to promote Lassard's academy and the Metropolitan Police. He is strict but fair and does not like to be taken for a ride. He sometimes appears concerned about Commandant Lassard's behavior. Over the course of the story, he develops from an attitude of intolerance to acceptance and wisdom. Because of his acquired wisdom, he can usually point out people whose actions are phony or genuine: In the case of Mauser or Harris, he usually points out what their intentions are and belittles them or their actions.

He did not appear in the animated series, but he is substituted by another chief of police.

Cadet/Sgt. Chad Copeland

Played by: Scott Thompson

Chad Copeland starts out as a cadet in the first film, and in his subsequent appearances moves further up the ranks. Initially chosen with Blankes as a cadet leader for Harris' team at the Academy, he stays on with the Metropolitan Police, and (with Blankes again) attempts to sabotage Lassard's academy under the guidance of Commandant Mauser. Surprisingly, even though his antics of sabotage found out by Sgt. Hooks and Cadet Fackler, he is still kept on the force. His attitude on the police beat is that of being overly strict, and tends to antagonize people akin to Captain Harris' attitude. He is also portrayed to be a bigot on many occasions. He is often fooled into walking into the gay bar, The Blue Oyster. He appeared in the first, third and fourth films, and made a guest appearance as Proctor's assistant in the animated series episode, "Proctor, Call A Doctor".

Cadet/Sgt. Kyle Blankes

Played by: Brant von Hoffman

Along with Copeland, he was often the comic foil for Mahoney and the other officers. He only appeared in the first and third films.

Capt. Pete Lassard

Played by: Howard Hesseman

Captain Pete Lassard, brother of Cmndt. Eric Lassard, appeared as the captain of the 16th Precinct from the second film. This precinct is where the new academy graduates were first posted.

Cadet George Martin

Played by: Andrew Rubin

George Martin appears only in the first Police Academy movie. When the movie begins he seems to be a Hispanic heartthrob with a gift for attracting hordes of women. But later in the movie it is revealed that he is third-generation of a Spanish-speaking family and actually speaks in an American accent, but fakes a Spanish accent and changes the pronunciation of his name, (he would pronounce his last name Mar-teen,) to get girls. By the end of the first film he would be involved with Callahan.

Cadet Leslie Barbara

Played by: Donovan Scott

Leslie Barbara is an overweight guy that couldn't stand up for himself, and happened to have two girl names. For this he is constantly the victim of extreme practical jokes by a group of bullies who drive an old Mack Teskey truck. In the first part of the first film he and the photo hut in which he worked (which is in the shape of camera) were thrown off a bridge into a river. He declares revenge as he is joining the police academy. However, at the academy Barbara is still subject to some intimidation, mainly from Blankes and Copeland, who try to force Barbara into revealing that Mahoney is hosting a party without authorization. Mahoney senses Barbara was set up and falsely tells him the party is at the Blue Oyster Bar. While at the academy, Barbara eventually learns how to stand up for himself and develops self-defense skills. This comes in handy during the city riot at the end of the film when he finally faces the bullies who tormented him before becoming a cop, who laugh at him again and prepare to attack Barbara. Leslie is able to fend them off. After the fight, Barbara demands the gang return the furniture from the truck back into the house from which they were taking it. The ringleader says "But it's our furniture." Barbara mutters "Oh, sorry," leaves looking a little guilty, but then smiles, with a "sweet revenge" look in his eyes.

Cadet Karen Thompson

Played by: Kim Cattrall

A bored socialite who joins the police force to broaden her horizons and meet people "who aren't like you and me" (as she explains to her mother.) She tells Mahoney that she wants to be a cop because "I like to dress like a man." She appears only in the first movie.

Cadet Kyle Conners

Played by: Charlie Schlatter

A cadet whose acrophobia is well known, Kyle Conners only appears in Mission to Moscow. Due to not coming top in his class and failing in his training due to his acrophobia (despite his aspiration to follow in his father and grandfather's footsteps as a Police Officer), he cheated his way into Commandant Lassard's team when he learned it would be heading to Russia. He seems to have been intended as a replacement for Carey Mahoney and Nick Lassard as the lead womanizer, in spite of being somewhat younger than his predecessors.

Officer Vinnie Schtulman

Played by: Peter van Norden

An easygoing, overweight policeman who is always eating, not even minding that if a candy bar fell on the ground. Officer Schultman owns a dog which often accompanies him on duty. Schultman also seems to think throwing a tennis ball to his dog in a busy traffic tunnel is the same as in open rural areas. He becomes Carey Mahoney's first partner in the second film.

Cadet Tomoko Nogata

Played by: Brian Tochi

A Japanese cadet who features in the third and fourth films. Initially a member of Mausers cadets, he is sent to Lassard's academy almost immediately, due to his "oddities". Once there, he grows attracted to Sgt. Callahan, and the two enter into a relationship.

Other characters

Professor

Voiced by: Howard Morris

He is a genial scientist. He appears only in the animated series.

Auntie Bertha

She is Zed's aunt. She appears only in the animated series, along with the cousins Ed and Ned. In the episode Little Zed & Big Bertha they're criminals, but in the episode Wheels of Fortune they became cops.

References

1. ^ "David Graf; Played Many Film, TV Roles". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2001/apr/11/local/me-49651. Retrieved 2011-01-10.