Who Is Still Alive From ‘Police Squad!’, the Show That Became ‘The Naked Gun’?
Police Squad! may have only lasted for six episodes in 1982, but its legacy remains strong. This short-lived parody of police dramas, created by the Airplane! team of Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker, packed every scene with deadpan humor and absurd wordplay. ABC famously canceled it for being “too smart,” as viewers had to pay close attention to catch all the jokes.
Yet in reruns, the show gained a devoted cult following and even spawned the hit Naked Gun film series later in the ’80s and ’90s, which included some characters from the show. That legacy is set to continue with The Naked Gun, a new film starring Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr., set for release on August 1, 2025.
Several of the original show’s main players are no longer with us, but a few key cast members are still around today. Let’s find out who those are while paying tribute to those we have since lost:
Ed Williams (98)
Ted Olson
ABC via Getty Images; Screengrab/YouTube/
Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters
Ed Williams portrayed Police Squad!‘s ever-helpful lab technician Ted Olson. A real-life former teacher turned actor, Williams was a perfect fit for the show’s deadpan silliness. He reprised the role in all three Naked Gun movies, often getting laughs with his outrageous science demonstrations. Aside from those films, Williams kept a low profile in Hollywood, taking only a few minor parts in the 1990s. He quietly retired from acting in 2010. Now 98 years old, Williams is enjoying life in retirement.
Peter Lupus (93)
Officer Norberg
ABC via Getty Images; David Livingston/Getty Images
Bodybuilder-turned-actor Peter Lupus costarred as Officer Norberg, Frank Drebin’s dimwitted fellow cop on Police Squad!. Though he played it silent and goofy on the show, Lupus was already famous to TV fans for a very different role: the muscleman Willy Armitage on the 1960s spy series Mission: Impossible. After Police Squad!, Lupus continued acting occasionally, but his biggest headlines came from feats of strength. In 2007, at age 75, he set a world weightlifting endurance record by lifting over 77,000 pounds in under 25 minutes. Now 93, Lupus stays largely out of the spotlight.
In Memoriam
Everett Collection
Leslie Nielsen (Frank Drebin) died on November 28, 2010, at age 84 due to pneumonia complications.
Alan North (Captain Ed Hocken) died from cancer on January 19, 2000, at the age of 79.
William Duell (Johnny “the Shoeshine”) died on December 22, 2011, at 88 years old, due to respiratory failure.
Ronald “Tiny Ron” Taylor (Al, the Tall Officer) died on November 28, 2019, at the age of 72.
Rex Hamilton (Abraham Lincoln) died on March 7, 1985, at age 60, just a few years after the show aired.
Remind 