Adam-12 Kent McCord

''Adam-12'' star Kent McCord was once a police chief when he was a highschooler

McCord had experience in the criminal justice department.

April 2, 2024, 2:23PM By MeTV Staff

Apparently, Kent McCord had been preparing for his role on Adam-12 well before the cameras started rolling.

According to an interview with the Independent Star-News, McCord was actually police chief for a day during his time as a high school student.

McCord stated, "When I was 16 I was police chief of Baldwin Park (Calif.) for a day. It was Switch Day, an annual event where high school students take over the various positions in city government."

When he became an actor, McCord was cast in Dragnet, where the series creator and lead actor, Jack Webb, saw promise in the young man. He'd later remember his talents when casting for his new series Adam-12, noting that McCord possessed qualities that fit an officer of the law perfectly.

Webb stated, "You could put Kent in any Los Angeles Department squad inspection group and I don't think even the Chief would be able to spot him as an actor."

McCord was known by many as a man with strong moral convictions that he stuck to even in the face of struggle. Notably, he actually fought against the writers of Adam-12, as he was under the belief that the series scripts weren't as strong as they typically were. In a later interview with the Daily Citizen, he expressed contentment with his role in the series, citing the show's return to its original strength. He stated, "I'm enjoying my work more this season than any time since the first year. I think the reason is that we're getting better scripts."

He continued, "We've gone back to the original concept of the show — a simple concept, just a day in the life of two cops out cruising in a black-and-white — and we had sort of gotten away from that concept in the last few seasons."