Movies & Television: Police, Fire & EMS Vehicles

StEaLtH2

Member
Mar 3, 2011
2,159
New England
 

Mndlm

Member
Jun 14, 2010
128
Minnesota
My favorite show growing up in the 70's was "Police Story" & the short lived "Chase" Only pic I could find for "Police Story" is a Chev with the can lights mounted on a bar. Always thought that was weird setup after seeing the LAPD squads that were just mounted to the roof.

Couldn't find a pic of the jacked up Satellite from "Chase"

i413731.jpg
 
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348

Member
Feb 16, 2013
1,017
Idaho
My favorite show growing up in the 70's was "Police Story" & the short lived "Chase" Only pic I could find for "Police Story" is a Chev with the can lights mounted on a bar. Always thought that was weird setup after seeing the LAPD squads that were just mounted to the roof.

Couldn't find a pic of the jacked up Satellite from "Chase"
I found these cars from Police Story

1967 Ford Galaxie 500

67 Ford Galaxie 500.jpg

1969 Ford Custom

69 Ford Custom.jpg

1973 Ford Torino

73 Ford Torino.jpg

1976 Pontiac LeMans

76 Pontiac LeMans.jpg
 

Phillyrube

Member
May 21, 2010
1,272
Flatistan
Beverly Hills Cop: the chase scene in the opening. Combination of lights: Federals, Whelens, something flashing really fast, something stuck, and whatever was on the roof of the fist car seen, which didn't look like anything seen throughout the chase. Oh yea, one red and blue Model 11 Visabar!
 

348

Member
Feb 16, 2013
1,017
Idaho
Beverly Hills Cop: the chase scene in the opening. Combination of lights: Federals, Whelens, something flashing really fast, something stuck, and whatever was on the roof of the fist car seen, which didn't look like anything seen throughout the chase. Oh yea, one red and blue Model 11 Visabar!
Seeing is believing!

 Disclaimer - There is some profanity at the start and end of the clip, but it is a good chase scene with lots of emergency lights to look at!

 
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LRGJr72

Member
May 29, 2010
790
Detroit, Michigan
Seeing is believing!

 Disclaimer - There is some profanity at the start and end of the clip, but it is a good chase scene with lots of emergency lights to look at!

At the very end (2:55) I count four Federal Signal VisaBars and even one Federal Signal JetSonic (all red/blue). Living in the north suburbs at that time I can say that the cars in the city actually had this much variety of lighting at the same time (from 1975 - 1990). On the same day you could see Smith & Wesson bars, VisaBars, Whelen speaker-beacons, JetSonics, AeroDynics, Unity RV-26 Beacons with the elevating base. And you'd see some of these setups in all-blue, all-red, red/blue. But the Unity RV26s were always blue with clear Spitfire rings. It was always cool to see the Michigan State Police (red Unity Spitfires) make a scene with Detroit Police (blue Unity Spitfires). 
 
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JazzDad

Member
Aug 5, 2011
5,165
USA
Re: the Ghostbusters vehicles.

:(   Waste of good HHRs.
 
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348

Member
Feb 16, 2013
1,017
Idaho
Early on someone was looking for some pictures from the TV Series Walker, Texas Ranger.  Her are a few I found.

1982 Ford LTD

82 Ford LTD.jpg

1983 Ford Crown Victoria

83 Ford LTD Crown Vic.jpg

1985 Mercury Grand Marquis

85 Mercury Grand Marquis.jpg

1987 Chevrolet Caprice

87 ChevroletCaprice.jpg

1987 Dodge Mini Ram Van

87 Dodge Mini Ram Van.jpg

1987 Ford Mustang

87 FordMustang.jpg

1992 Chevrolet Caprice

92 Chevrolet Caprice.jpg

Kawasaki KZ1000

Kawasaki KZ.jpg

KZ 1000.jpg
 
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Skip Goulet

Member
Feb 23, 2011
4,241
Midland, TX
Early on someone was looking for some pictures from the TV Series Walker, Texas Ranger.  Her are a few I found.

1982 Ford LTD

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82 Ford LTD.jpg

1983 Ford Crown Victoria

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83 Ford LTD Crown Vic.jpg

1985 Mercury Grand Marquis

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85 Mercury Grand Marquis.jpg

1987 Chevrolet Caprice

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87 ChevroletCaprice.jpg

1987 Dodge Mini Ram Van

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87 Dodge Mini Ram Van.jpg

1987 Ford Mustang

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87 FordMustang.jpg

1992 Chevrolet Caprice

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92 Chevrolet Caprice.jpg

Kawasaki KZ1000

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Kawasaki KZ.jpg

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KZ 1000.jpg
The '83 CV is a bit out of place, since blue/blue is not allowed in TX.  I like the little Apollo minivan ambulance.  I had one of them pass me on the highway a few years ago and found out that they operate in Dallas and that an old school friend ran the company at one time.

I always loved Cagney and Lacy.   Sharon has recently been on a weekend TV show as the now old, fat and chain-smoking mom of the show's star.
 

CrownVic97

Member
May 21, 2010
3,351
Hazen, ND
post-22008-0-61574100-1417456462_thumb.jpg


That's funny and cute  B)  .

post-22008-0-61944700-1417457349_thumb.jpg


That's a waste of a classic  :no:   .
 

348

Member
Feb 16, 2013
1,017
Idaho
They used to drive around in the typical NYPD Gran Fury, didn't they ?
Here they are in an unmarked 1981 Dodge Diplomat.

81 Dodge.jpg

81 Dodge Diplomat.jpg

The Rockford Files TV Series (1974-1980)

1967 Chevrolet C Series

67 Chevrolet C Series.jpg

1968 Plymouth Belvedere

68 Plymouth Belvedere.jpg

1969 Plymouth Blevedere

69 Plymouth Belvedere.jpg

1971 Dodge Polara

71 Dodge Polara.jpg

1974 Chevrolet Bel Air

74 Chevrolet Bel Air.jpg

1974 Dodge Coronet

74 Dodge Coronet.jpg

1978 Pontiac Firebird

78 Pontiac Firebird.jpg
 
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JohnMarcson

Administrator
May 7, 2010
10,971
Northwest Ohio
That was a real unit for a company in Texas.  They had a few of these.

post-22008-0-42117300-1418964629.jpg

minivans.jpg

Canada saw some too...

1988-minivan.jpg
 
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JazzDad

Member
Aug 5, 2011
5,165
USA
Lt Barone on scene.

ELR.jpg
 

HILO

Member
May 20, 2010
2,781
Grand Prairie Texas
The Dallas Police replica cars in Walker Texas Ranger marked the first time DPD allowed anything close to in service cars used in a TV show. The Edge bars are wrong though. The X Files movie was the first movie (not counting The Thin Blue Line, as it was a documentary).
 
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348

Member
Feb 16, 2013
1,017
Idaho
The Dallas Police replica cars in Walker Texas Ranger marked the first time DPD allowed anything close to in service cars used in a TV show. The Edge bars are wrong though. The X Files movie was the first movie (not counting The Thin Blue Line, as it was a documentary).
Speaking of The Thin Blue Line, here are some photos from that movie.

1975 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu

75 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu.jpg

snapshot_dvd_003119_20120506_192511.jpg

snapshot_dvd_005038_20120506_192922.jpg

snapshot_dvd_005848_20120506_193329.jpg
 

7d9_z28

New Member
Mar 15, 2012
3,048
West Michigan
Black Sheep: Caprice  all decked out in goodies (as per movie lines, 426 Hemi, 3/4 cam, nitro boosters) Always loved this car, dual Rectangular Unity spotlights FTW! Code3 LP6000, 6 rotator R/B filters with center rotators having amber filters to the rear only, neat setup

blacksheep.jpg

Black-sheep-pump-2.jpg

Spies Like Us: 1979 GAZ 24 Volga, Blue Code3 XL with red center cutouts, also with beacon and spotlights mounted on top

spieslikeus.jpg

spieslikeus2.jpg

 
 
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Skip Goulet

Member
Feb 23, 2011
4,241
Midland, TX
That was a real unit for a company in Texas.  They had a few of these.

attachicon.gif
post-22008-0-42117300-1418964629.jpg

attachicon.gif
minivans.jpg

Canada saw some too...

attachicon.gif
1988-minivan.jpg
I loved those Caravan mini-ambulances.  As I said above, an old school friend owned Apollo at one time.  A small ambulance co. in Odessa had an '83 Dodge minivan ambulance, but it wasn't built by Collins or Summers.  They called it "Li'l Bit" because their granddaughter gave it that name.  They've been out of business since the mid-90s and the van still sits behind the owners' house.
 

JazzDad

Member
Aug 5, 2011
5,165
USA
Let's see both sides of the bars lit up, shall we?

Murder2.jpg

Murder3.jpg
 

JohnMarcson

Administrator
May 7, 2010
10,971
Northwest Ohio
I loved those Caravan mini-ambulances.  As I said above, an old school friend owned Apollo at one time.  A small ambulance co. in Odessa had an '83 Dodge minivan ambulance, but it wasn't built by Collins or Summers.  They called it "Li'l Bit" because their granddaughter gave it that name.  They've been out of business since the mid-90s and the van still sits behind the owners' house.
Thanks for the info Skip, I knew Apollo had a decent number of these.  I believe (maybe you told me this Skip) they let them be used in films in exchange for leaving the name on the side.
 
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Skip Goulet

Member
Feb 23, 2011
4,241
Midland, TX
Thanks for the info Skip, I knew Apollo had a decent number of these.  I believe (maybe you told me this Skip) they let them be used in films in exchange for leaving the name on the side.
Their use in movies is somewhat new news to me, John, so that didn't come from me; but if nothing else, it was great advertising for them.  As far as I know, Apollo is still in business. I live just off of I20, so I see my share of various ambulances travelling the interstate here and there.  I saw a Type III ambulance of Apollo's not too long ago. I would assume that Apollo "grandfathered" their Caravan ambulances many years ago since Texas did away with smaller ambulances back in the '80s, as it was in the mid 90s when I saw one of the little ambulances on the interstate.
 

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