In the beloved mockumentary “Reno 911!,” fans followed Lieutenant Jim Dangle (Thomas Lennon) and his crew of incompetent, foul-mouthed deputies as they patrolled the crime-riddled streets of Reno, Nevada and clashed with its colorful array of outlandish criminals. But there’s a good reason why the “Cops” parody chose the desert city as its backdrop. It seems “The Biggest Little City in the World” also had the biggest meth problem.
According to co-creator, writer, and star Robert Ben Garant, (who played Deputy Travis Junior), Reno became synonymous with the late-’90s news cycle, and not for the most glamorous reasons. “Crystal meth was just becoming a thing in 1999,” Garant told Cracked during their “Oral History of ‘Reno 911!” “Every time you saw the news about crystal meth, it always seemed to be about Nevada. Reno just made sense — no offense, Reno.”
“We called it ‘Reno 911!’ because that just felt like, if this was a real show, it would be called that,” he added. “The exclamation point was the only clue that was like, ‘Maybe we’re kidding.'” In addition to the drug problem, the team wanted to utilize the area’s perceived local flavor. Ironically, while prostitution is actually illegal in Reno and Washoe County, Garant noted that the team thought it was fair game when picking the setting, recalling that they loved Reno because of “legalized prostitution, which we felt like was going to be part of the show.” Plus, the desert landscape easily allowed them to shoot locally in Sun Valley, California, and pass it off as Nevada.
Reno 911! began life as a sketch series titled Ugly Americans
During the early stages of its development, “Reno 911!” started out as a traditional sketch series pitched to Fox under the title “Ugly Americans.” When that pitch stalled, the creative team scrambled for a back-up plan. That’s when “Reno 911!” co-creator, star, and “Odd Couple” alum Thomas Lennon watched Fox’s Saturday night lineup and had an epiphany that led to the birth of the fictional Reno Sheriff’s Department: “What if we just do the sketch show version of ‘Cops’?” he told Cracked. “It would be like a ‘Little Britain’ version of ‘Cops.'” From there, “Reno 911!” became one of the best improvised shows of all time.
“We were sketch people,” Lennon explained to the outlet, noting that the cast played both the law enforcement officers and the colorful criminals in the original pilot. “I don’t think any of us were that excited to play these cop characters. That was an absolute afterthought when compared to ‘What will be the funniest sketches?'” Though Fox ultimately passed on the pilot, the project found its perfect home on Comedy Central. Featuring an ensemble cast including creators Lennon, Ben Garant, and Kerri Kenney-Silver, alongside Cedric Yarbrough, Niecy Nash, and Wendi McLendon-Covey, “Reno 911!” ran for six seasons until 2009, before later revivals brought its total run to eight seasons. The show also spawned three feature-length spin-off movies, including “Reno 911!: Miami,” “Reno 911!: The Hunt for QAnons,” and the series’ Christmas special, “Reno 911!: It’s a Wonderful Heist.”
