The show was created by Abby Mann, an Academy Award–winning film writer best known for his work on drama anthologies such as See more

Series
The series is set in the New York City Police Department's Eleventh Precinct (the building shown was actually See more

• Telly Savalas as Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak
• Dan Frazer as Captain Francis "Frank" McNeil, Kojak's boss See more

Two main title themes were used for the show. The somewhat better-known first Kojak theme, in two distinct arrangements, is the work of Billy Goldenberg, who scored the first two episodes of the series (Goldenberg also scored the series' pilot movie). The first of … See more

Kojak drove an unmarked police car. A 1973 Buick Century police detective car with full wheel covers and a 1974 Buick Century 455 badged sedan with small wheel covers were used. Both cars were dark brown (GM Nutmeg Poly). The 1973 grille (section … See more

Kojak aired for five seasons on CBS, from 1973 to 1978 for a total of 118 episodes. In the United Kingdom, the series premiered on 24 August 1974 on BBC1. In 1985, seven years after the series ended, Telly Savalas returned to play Kojak in seven TV movies … See more

In March 2005, a new Kojak series debuted on the USA Network cable channel and on ITV4 in the UK. In this re-imagined version, African-American actor Ving Rhames portrays the character. The series only lasted one season. See more