Dave Toma

Last updated

David Toma (born 1933) is a former police officer whose undercover work and battles with his superiors became the basis of the television series Toma , which ran on the ABC network from 1973 to 1974.

Born and raised in Newark, New Jersey as the youngest of 12 children, Toma graduated from West Side High School. [1]

In 1956, after serving 3 years in the USMC as a drill instructor and following a brief career as a professional baseball player, Toma joined the Newark Police Department, staying on for 21 years. Initially a patrol officer, Toma moved up to narcotics detective; he was frustrated with minor criminals being frequently arrested, while the big-time criminals who ran the illegal operations were unaffected. Toma started going undercover, often using disguises, in order to better observe major-league crooks. While higher-ups in the department objected to his techniques, he succeeded in amassing a significant record of arrests. He wrote a book based on his 20 years of experiences as a police officer but was unsuccessful in finding a publisher for the book. His demonstration of quick-change disguises on the Mike Douglas Show led to his book being picked up and the development of a television series based on his exploits. [1] Toma ran on ABC from 1973 to 1974, with Tony Musante playing Toma. [2] In his review of the show in The New York Times , John J. O'Connor described Toma's groundbreaking role as "a loner, openly distrustful of the competence and honesty of his fellow police officers," [3] Eventually, Musante and others involved with Toma thought that the series had become too formula-based; the show was canceled and eventually resurrected in part as Baretta , which ran from 1975 to 1978, with Robert Blake playing the title character. [4] [5]

In 1977, producer Bob Roberts and Trans World Attractions developed a film based on his career, with a screenplay written by Frank Scioscia.

For decades after retiring from the police department, Toma lectured high school and college students about the dangers of alcohol and other drugs. He focused on his own personal experiences as a drug addict, which began after his 5-year-old son David Junior died in a choking accident; doctors had prescribed tranquilizers to help Toma cope with his son's death. [1] [6] To date he has lectured thousands of students and continues his efforts to this day.

Toma's books include Toma: The Compassionate Cop, Airport Affair and Turning Your Life Around: David Toma's Guide for Teenagers. [5]

He and his wife Pat are residents of Clark, New Jersey. They have four children: son Jimmy; daughters Patricia Anne, Donna, and Janice. [1] [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clark, New Jersey</span> Township in Union County, New Jersey, US

Clark is a township in southern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 15,544, an increase of 788 (+5.3%) from the 2010 census count of 14,756, which in turn reflected an increase of 159 (+1.1%) from the 14,597 counted in the 2000 census.

Halifax f.p. is an Australian television crime series produced by Nine Network from 1994 to 2002. The series stars Rebecca Gibney as Doctor Jane Halifax, a forensic psychiatrist investigating cases involving the mental state of suspects or victims. The series is set in Melbourne.

<i>Baretta</i> American detective television series

Baretta is an American detective television series which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1978.

<i>Blue Streak</i> (film) 1999 film by Les Mayfield

Blue Streak is a 1999 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Les Mayfield. Inspired by the 1965 film The Big Job, the film stars Martin Lawrence, Luke Wilson, Dave Chappelle, Peter Greene, Nicole Ari Parker and William Forsythe. Lawrence plays Miles, a jewel thief who tries to retrieve a diamond he left at a police station, whereupon he disguises himself as a detective and gets paired with a real policeman to investigate burglaries. The film was shot on location in California. The prime shooting spot was Sony Pictures Studios, which is located in Culver City, California.

<i>Exiled: A Law & Order Movie</i> American TV movie

Exiled: A Law & Order Movie is a 1998 (two-hour-format) television film based on the police procedural and legal drama television series Law & Order . Written by Charles Kipps, and directed by Jean de Segonzac, the film originally aired on NBC on November 8, 1998. The film revolves around Noth's character, Detective Mike Logan. Kipps received a 1999 Edgar Award for his screenplay.

<i>Prince of the City</i> 1981 film by Sidney Lumet

Prince of the City is a 1981 American epic neo-noir crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet. It is based on the life of Robert Leuci, called ‘Daniel Ciello’ in the film, an officer of the New York Police Department who chooses, for idealistic reasons, to expose corruption in the force. The screenplay, written by Lumet and Jay Presson Allen, is based on a 1978 non-fiction book of the same title, by former NYPD Deputy Commissioner Robert Daley.

<i>Night Heat</i> Canadian police crime television series

Night Heat is a Canadian police crime drama series that aired on both CTV in Canada and CBS in the United States. Original episodes were broadcast from 1985 to 1989. Night Heat was the first Canadian original drama series that was also aired on a United States television network during its original broadcast. It was also the first original, first-run drama series to be aired during a late night time slot on a television network in the United States.

<i>Between the Lines</i> (TV series) British police procedural TV series (1992–1994)

Between the Lines is a television police drama series created by J. C. Wilsher and produced by World Productions for the BBC. It was first shown on BBC1 between 1992 and 1994, running for three series.

<i>One Good Cop</i> 1991 film by Heywood Gould

One Good Cop is a 1991 American crime drama film written and directed by Heywood Gould and starring Michael Keaton, Rene Russo, Anthony LaPaglia and Benjamin Bratt. Keaton portrays New York City Police Department Detective Artie Lewis, who, with his wife Rita (Russo), adopts his late partner's (LaPaglia) children and loves them as their own. He also targets one of the criminals responsible for his partner's death. He initially seeks justice for his adoptive children, but ultimately chooses retaliation by robbing his quarry to support his new family, endangering them and his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Musante</span> American actor (1936–2013)

Anthony Peter Musante Jr. was an American actor, best known for the TV series Toma as Detective David Toma, Nino Schibetta in Oz (1997), and Joe D'Angelo in As the World Turns (2000–2003). In movies, he achieved fame relatively early in his career, starring or having significant roles in such films as Once a Thief (1965), The Incident (1967), The Detective (1968) and The Last Run (1971), and also in a number of Italian productions, including The Mercenary (1968), Metti, una sera a cena (1969) and The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970).

<i>Dog and Cat</i> American TV series or program

Dog and Cat is an American television series that aired on ABC on Saturday night at 10:00 p.m Eastern time in 1977.

<i>The Super Cops</i> 1974 film by Gordon Parks

The Super Cops is a 1974 action adventure film directed by Gordon Parks and starring Ron Leibman and David Selby. The film is based on the book The Super Cops: The True Story of the Cops Called Batman and Robin by L. H. Whittemore. The film was released a few months after the successful cop movie Serpico.

<i>Toma</i> (TV series) Television series

Toma is an American crime drama television series that ran on ABC from March 21, 1973, to May 10, 1974. The series stars Tony Musante as the real-life detective Dave Toma, who was a master of disguise and undercover work. Susan Strasberg and Simon Oakland play his wife and his boss.

<i>The Detective</i> (1968 film) 1968 crime film starring Frank Sinatra

The Detective is a 1968 American neo-noir crime drama film directed by Gordon Douglas, produced by Aaron Rosenberg, and starring Frank Sinatra, based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Roderick Thorp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newark Police Department (New Jersey)</span>

Established in April 1857, the Newark Police Department (NPD) is the primary law enforcement agency serving Newark, New Jersey and the largest municipal law enforcement agency in New Jersey. As of December 2017 the force had 1,146 officers.

Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities, the second series of the Nine Network crime drama series Underbelly, originally aired from 9 February 2009 to 4 May 2009. It is a thirteen-part series loosely based on real events that stemmed from the marijuana trade centred on the New South Wales town of Griffith. The timeline of the series is the years between 1976 and 1987. Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities primarily depicts the Mr. Asia drug syndicate and its influence on crime in Australia. Among the characters presented are real-life criminals Robert Trimbole, Terry Clark, George Freeman, Christopher Dale Flannery, Alphonse Gangitano and the Kane Brothers. The mini-series is a prequel to the 2008 production Underbelly, which was about the Melbourne gangland killings and forms part of the Underbelly series.

Underworld Trilogy is a Finnish drama/thriller television series produced by Vertigo Production in 2010. The Underworld Trilogy consists of three miniseries: The Prisoner, The Cop and The Lawyer.

Scumbus is an Australian comedy film written and produced by Ed Kavalee. The film stars Kavalee, Toby Truslove and Lachy Hulme. It was filmed in Melbourne, Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack A. Cole</span> Retired Detective Lieutenant for the New Jersey State Police

Jack A. Cole is a retired Detective Lieutenant who worked for the New Jersey State Police for 26 years. For twelve of those years, he worked as an undercover narcotics officer. Cole was the first executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, now known as Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), an organization comprising former and current police officers, government agents and other law enforcement agents who advocate for justice reform and oppose the current War on Drugs. Cole served as LEAP's executive director from 2002 - 2010.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Caruba, Alan. "Toma is Returning", The New York Times , June 12, 1977. Accessed January 20, 2020. "Clark is not far from where Mr. Toma was born and reared in the Central Ward of Newark, the youngest of 12 brothers and sisters. However, distance can be measured in many ways, and the Dave Toma of today lives in an entirely different world than the one in which he graduated from West Side High School in Newark, played a little professional baseball and then spent three years in the United States Marines as a drill instructor."
  2. ↑ O'Connor, John J. "TV: N.B.C. Crime Film Neuman's Police Story Casts Connors and Morrow as Thug and His Pursuer", The New York Times , March 22, 1973. Accessed January 20, 2020. "Last night, at 8:30 on the American Broadcasting Company, several, of the same themes were played with variations on Toma, based on 'real events' in the life of Dave Toma, a detective and a 'master of disguise' from the nonce force in Newark. Following the trail of a numbers operation, Toma (Tony Musante) transformed himself into a hood, a priest, a roofer, a wino and a hippie, just to mention a few disguises."
  3. ↑ O'Connor, John J. "Television: A Cop Is A Policeman Is A Centurion", The New York Times , April 1, 1973. Accessed January 20, 2020. "In Toma, Tony Musante played Detective Dave Toma, a real policeman from Newark, N. J., who also was employed as adviser and actor in the production. In tracking down a rackets boss, Toma's gimmick was in assuming a series of disguises, from priest to hippie. But Toma also had a more subtle and infinitely rarer gimmick: He was a loner, openly distrustful of the competence and honesty of his fellow police officers."
  4. ↑ McMurran, Kristin. "With Stunning Intensity, David Toma, Ex-Cop, Ex-Addict and Model for TV's Baretta, Harangues Kids Against Drugs", People (magazine) , July 7, 1980. Accessed January 20, 2020. "Disillusioned but not discouraged, Toma took a two-month leave of absence from police work, borrowed as much as he could from his family, and continued pushing his idea for a series. The result was Toma in 1973, starring Tony Musante, followed when he quit a year later by Baretta, with Robert Blake."
  5. 1 2 Police Books: Dave Toma, Police Writers. Accessed January 20, 2020. "This TV series started off with good intentions and was a hard-hitting, realistic urban police drama. But star Tony Musante was worried it was going to go the route of every other cop show and just become formulaic. When he pushed for creative changes, producers pushed back, and the show ended after just one season. The concept re-emerged the following year as Beretta starring Robert Blake. Toma authored two books, Toma: The Compassionate Cop and Airport Affair. According to the book description of Turning Your Life Around: David Toma's Guide for Teenagers...."
  6. 1 2 Remo, Jessica. "Clark Resident, Former Detective Warns ALJ Students About Drugs, Alcohol David Toma was a police officer for 21 years, 17 of those years as a narcotics detective in Newark.", Clark-Garwood, NJ Patch, October 2, 2013. Accessed January 20, 2020. "After decorating for the fall pep rally, other students and parents arrived for the keynote speaker of the evening. Special guest speaker and Clark resident, Dave Toma, presented to inspire the ALJ student athletes and community to make good choices when it comes to the use of illegal substances and alcohol.... He was a police officer for 21 years, 17 of those years as a detective in the Vice, Gambling, and Narcotics Squad in one of the busiest cities in the world, Newark, New Jersey."
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.