Cagney & Lacey
Cost of Living
TV Flash files “Cost of Living” as hour 92 of 125 in the TV Flash guide — Cagney & Lacey (1982–1988) on CBS, season 6, episode 11, aired 1987-01-12, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S06E11: listed hour 92 of 125 in the Cagney & Lacey guide, hour 11 of 22 in season 6. It aired 1987-01-12 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “To Thine Own Self Be True (aka The Rapist II)” (S06E10). Next is “Waste Deep” (S06E12).
Viewer FAQ
Where does Cost of Living sit in the Cagney & Lacey guide?
S06E11 is listed hour 92 of 125 — hour 11 of 22 in season 6, season 6 episode 11.
When did Cagney & Lacey S06E11 air?
Cost of Living aired 1987-01-12 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Did it almost get canceled?
Yes. Early ratings struggles, a cast change (Meg Foster to Sharon Gless), and a letter-writing campaign are part of the survival story — feminist TV legend as much as trivia.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Daly and Gless are a once-in-a-generation TV partnership — adult, tough, and emotionally precise. Two women detectives, a badge culture that had to make room, Emmys stacked after a near-cancellation and letter-writing campaign. Foundational women-in-crime-drama viewing. Feminist television that still had to clear Standards & Practices.
Near-cancellation is a chart event, not a vibe. CBS's Cagney & Lacey (1982–1988) survived early jitters and a fan letter-writing campaign to become a landmark female-buddy police drama: Tyne Daly as Mary Beth Lacey, Sharon Gless as Chris Cagney after an early cast change from Meg Foster. Two women detectives — one single and driven, one married with kids — partner through NYPD cases that refuse to treat them as decorations. **Seven seasons, 125 hours, Emmys stacked after the save.** Rex can romanticize the…
Filed against
- Tyne Daly as Mary Beth Lacey
Tyne Daly’s Mary Beth Lacey partnered Cagney & Lacey into a once-in-a-generation TV badge — adult, tough, emotionally precise, two women detectives in a culture that had to make room. Emmys stacked after a near-cancellation and a…
- Sharon Gless as Christine Cagney
Sharon Gless’s Christine Cagney made Cagney & Lacey a once-in-a-generation partnership — two women detectives, badge culture that had to make room, Emmys after a near-cancellation letter campaign — then played Burn Notice’s Miami grudge…
- Al Waxman as Lt. Bert Samuels
Al Waxman’s Lt. Bert Samuels ran the precinct that had to make room for Cagney & Lacey — Daly and Gless as a once-in-a-generation partnership, adult and emotionally precise, Emmys after a near-cancellation letter-writing campaign.…