The Gendarme in New York, with Louis de Funès

The Story of A Cop in New York

• After the success of A Cop in Saint-Tropez in 1964, the irascible Sergeant Major Cruchot, played by Louis de Funès, was back in action the very next year! A Cop in New York hit theaters in 1965, once again directed by Jean Girault.
• The plot? Fresh from his campaign against nudists the previous year, the Saint-Tropez police brigade is invited to New York to represent France at an international police congress. Sergeant Major Cruchot, Adjutant Gerber (Michel Galabru), and officers Fougasse (Jean Lefebvre), Merlot (Christian Marin), Berlicot (Michel Modo), and Tricart (Guy Grosso) set sail!
• The journey from Saint-Tropez to New York takes up a good portion of the film. Rather than fly, the officers board the ocean liner France. A different era! And the start of trouble for Cruchot, since his daughter Nicole, desperate to see New York, sneaks aboard as a stowaway…
• When it was released, A Cop in New York attracted 5.5 million viewers—2.3 million fewer than the first film. A Cop in New York would later be overshadowed by A Cop Gets Married in 1968. Still, the film remains a delight, with iconic scenes set in a New York far removed from today’s city.

New York in A Cop in New York

• The arrival by ship offers striking views of the Manhattan skyline. In 1965, you won’t find the World Trade Center twin towers—construction didn’t begin until 1970, and they opened in 1973. You can, however, spot the Woolworth Building and One Chase Manhattan Plaza.
• Passing through US immigration was already a source of anxiety for European tourists back then! Nicole miraculously makes it through with help from a journalist charmed by the idea of writing a story about a young French woman discovering America. Pure cinema!
• From the moment they arrive, the officers are awed by Manhattan’s skyscrapers. The brigade crosses Park Avenue at 56th Street, with the MetLife building in the background. The Times Square scene is a fantastic leap back in time! Overall, A Cop in New York is a fascinating snapshot of mid-1960s New York, with scenes filmed in Little Italy, Chinatown, Greenwich Village, Coney Island, and the Bronx. Plus views of the Statue of Liberty and the vista from the Empire State Building observation deck.
• Among the film’s most memorable scenes is Sergeant Major Cruchot’s English lesson. Another iconic moment: a West Side Story parody, with Cruchot getting his steak stolen by a gang…
• The officers’ return flight gives a rare glimpse of JFK Airport. Opened in 1948, New York’s airport had just changed its name! The former New York International Airport was renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport on December 24, 1963.
• If you want to see the Americana Hotel, where the officers stay and where the police congress takes place, head to the corner of 7th Avenue and 52nd Street. Today, it’s the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel.

Trailer for A Cop in New York

Movie Poster