Taking Its Toll
| Taking Its Toll | |
| Episode # | 107 |
| Air Date | November 3, 1977 |
| Briefing | Fire conditions & the theft at the tolls |
Brief Plot
Crying time: A load of spilled and crushed onions has the responding CHPers in tears. Bandits target drivers at toll booths.
Plot
The episode opens with Jon and Ponch crossing a bridge while on a coast beat. At a toll booth at one end of the bridge, two men in a sports car drive up to a car, steal a briefcase, and toss the car's keys away before speeding off. As they cross the bridge, they're spotted by Jon and Ponch. Jon goes after the sports car while Ponch investigates the toll booth. Unfortunately, the thieves get away from Jon. As Jon returns to meet up with Ponch at the tolls, the LA County Sherrif's office arrives and Ponch passes the details to the deputy.
Some thieves steal a small fortune in diamonds from a man going through a toll booth. Ponch investigates the booth while Jon chases the thieves. They manage to give him the slip. After the afternoon briefing, Ponch and Jon respond to a call about an overturned onion truck. After lots of crying, Ponch has the truck move but gets covered in onions. When they return to Central, they find that Mrs. Downey is there complaining about a $2 parking ticket. Back on patrol, Ponch and Jon chase a chauffeur who's driving like a maniac. The limo ends up causing a major accident. The chauffeur tells Ponch and Jon that there's a bomb in his limo so they break a window to get him out. Jon gets Baricza and Shain to take care of traffic while he calls for the bomb squad. The situation gets worse when they realize that there's a guy pinned against the guard-rail by the limo. Ponch talks to the pinned guy while the bomb squad defuses the bomb. That night, Ponch brings his TV to Jon's apartment for him to fix. Ponch soon discovers a bulletin board with "Ponch falls in Glue", "Ponch Loses Motorcycle", "Ponch Burns Hole in Pants", and "Ponch falls in the Mud" on index cards. Ponch goes nuts when he finds out Jon's writing a book about all Ponch's goof-ups. Soon Getraer appears on TV talking about the "Toll Booth Bandits". After the commercial, Ponch starts to like the book idea. While Ponch is thinking about fame, Jon notices a man in the diamond lane trying to pass off a dog as a passenger. When the trunk accidentally pops open, Jon notices lots of stolen appliances. They arrest the driver and his wife. When Getraer hears about Jon's book, he tells him how everything has to be cleared by all sorts of CHP officials...and filed in triplicate. The Toll Booth Bandits strike again but Baricza is on their tail followed by our heroes. The bandits try to jump a drawbridge but don't make it and flip over. Jon arrests them with Baricza, Ponch, and Fritz's help. Off duty, Jon decides to give up on the book but Ponch doesn't want him to. The last we see, Ponch is trying to stop Jon from throwing everything out.
Great Quote
- "You know, Ponch, the best things in life are free."
- "Free? It cost 25 cents to cross this bridge! That's highway robbery!" -Jon and Ponch
Guest Stars
- R.B. Sorko-Ram as Shain
- Jeri Lea Ray as Webb
- Victor Arnold as Zografides
- Marjorie Bennett as Mrs. Downey
- Louis Guss as Chauffeur
- Lee McLaughlin as Onion Driver
- Joseph Della Sorte as Jewelry Salesman
- Gerald York as Reporter
- Thomas W. Babson as BIKER
Crew
- Written by: Bill Taub
- Directed by: Georg Fenady
Fun Facts
- Mrs. Downey can also be seen in "Baby Food" and "Vintage '54".
Mistakes
Buy this episode
- Taking Its Toll on DVD at Amazon.com
- Taking Its Toll from Amazon Prime Video