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"Lot's full, Mister!"
-Mahoney's first line.

Carey Mahoney is the leading main character of the first four movies and the animated series of Police Academy.

Personality[]

A troublemaker with a heart of gold, whose worst habit is retaliating against insults in bizarrely effective ways, he is best known for protecting Commandant Lassard and playing practical jokes on Harris, Mauser, Proctor, Blankes and Copeland, as the five men view Mahoney to be unworthy of being a police officer, due to his attitude.

Despite his womanizing and his rule-breaking habit, Mahoney is portrayed as a good and courageous person willing to help those in need, regardless of the consequences. The valor Mahoney displays are likely to stem from his late father, and his graduation with a decoration for bravery speaks to that.

Character Profile[]

Mahoney comes from a family where his father was a decorated police officer. Before his police career, Mahoney was a parking-lot attendant until he was forced to park an abusive customer's car in a full parking lot. So in response, he put the car into a side-wheelie, crashed it between two cars, which resulted in breaking the car windows. He proudly proclaimed: "It fits!" Mahoney got fired and arrested, and he met Jones, a man who got arrested for causing chaos with his sound effects. His father's former boss, Captain Reed gave him only two choices - police academy or jail. During the first few weeks of being at the academy, Mahoney made several failed attempts to get himself kicked out, since he couldn't quit due to his deal with Reed. This ranged from screwing with Harris's megaphone, being a peeping tom watching the female cadets showering, and even trying to tank his training to be a cop and flunk. However, during a trip to Lassard's office, Mahoney found out that Reed caught on to his attempts and airtight the deal so he would have to commit. He decided to stay after befriending Moses Hightower, Leslie Barbara, Eugene Tackleberry, Laverne Hooks, Douglas Fackler, George Martin and falling in love with Karen Thompson.

By the third movie, Mahoney's dedication and love for his job are proven as he continually stands up for his cadets, and giving a speech highlighting how important the cadets are for the academy and to his peers, which inspires the cadets to work harder and achieve their potential.

In Police Academy 4: Citizens On Patrol, Mahoney successfully lobbies to have two skateboarders, Arnie and Kyle, to be placed in the "Citizens on Patrol" program as an alternative to jail time, reminiscent of how Mahoney himself started in the Academy and had his life turned for the better.

Relationships[]

Trivia[]

  • Carey is shown to be a fan of the St.Louis Cardinals - at the party in the first movie, he is wearing a light blue #15 Cards Jersey.
  • In the animated series, Mahoney is almost present for every episode with his partner, Jones (when in action).
  • He is absent from the last three films, a change that is unexplained. According to the producers, he was originally in the script for the fifth film, but Guttenberg declined the part.
  • In the fifth film, Commandant Lassard's nephew, Nick Lassard took Mahoney's place as the new practical joker.

Gallery[]

Mahoney

Carey Mahoney at the beach

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