Baretta is an American
detective television series which ran on
ABC from 1975 to 1978. The show was a revised milder version of a successful 1973–74 ABC series,
Toma, starring
Tony Musante as chameleon-like, real-life
New Jersey police officer David Toma. While popular,
Toma received intense criticism at the time for its realistic and frequent depiction of police and criminal violence. When Musante left the series after a single season, the concept was retooled as
Baretta, with
Robert Blake in the title role.