
Where Is ‘CHiPs?’ Uncovering the Mystery Behind Its Disappearance
As I scroll through the cable guide, looking at channel after channel, I see no shortage of old television shows to watch: "Matlock," "Major Crimes," "Emergency!," "Barney Miller," "Bewitched," "Quincey, M.E.," "Columbo," "Murder, She Wrote," "The King of Queens," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Seinfeld." I could go on and on. Yet one of my childhood favorites, "Chips," is nowhere to be found; why might that be?
Watching "Chips" As A Kid
I'll admit it: as a kid growing up in Chicago, "Chips" became an obvious favorite of mine for a few years. It was perfect, as it started when "Emergency!" went off the air. I remember the first run episodes on NBC on whatever night they ran. I watched it until my parents didn't particularly like Ponch and Jon's obsession with cute California women; they decided I probably shouldn't watch it anymore. I was in second grade, so maybe they had a point.
Yet "Chips" never really went away. Much like "Emergency!" it lived on for years and years in reruns. You could catch it in Chicago after school; Wikipedia says that NBC aired daytime re-runs at 2:00 PM every afternoon. Although, somehow, I associate WLFD Channel 32 airing reruns at some point in the 80s. By this time, I was in fifth or sixth grade, and any real objection my parents had to Ponch and Jon chasing after women didn't seem as big a deal. So, whatever I had missed, I caught up on.
During my teenage years, the dramatic car crashes, Frank Poncherello's antics, and the frustrating season when they attempted to replace Larry Wilcox with Bruce Jenner and another actor started to irritate me. As I matured into an older teenager, the storylines occasionally made me roll my eyes.
Why Some Shows Don't Air on Old School Television Anymore
Fast-forward to 2025, and somewhere between watching an old "Matlock" rerun and "Emergency!" I thought, "Why isn't anyone running "Chips?"
When I plugged the query into Chatgpt, it spit out an answer you could tag almost any show with. Competition from modern content, streaming services holding the rights keeping it off a TV channel, licensing, rights issues (especially with music), audience appeal, and niche appeal.
Turns Out You Can Stream It, and "Chips" Is On TV
The one thing Chatgpt did do is tell me where you can stream "Chips." I did not double-check these sources, so Chatgpt could be wrong, but they say it's available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Freevee, Apple TV, and YouTube TV. So it's out there.
It turns out it is airing on a network owned by Sinclair Broadcasting called CHARGE. The network describes itself like this:
"CHARGE! is On The Case with a line-up that delivers the biggest police procedurals in TV history including Law & Order: Criminal Intent, CSI: Miami, CSI: New York and Without a Trace. As one of the fastest growing free TV networks, CHARGE! is all-in on police drama every day, including exciting weekend marathons you’ll love to binge."
The problem is that in my area, the only way to get CHARGE is to subscribe to Dish Network or stream the station on YouTube TV or Sling. It's also available online at its website. Sadly, "Chips" airs at 7:00 AM., 8:00 AM, and 9:00 AM CST, so I'll have to find it on one of the streaming platforms to relive my childhood.
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Gallery Credit: Stephen Lenz