Officer Friendly

Officer Friendly

A police officer who is perceived as non-threatening due to his calm and amiable demeanor. Dale, I know you think aggression is the best way to get information, but you'd be surprised how easy it is to get people to talk to you when you're Officer Friendly. Stop yelling at me! I want Officer Friendly to do my interrogation!
See also: friendly, officer
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
See also:
  • keep a cool head
  • keep a level head
  • good sport
  • with good grace
  • a kind word for everybody
  • keep smiling
  • a good word for everybody
  • good word
  • play well with others
  • afire
References in periodicals archive
Justin Roman of the Stylz & Roman radio show will emcee, and Those Funny Little People with Officer Friendly and Officer Stern will make an appearance.
A burly, blonde Ail-American guy who could have been a big-time wrestler, he went on to be a policeman of note, a real Officer Friendly throwback.
Of course, cops know all too well that being "Officer Friendly" doesn't always work.
Best cop-job I ever had, all guns and bad guys, speed and darkness and violence; no "Officer Friendly" crap, "scratching coupons" (writing traffic tickets) or domestic-disturbance calls, and the best part: every cop in the unit feels the same way; no career ladder-climbers or suck-ups dreaming of a desk job in Community Relations.
If anyone doubts that many officers in this city could use refreshers in courtesy, professionalism and respect, there is a video lode on YouTube of unnerving examples of New York's Finest forgetting the Officer Friendly model of policing.
Citizens are comfortable talking to police who are "Officer Friendly"' the nice-guy cop on the beat whose uniform, equipment, and demeanor are unthreatening.
If you can buy a gun from some gun-pushing NRA-supporting cigar-chomping gun dealer, you certainly ought to be able to buy one from Officer Friendly and support your local police at the same time.
You don't hear Officer Friendly going to the shelter and meeting the homeless population."
Instead, she remained upbeat, embraced the new challenge, and quickly earned the moniker "Officer Friendly" in the building where she worked.
Officer Friendly usually welcomes the opportunity to bring an official vehicle to school and show students how the job is done.
AN OFF-DUTY police officer known as "Officer Friendly" in the store, Tommy Norman acts as an ex officio greeter there, too, and has changed the perception of police officers in the community.
It's a world where an inmate (yes, the Internet is readily available in many prison systems) can masquerade as Officer Friendly, looking to "prevent" a few souls from participating in some costly scare involving your online bank account.
Officer Friendly does not idealize Port Allison; life is simply lived in all of its uncertain complexity.
Since the beating of Rodney King, the American masses have been made more aware than ever that Officer Friendly is not often there to get your cat out of the tree.