"Hill Street Blues" (1981) TV series 1981-1987

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Creators:

Steven Bochco
Michael Kozoll

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Release Date:

15 January 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The lives and work of the staff of an inner city police precinct.

Plot Keywords:

Inner City | Police | Cult TV | Gang Warfare | Policewoman

Awards:

Won 3 Golden Globes. Another 51 wins & 95 nominations

Cast

Daniel J. Travanti	...	Capt. Frank Furillo (115 episodes, 1981-1987)
Bruce Weitz	...	Sgt. Mick Belker (115 episodes, 1981-1987)
Betty Thomas	...	Sgt. Lucy Bates / ... (115 episodes, 1981-1987)
Taurean Blacque	...	Det. Neal Washington (114 episodes, 1981-1987)
Kiel Martin	...	Officer John 'J.D.' LaRue / ... (114 episodes, 1981-1987)
Charles Haid	...	Officer Andrew Renko (114 episodes, 1981-1987)
Veronica Hamel	...	Joyce Davenport (114 episodes, 1981-1987)
Michael Warren	...	Officer Robert 'Bobby' Hill / ... (113 episodes, 1981-1987)
James Sikking	...	Lt. Howard Hunter (113 episodes, 1981-1987)
Joe Spano	...	Det. Henry Goldblume (113 episodes, 1981-1987)
René Enríquez	...	Lt. Ray Calletano (98 episodes, 1981-1985)
Barbara Bosson	...	Fay Furillo (96 episodes, 1981-1987)
Ed Marinaro	...	Officer Joe Coffey (95 episodes, 1981-1986)
Robert Hirschfeld	...	Officer Leo Schnitz / ... (86 episodes, 1981-1985)
Michael Conrad	...	Sgt. Phil Esterhaus / ... (71 episodes, 1981-1984)
Jon Cypher	...	Chief Fletcher Daniels / ... (54 episodes, 1981-1987)

Runtime:

60 min (146 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, California, USA

Company:

MTM Enterprises

Trivia:

Original plans were for this series to be shot with hand held 16mm cameras only and in black and white.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: For being a show that was obviously set in an unnamed northern cold-weather city like Pittsburgh or Chicago, the cops were never shown outdoors patrolling the beat in winter weather like snow and ice.

Quotes:

Radio Dispatcher: [Radio call in opening credits of every episode] Dispatch, we have a 9-11, armed robbery in progress - see Surplus Store - corner of People's Drive and 124th street

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "Saturday Night Live: Daniel J. Travanti/John Cougar (#7.16)" (1982)

Best show of its time - by a long way.

In the days of E.R and NYPD Blue, it's hard to remember just how ground-breaking a show HSB was. Nothing like it had ever been seen before. The quality of the acting and writing, the documentary look and feel, the seedy broken down environment, the brutally frank situations and language (for the time), the fact that the "bad" guys got away with it as often as not, the huge ensemble cast, the long one-take scenes, the unhappy endings etc. etc.

Needless to say, the American people wanted nothing to do with such quality at first - until it won a record number of Emmys and they couldn't ignore it anymore. If nothing else, this series proved to the networks that quality can sell soap after all.

If you like your E.R. think a kind thought for Hill Street Blues - the series that made it all possible.