NYPD Blue

Encyclopedia : N : NY : NYP : NYPD Blue

---

NYPD Blue was a long-running American television police drama set in New York City. It was created by Steven Bochco and David Milch and inspired by Milch's relationship with a former member of the New York City Police Department Bill Clark (who eventually became one of the show's producers). Its episodes were broadcast on the ABC network from September 21, 1993 to March 1, 2005. Since 2001 episodes of the series have also been run on Court TV, Turner Network Television and Bravo! in Canada.

Overview

The program explored the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan. Typically an episode covers a day and intertwines several plots involving an ensemble cast.

Dennis Franz, as Andy Sipowicz, a veteran New York City Police detective, played the show's main character. His principal co-stars included David Caruso as Det. John Kelly (1993-1994), Jimmy Smits as Det. Bobby Simone (1994-1998), Rick Schroder as Det. Danny Sorenson (1998-2001) and Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Det. John Clark Jr. (2001-2005). Each was paired with Franz's Sipowicz, providing a younger and more suave foil to the abrasive, tragedy-prone detective.

The show was noted for the use of tight close-up shots and frenetic camera work.

Selected cast

• Dennis Franz as Det./Sgt. Andy Sipowicz (1993-2005)
• David Caruso as Det. John Kelly (1993-1994)
• Sherry Stringfield as Laura Michaels (1993-1994)
• James McDaniel as Lt. Arthur Fancy (1993-2001)
• Nicholas Turturro as Ofc./Det. James Martinez (1993-2000)
• Amy Brenneman as Officer Janice Licalsi (1993-1994)
• Sharon Lawrence as ADA Sylvia Costas (1994-1999)
• Gordon Clapp as Det. Greg Medavoy (1994-2005)
• Gail O'Grady as Donna Abandando (1994-1996)
• Jimmy Smits as Det. Bobby Simone (1994-1998)
• Justine Miceli as Det. Adrienne Lesniak (1995-1996)
• Kim Delaney as Det. Diane Russell (1995-2001)
• Andrea Thompson as Det. Jill Kirkendall (1997-2000)
• Rick Schroder as Det. Danny Sorenson (1998-2001)
• Bill Brochtrup as John Irvin (1999-2005)
• Henry Simmons as Det. Baldwin Jones (2000-2005)
• Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon as ADA Valerie Haywood (2001-2004)
• Charlotte Ross as Det. Connie McDowell (2001-2004)
• Esai Morales as Lt. Tony Rodriguez (2001-2004)
• Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Det. John Clark, Jr. (2001-2005)
• Jacqueline Obradors as Det. Rita Ortiz (2001-2005)
• John F. O'Donohue as Eddie Gibson (2000-2004)
• Currie Graham as Lt. Thomas Bale (2004-2005)
• Bonnie Somerville as Det. Laura Murphy (2004-2005)

Controversy

NYPD Blue gained notoriety for profanity and nudity never previously broadcast on American network television. As Milch noted in a May 2002 interview:

"It took an extra year to get on the air to negotiate with ABC what could and could not be done. The good thing about that delay was that I got to spend an extra year with cops to research and come to understand more about what it meant to be a New York City cop."

The delay did little to defuse the controversy. Fifty-seven of ABC's 225 affiliates preempted the first episode because of protests led by Rev. Donald Wildmon and his American Family Association (AFA). The preemptions were mostly in smaller markets, comprising 10-15% of potential viewers which limited the impact of the protest. The show's ratings success led most affiliates (and advertisers) to end their opposition. By the end of the first season the show was a Top 20 hit and protests by the AFA were countered by support from Viewers for Quality Television and recognition from Emmy and People's Choice Awards. The program earned Franz a best-actor Emmy for the first season (one of four he received for the role) and a best drama series Emmy for the show's second season.

According to one fan site [link], cast members who appeared nude included Caruso, Stringfield, Brenneman, Franz, Smits, Lawrence, O'Grady, Delaney, Miceli, Thompson, Schroder, Simmons, Ross, Gosselaar and Obradors. Gordon Clapp had also filmed a nude scene to be aired in the series' 11th season but it was broadcast only in a heavily edited version in the wake of the Janet Jackson Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy. Cable network TNT airs reruns of NYPD Blue with the nudity and much of the profanity cut; Court TV has tended to show them in their original form.

According to NYPD Blue: A Final Tribute a retrospective broadcast on the same night as the last episode, the controversy wasn't limited to what was on the screen. David Milch, the show's co-creator and head writer, was a controversial figure on the set during the seven years he was with the show. His working style and tendency to leave writing to the last minute contributed to a frustrating working environment for some of the cast and crew. Smits left the show when his contract ended because of it. Milch cites his alcoholism and other addictions as factors contributing to the difficult environment. In spite of the controversy, Milch is usually credited as a major creative force during the years he worked on the show; Milch won two Emmy Awards for his writing, shared another as executive producer and shared in a further ten nominations for his writing and production.

The final episode

March 1, 2005 saw the show's 261st and final episode, "Moving Day", bringing an end to the show's 12 year run. Rather than have another huge controversial event or kill off a character, the decision was to have the final episode be like just another day on the job only with Andy as the new squad room leader. In the final scene, previous squad leader Lieutenant Bale wishes Andy good luck with his new position, looks around his old office and says "It's yours." Then all the detectives come in, one by one, to wish Andy goodnight. The last one to say goodbye is John Clark with "Good night Boss". Andy surveys his new office, puts his reading glasses on, and begins to go through the paper work on his desk. The camera then moves out through the 15th precinct squadroom and out the door, it moves up and then we see the squad room sign over the door one last time.

Trivia

• Dennis Franz (Detective Andy Sipowicz) is the only actor to appear in all 261 episodes.
• Gordon Clapp (Detective Greg Medavoy) is the only actor other than Franz to appear in all 12 seasons.
• Gail O'Grady (Donna Abandando), Kim Delaney (Detective Diane Russell) and Jimmy Smits (Detective Bobby Simone) are the only actors from the regular cast to return after they left the show. (To be fair, Diane was the only character to return "for real": Donna only appeared in a fantasy of recurring character Mike Roberts and Bobby only appeared in a sort of vision experienced by Andy Sipowicz.)
• The only time an original cast member and their replacement appeared in the same episode was when James McDaniel (Lt. Fancy) and Esai Morales (Lt. Rodriguez) appeared together in the season 8 episode "Flight of Fancy"
• In the series, only Andy's first and last partners (John Kelly and John Clark) do not die. Bobby Simone and Danny Sorensen do.
• In the pilot episode, Andy argues outside the courtroom with A.D.A. Costas (Sharon Lawrence) over whether she thinks he broke the law to search a suspect. She tries to end the argument with, "I'd say res ipsa loquitur if I thought you knew what that meant," to which Andy replies, "Hey, ipsa this, you pissy little bitch," as he grabs his crotch. Res ipsa loquitur is Latin for "the thing speaks for itself."
• Charlotte Ross first guest starred as Laurie Richardson, an abused housewife, in episodes 5.16 and 5.18 (1998) and then joined the show in 2001 as a regular cast member playing the role of Detective Connie McDowell. Though she quit the show in 2004, her part was not written out of the story. She continued to remain Detective Andy Sipowicz's wife, though the viewers never got to see her.
• David Caruso (John Kelly) also stars in CSI: Miami, a spin-off of CBS' flagship show CSI, as another cop, Lt. Horatio Caine. Caruso was known for his arrogant attitude believing that NYPD Blue was his show. When he held out for more money in season 2 the producers refused and a compromise was reached wherein Caruso would appear in the first four episodes. It has also been said that he once kicked a bin at Dennis Franz's head.
• Sherry Stringfield and David Schwimmer, who played her neighbor dubbed "4-B" by Det. John Kelly, would both become cast members of shows that not only debuted the next year and become monster hits, but would air on the same night on the same network - "ER" and "Friends" respectively.

International

Country	Channel
UK	Channel 4 (Series 1-9), More 4 (Series 10-12) and FX (repeats)

DVD releases

DVD Name	Release dates
	Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
The Complete 1st Season	March 18 2003	May 19 2003	N/A
The Complete 2nd Season	August 19 2003	October 6 2003	N/A
The Complete 3rd Season	February 21 2006	April 17 2006	N/A
The Complete 4th Season	June 20 2006	August 14 2006	N/A

External links

• [Encyclopedia of Television]
• Official websites for the show from [ABC], [Court TV],[TNT] and [Bravo!]
• Series ending commentary from [MSNBC], [Slate], and the [Christian Science Monitor]
• [Alan Sepinwall/Amanda Wilson entire series information and episode summary & review]
• [April 2001 announcement about NYPD Blue's airing on Court TV and TNT]
• [David Milch's Active Imagination], a May 2002 interview with Milch
• [Episode guide at TV.COM]
• [The Bochco Beat] - Forum dedicated to this and other Bochco shows

 

---

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

Search Titles

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

?