Winner of 20 Emmy Awards in its first three years, ”Hill Street Blues”
(9 p.m. Thursdays on NBC-Ch. 5) is television`s most honored series of the 1980s. It`s gritty, grubby, real and often funny. Now, at 5 years old, middle- aged in TV terms, a nagging question arises about ”Hill Street Blues.” Has the show lost its edge?
This is not a question taken lightly by anyone connected with what NBC proudly calls ”the industry`s finest drama series.”
”Let`s get one thing straight,” says John Litvack, NBC`s vice-president in charge of drama shows. ” `Hill Street Blues` is a wonderful series. It`s an ongoing operation. It`s not dead. Yes, viewership was down 3 percent last year. With a show 5 years old, that`s no cause for panic. `Hill Street Blues` is not broken, so we don`t see a need to fix it.”
Okay! So what`s all this commotion around the blighted-but-beloved precinct? Items: Executive producer Steven Bochco got canned last May. Characters are leaving. A new guy`s coming in. People say the story line is too dense. Others complain the show goes into repeats too often. And only three stops up the TV dial, on CBS-Ch. 2, is ”Knots Landing,” last season No. 9 in the Nielsen ratings (versus No. 27 for ”Hill Street.”).
Added to that was some polite pressure from NBC programming chief Brandon Tartikoff. ”The only fault I found with `Hill Street` this past season,”
Tartikoff told a set of TV critics in Los Angeles last month, ”is that they were extremely faithful to all the things that were new and different about the show, that got everybody excited in Year One.
”Now, `St. Elsewhere` is in the same ensemble form. `Miami Vice` has updated the cop genre. But `Hill Street` is still wedded to some of its original concepts. The roll call. Every show lasts a day. The same number of stories every episode.”
Even more compelling was word from NBC board chairman Grant Tinker. He let it be known that, while he still admires the show, he thinks it needs
”some refreshing.”
The result: a dilemma for two former Yale University roommates who now run ”Hill Street Blues” for MTM Productions.
They are Jeffrey Lewis, a ”Hill Street” veteran who co-created last season`s failed baseball spin-off ”Bay City Blues,” and David Milch, who taught literature and creative writing at Yale for 11 years before joining the ”Hill Street” staff three years ago. As co-executive producers, the pair face the show`s sixth season, as Milch puts it, ”with guarded optimism.”
The gist of their problem is how to improve ”Hill Street Blues” while still retaining elements that made it a success in the first place. In a phone interview from Los Angeles, Milch began by admitting that ”sure, there was an upheaval last season.” It began when MTM Productions fired the creator of
”Hill Street,” executive producer Bochco, mostly over cost overruns. NBC was not responsible for Bochco`s fall from power. They pay MTM a fee for each episode, and MTM sets up its own budget.
But the fall out from that decision is still coming down. Critics raised fears that the show would be done on the cheap. Standards would be dropped;
the cast would be cut. (Among other problems: Barbara Bosson, who plays Fay Furillo on the show, is married to Bochco. They were classmates at Carnegie Tech.) This summer, much of Milch`s work has involved squelching rumors.
”First of all,” he says, ”Steve Bochco has done everything he can to make the transition smooth. He is doing a story with us and he, and everybody else, have made a commitment not to let the show be hurt. Barbara is staying with us.
”In addition, both NBC and MTM have encouraged us to be creative. It`s simply not true that they told us to scale down budgets. What we want to do is find new ways to tell stories. We won`t be wedded to the sunrise-to-sunset format. We`ll use roll call from time to time, but not always. And sometimes we`ll focus on fewer stories.”
Lewis and Milch also have brought in fresh writing and directing talent. Oscar-winner Tony Richardson (”Tom Jones”) will direct one segment, probably early on, written by Walon ”Wally” Green (”The Wild Bunch”), the show`s new assistant producer. Another episode will be directed by Mark Tinker, principal director of ”St. Elsewhere,” which is shot on the same lot.
”To us,” Milch says, ”wholesale restructuring would be a mistake. The show is what it is. Changes we make must be consistent with `Hill Street`s`
world.” But he notes that in many ways ”Hill Street” has been stuck in a time warp.
”In real life, people come and leave. But except for (actor) Michael Conrad, who died no one has left ”Hill Street” since the show started. Nor have there been any real changes in these people, the kinds of changes you would see in real life. This year, we will get into some of those fundamental shifts.”
Like what? Milch, carefully protecting story lines, would not say. But here, subject to change as scripts develop, are what he sees as possibilities: — Public defender Joyce Davenport (Veronica Hamel) and Capt. Frank Furillo (Daniel J. Travanti) will have further problems in their marriage, some fueled by Furillo`s ambition, others by investigations into alleged corruption in the precinct.
— Chicago actor and Organic Theater veteran Dennis Franz, seen three seasons ago as the sadistic and corrupt Det. ”Bad Sal” Benedetto who killed himself, will join the permanent cast as renegade Lt. Norman ”Guido” Buntz
(”a wonderful character, a phenomenon of amorality, a man who is not evil, not good, but just `is` ”).
— Mick Belker (Bruce Weitz), the grubby undercover detective who growls at felons might become a father.
— Excitable Lt. Henry Goldblume (Joe Spano) will feel threatened by Buntz, who never apologizes and never explains when he moves outside the rules.
— Tough-talking Sgt. Lucy Bates (Betty Thomas), an all-work and no-play professional, will be injured in a scrape and reveal some of her family background, thoroughly confusing partner Officer Joe Coffey (Ed Mariano), who at first doesn`t know what happened to her.
— Lt. Ray Calletano (Rene Enriquez), after much talking, will be promoted to captain of another precinct, but will return to ”Hill Street”
for six episodes.
In addition, the roster of khaki officers will show new faces and the precinct will not see as much of three others: Mayo (Mimi Kuzyk), Leo Schnitz (Robert Hirschfield) and Det. Harry Garibaldi (Ken Olin), who will ”go beyond the pale.” That means meddling in areas (drug-dealing?) which could mean dismissal from the force.
”We told them to bend the form, take chances, experiment,” says NBC`s Litvack. ”We have given them no specific instructions. But there is an opportunity, as the show ages, to do some things differently.”
But, he says, it`s a matter of tinkering with a formula, not changing or moving outside it. So, would ”Hill Street Blues” consider, for example, signing a teen-queen rock star to broaden its appeal and counter ”Knots Landing” (as CBS`s ”Falcon Crest” recently did by adding Apollonia Kotero to its cast)? No, says Litvack, sounding over the phone like he was turning purple. ”Our aim is to make the best `Hill Street` we can. We won`t be using broadcasting tricks.”
20 QUESTIONS FOR `HILL STREET BLUES` FANS
If you`re a ”Hill Street Blues,” fan, see how many stripes you merit with this ”Trivial Blues” quiz. The answers are on page xx.
Questions:
1. What indignity befell Andy Renko`s poor daddy shortly after he died?
2. What was Phil Esterhaus` middle name?
3. Name four ”Hill Street” characters that have been seen approaching a clergyman or justice of the peace in search of marital bliss.
4. Who played Mick Belker`s caped compadre, Captain Freedom?
5. What breed of dog did Howard Hunter use in his ill-fated canine corps? 6. What did Johnny LaRue call his financial scam that allowed customers to wash their duds while they quaffed their suds?
7. What ”Hill Streeter” was asked to dinner by a prostitute?
8. Who suffered the painful humiliation of a boil on his derriere?
9. What creature purportly lurked beneath the city streets and was picked off unsuspecting cops?
10. Who`s the number one EATer?
11. Name two popular–if seedy–cop hangouts.
12. Name four of the gangs known to populate the Hill.
13. For whom did Howard Hunter offer to convert to Judaism and entrust with his Marine dog tags?
14. What on-location movie did Frank Furillo get all the gangs to work on in exchange for peace during filming?
15. Where did Johnny LaRue see Neal Washington and himself in a cushy security job?
16. What character was Johnny LaRue`s ”narcoleptic comic”?
17. Name at least two cops who have appeared in drag at some time.
18. Only once did viewers did Phil Esterhaus strap on a gun. Why?
19. What picture did Howard Hunter set before him when he attempted to take his own life?
20. Who championed the blues at the annual–and clandestine–all-precinct poker tournament?
21. What ”Hill Streeter” had his pants incinerated while on duty?
22. Who was punished for mooning?
23. What was the name of Howard Hunter`s ill-fated but noble steed?
24. Of what ethnic derivation is Ray Calletano?
25. What kind of dog did the governor expect the blues to retrieve for him?
26. What is the first matter of business for Andy Renko on a typical morning following roll?
27. Name two ”Hill Streeters` who have been promoted during the series run.
28. What is Joyce Davenport`s favorite nickname for hubby Frank Furillo?
29. Name at least two other police precints in the city besides Hill Street.
30. How much money did Bobby Hill win in a lottery?
31. Whose birthday did the blues celebrate with a belly dancer?
32. Who are the Ba-bing Ba-bing sisters?
33. What cop defeated Chief Daniels in the mayoral race?
34. Which ”Hill Street” regular was shot to death in the original pilot, but was revived for the series?
35. What toothy public nuisance was Howard Hunter sent to bag beneath the city streets?
36. Who did Baby, the purse-swiping orangutan, take a shine to?
37. Who was Phil Esterhaus` passionate lover?
38. Who almost made the winning shot at a charity basketball game between the ”Hill Streeters” and local gang youths?
39. Who is the devilish leader of the Diablos?
40. ”Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.” Who uttered those words to close a show?
41. What does Johnny LaRue`s despised brother-in-law do for a living?
42. Which ”Hill Streeter” got unlucky on a television game show?
43. What would-be television hero rescued a besieged Bates and Coffey from an angry mob?
44. What motorized vehicle was stolen from Howard Hunter while he lunched?
45. Who lost his fortune when the bottom fell out of the soybean market?
46. What is the profession of the man who fathered Fay`s second child?
47. What other ”Hill Streeter” had a romantic liaison with Esterhaus`
Grace Gardner?
48. What character was booked for possession of marijuana?
49. What arresting blues brother was threatened by a voodoo-spouting Caribbean woman that ”There`ll be a few pins in your doll come sundown”?
50. ”Hill Street” is not specific about its exact location, but is it likely an American or National League baseball town?
Answers:
1. The late Mr. Renko`s (played by Morgan Woodward) body was accidentally stolen and dumped in an alley where he was thought to be a sleeping wino.
2. Freemason.
3. Frank Furillo and Joyce Davenport (together), Andy Renko and Phil Esterhaus (the Sarge fainted just as he hit the altar and his wedding to a 17- year-old cheerleader was off).
4. Actor Dennis Dugan.
5. Sleepy-eyed basset hounds.
6. Saloondromat.
7. Mick Belker was asked out by the grateful Eddie, a male prostitute
(played by Charles Levin).
8. Bobby Hill.
9. The Phanton of the Sewers, in reality an old joke played by veteran cops on rookies, with Johnny LaRue as the ”monster.”
10. Howard Hunter heads the Emergency Action Team, or EATers.
11. The Club Como and the Kodiak League.
12. Various gangs include the Gypsy Boys, Pagans, Dragons, Blood, Diablos, Shamrocks, Mau Maus and the Black Arrow.
13. Nurse Wolfowitz (played by Kathleen Lloyd).
14. ”Street Dogs.”
15. The Bahamas.
16. Vic Hitler (plyaed by Terry Kiser).
17. Mick Belker, Bobby Hill and Henry Goldblume.
18. Phil Esterhaus reluctantly holstered up a la ”High Noon” to meet Kermit Trench (played by Ron Feinberg), an old nemesis he had put in prison and had just been released.
19. One of himself.
20. A cigar-smoking Lucy Bates.
21. Joe Coffey, after an angry Lucy Bates offered to have a hole in his pants sewn up.
22. Andy Renko.
23. Apollo unfortunately kicked the bucket as Howard read to him.
24. Colombian (don`t ever serve him huevos rancheros).
25. Lhasa apso.
26. His morning ”sitdown,” or restroom privileges.
27. Sgt. Lucy Bates and Lt. Henry Goldblume.
28. Pizza man.
29. Midtown, South Ferry, Polk Avenue, Washington Heights, Jefferson Heights.
30. $100,000 (don`t ask how much he kept).
31. An embarrassed Phil Esterhaus.
32. Two mud-wrestling, gold-digging sisters (played by Denise and Dian Gallup) favored by a few blues.
33. Ozzie Cleveland (played by J.A. Preston).
34. Andy Renko was revived courtesy of a simple voiceover in the final version.
35. Mythical alligators (a bogus gator was jerryrigged by La Rue and Washington).
36. Mick Belker.
37. Grace Gardner (played by Barbara Babcock).
38. Bobby Hill`s desperation shot would have been true had not a gang member shot the ball on the rim.
39. Jesus Martinez (plyaed by Trinidad Silva).
40. Frank Furillo, in a church confessional.
41. Rob (played by Louis Giambalvo, as La Rue`s brother-in-law) runs a rent-a-car dealership.
42. Ray Calletano ultimately lost on ”Lucky Ducks.”
43. A costumed man on horseback thought he was the Cisco Kid (played by Martin Ferraro).
44. A Japanese-imported battle tank on loan for city use.
45. Jesus Martinez sank his Federal grant money in the stock market.
46. Judge Paul Grogin (played by Donnelly Rhodes).
47. Howard Hunter has a disastrous one-night stand.
48. Fay Furillo.
49. Andy Renko.
50. Likely a National League baseball town. Joyce Davenport once offered to take Frank to a game because ”The Phillies are in town.” Of course, Chicago and New York are bi-league.
Source: NBC Press Department.
