This project will not be what you wanted us to do - and what we want to do - if we have to accommodate all these ridiculous notes.' And I left. Bochco and Kozoll met with the network brass.īochco: At the end of the meeting, I got up and said, 'We can't do this project. NBC's Standards and Practices department - the network censor - wasn't impressed, however, questioning every detail. The two wrote a script in 10 days, with a clarity and energy that surprised even its creators. And (the network) said "OK." Now we're stuck with it. Michael and I agreed that we would do it on one condition: We'll do this pilot for you on the condition that you'll leave us completely alone to do whatever we want. But they were insistent that that's what they wanted. Mike Kozoll didn't particularly want to do another cop show. Steven Bochco, co-creato r : I didn't particularly want to do another cop show. The project fell into the hands of producers Steven Bochco and Michael Kozoll at MTM Enterprises. Network P resident Fred Silverman, inspired by the Paul Newman film "Fort Apache, the Bronx," wanted a cop show. Even "Saturday Night Live" was having its worst season ever. Its shows, such as the flop "Supertrain," were the butt of jokes. (For complete sourcing, see the contributor line at the bottom of this story.)
Hill street blues cast archive#
Sources include direct interviews, the Archive of American Television and a Playboy magazine Q&A. "It just changed the rules of TV," its producer, Steven Bochco, said in an interview.
Hill street blues cast series#
The result? Two decades of dominance for the Peacock Network - "Hill Street" was the first cornerstone of its Thursday lineup - and the bounty of novelistic TV series we see today. It stayed on through a combination of key corporate support, determination and a little bit of luck. Still, initial ratings were poor and audiences were confused. It was well-written, boldly directed and creatively revolutionary. It was a serialized mixture of drama and comedy featuring diverse, colorful and three-dimensional characters - the policemen and policewomen of the rundown Hill Street Station.