Bop Gun (Homicide: Life on the Street)
Encyclopedia
"Bop Gun" is the second season
premiere of the American police drama television series Homicide: Life on the Street
, and the tenth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC
in the United States on January 6, 1994. In the episode, the Baltimore
homicide unit investigates the shooting death of the wife of a tourist, played by guest star Robin Williams
.
The episode was written by David Mills and David Simon
based on a story by executive producer Tom Fontana
, and directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
. In response to network feedback and poor ratings from the first season, "Bop Gun" marked several changes in the series, including a less bleak visual style and a greater focus on one plot, rather than multiple subplots. It was also the first episode to focus primarily on a homicide victim, rather than on the detectives. Simon felt the dialogue was realistic, especially that of the dark humor employed by detectives as a coping mechanism for dealing with the horrors of the job.
Williams previously worked with Homicide executive producer Barry Levinson
on the films Good Morning, Vietnam
(1987) and Toys (1992). This led to speculation that Williams took the role on "Bop Gun" as a favor to Levinson, but the actor insisted it was out of admiration for the series itself. A young Jake Gyllenhaal
, the son of the episode's director, makes an appearance as Williams' son. The episode was the first to feature Chris Tergesen as music coordinator, which resulted in the use of more songs than previous episodes, including "Killer" by Seal
and "Feels Like Rain" by Buddy Guy
.
"Bop Gun" was seen by 16.3 million viewers, one of the highest Nielsen ratings
of the week, thanks in large part due to interest in Williams' appearance. The episode received generally positive reviews, with several particularly complimenting the dramatic performance by Williams. "Bop Gun" won a Writers Guild of America Award
for Best Screenplay of an Episodic Drama
. Williams also received an Emmy Award
nomination for Guest Actor in a Drama Series. The episode, along with the rest of the first and second seasons of Homicide: Life on the Street was released on DVD in the United States on May 27, 2003.
(Daniel Baldwin
) and Howard
(Melissa Leo
) investigate the murder of an Iowa
woman who was shot to death in front of her husband Robert Ellison (Robin Williams
) and two young children during a stick-up. Since the victims are tourists, the case becomes a "red ball" and receives considerable attention from the press, city officials and top police brass. Bayliss
(Kyle Secor
) tries to interview the two young children, but Ellison stops him, protesting that the experience is too hard on them. After obtaining information from street thugs, the police arrest Marvin (Antonio Charity), who possesses 45-caliber bullets matching those used in the shooting. A mournful Ellison overhears Felton making jokes about the investigation and bragging about the overtime he expects to receive from it. He angrily demands Felton be thrown off the case, but Gee
(Yaphet Kotto
) calms him down by explaining the police have to be detached from the victims because they encounter so many. Ellison takes his children back to their hotel room, where his daughter Abby (Julia Devin) is in denial about her mother's death, and his son Matt (Jake Gyllenhaal
) angrily refuses to talk to his father.
The police arrest a second suspect named Tweety (Vincent Miller), who was found in possession of the murdered woman's locket. The detectives question Marvin and Tweety separately until Tweety identifies the shooter as 19-year-old Vaughn Perkins (Lloyd Goodman). Howard is surprised to learn Vaughn has a mostly clean criminal record, and his family insists Vaughn would never kill anybody. Vaughn is arrested without incident, but Ellison is unable to identify the three suspects because he does not remember their faces. Meanwhile, Ellison sees his wife's body in the morgue, and gets upset that her clothes and wedding ring have been removed. Bayliss later returns the ring to Ellison, who admits he feels guilty for not protecting his wife or stopping the shooter. Ellison asks to hold Bayliss' gun just to know how it feels, and Bayliss reluctantly agrees.
Howard repeatedly questions Vaughn, believing he is acting as the fall guy for his two friends. Vaughn says nothing, but eventually writes a letter of apology to Ellison. Felton closes the case despite Howard's protests for more time to investigate. Vaughn eventually pleads guilty at his arraignment and insists on serving life
without parole
. Marvin and Tweety are sentenced to 30 years in prison, but Ellison tells Howard he feels no comfort because his wife is still dead. Howard tries to give Vaughn's letter to Ellison, but he refuses to accept it. Howard eventually speaks directly to Vaughn in prison, where Vaughn admits he handled the gun during the stick-up because he thought if he had the gun, he could control the situation and prevent anyone from getting hurt. Vaughn said he lost control of the robbery, and insists he needs to serve the life sentence to make amends. A devastated Howard finally agrees with Felton's opinion that Vaughn was indeed the shooter.
to consider taking it off the air. After a nine-episode first season, the network approved four more episodes for the show's second season
as a trial run to determine whether to continue or cancel the show. The script for "Bop Gun" was completed before the first season ended, but NBC executives asked for several refinements – including less involved plots and fewer camera movements – before approving a second season. In an attempt to appease the network and improve ratings, executive producers Barry Levinson
and Tom Fontana
sought to make subtle changes to give the show a stronger mainstream appeal, while aiming not to compromise its integrity or originality. With "Bop Gun", the producers slightly toned down the bleak visual style and hand-held photography motif. It is also the first episode to focus on a single story, rather than multiple subplots, which Fontana felt allowed the writers to tell the main story better. Fontana said of the changes to the series, "We were experimenting with our first nine episodes. Whenever you try something new, you tend to err on the side of breaking ground. But we'd rather have more people watching, so the colors and lighting are slightly brighter, and the camera movements are not as jarring." "Bop Gun" marked the first episode with Jean de Segonzac
as director of photography. The first scene, which depicts the moments immediately before the shooting, juxtaposes shots of the Ellison family admiring the tourist attractions of Baltimore with shots of their shooters playing basketball before following the family. The photography depicts the different sides of Baltimore by presenting the Ellison family shots like a cheerful tourist advertisement, with the other shots presenting a grittier image of the city.
"Bop Gun" marked the first episode in its new time slot on Thursdays at 10 p.m., occupying a period previously filled by L.A. Law
. The show previously aired 9 p.m. on Wednesdays, where it was regularly defeated in the ratings by the ABC
comedy Home Improvement. "Bop Gun" was written by David Mills and David Simon
based on a story by Fontana. It was directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
, a feature director then-best known for such films as Waterland
(1992) and A Dangerous Woman
(1993). It was the first television script written by Mills, who previously worked as a reporter and became friends with Simon while studying journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park
. Mills said of "Bop Gun", "That script inspired me to quit journalism. It was a golden opportunity, even though I didn't know what I was doing. I developed bad habits as a newspaper feature writer. I would always stretch a project to fill the available time." "Bop Gun" served as a departure from previous Homicide: Life on the Street episodes by focusing more strongly on a murder victim, rather than on the detectives. Simon felt the script's dialogue, particularly the detectives' use of dark humor as a coping mechanism for dealing with the horrors of the homicide unit, were faithful to reality. He particularly cited the scene in which Felton angers Ellison by talking excitedly about how much overtime he expected to get. Simon said, "That's a conversation that would happen. It would happen in any homicide unit in America, and when I saw it actually being acted out I got a real kick in the pants because I thought, 'Wherever there are homicide detectives watching this, they're cracking up because they know how true it is.'"
"Bop Gun" was originally meant to serve as the second season finale, but NBC decided to make it the season premiere with the hopes of getting increased ratings from a guest appearance by Robin Williams
. Williams portrayed Robert Ellison, the husband of a slain woman tourist. Several news sources indicated Williams took on the role as a favor to Homicide executive producer Barry Levinson
, who directed Williams in the films Good Morning, Vietnam
(1987) and Toys (1992). But Fontana said Williams agreed to take the part based on the actor's positive impression of both the show in general and the "Bop Gun" script in particular. Fontana said of Williams, "He read the script, responded instantly and said, 'When do you want me there?'. He could not have been more prepared or more of a gentleman to everyone, and he worked his tail off. That whole experience was a joy." Williams himself said of the show, "Visually, it was just so different from anything else on television." Although Williams was primarily known for his comedic work, the Homicide producers and Williams himself consciously decided to remain true to the original script, rejecting the idea of adding humor or jokes to the episode. Williams' scenes were filmed over three days, and the actors found the part emotionally draining. Fontana said, "[Williams] worked like a dog. It was quite a special event for all of us. It's very intense."
A 13-year-old Jake Gyllenhaal
, son of the episode's director Stephen, made one of his earliest acting performances in "Bop Gun" as Matt, the young son of Robert Ellison. Williams and Homicide regular Richard Belzer were acquainted from a HBO comedy special they both appeared in, although the two had never acted together before. The two often joked between filming takes, except for during Williams' most dramatic scenes. The episode also featured Vincent Miller, an actor who worked primarily in the Washington, D.C.
area, as Tweety.
and Adamski
plays over a brief montage of images of Vaughn Perkins, just as Tweety and Marvin preparing to rob the Ellison family. When he is arrested, Marvin is wearing headphones, listening to the Public Enemy song "Gett off My Back". The Eric B. & Rakim
song "Chinese Arithmetic" plays during the scene in which police simultaneously interview Tweety and Marvin. "Feels Like Rain", by the blues
guitarist and singer Buddy Guy
, plays as Howard arrives to talk to Vaughn, and when she leaves after talking to him, in the episode's final scene. The song "Don't Start Me to Talkin'", by blues harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson II
, was also featured in the episode.
Tergesen was a fan of the funk
band Parliament-Funkadelic
, and the episode has several references to the group as a result. The episode's title derives from the band's song "Bop Gun (Endangered Species)
", and during one scene a criminal claims he shot someone over the destruction of a rare record by Eddie Hazel
, a member of Funkadelic. Additionally, one of the street thug characters is named Kid Funkadelic.
and a 28 share, the highest rating for a 10 p.m. drama series since January 1992. The rating placed Homicide among the top ten network television Nielsen ratings for the week, and outperformed the ratings of L.A. Law
, which normally filled the 10 p.m. Thursday timeslot. NBC Entertainment president Warren Littlefield said the ratings "far exceeded expectations", and said he expected the series to return for a third season
if the viewership remained strong. Littlefield said of the Homicide ratings:
as one of the ten best episodes of the series. Sun writer David Zurawik said Gyllenhaal's direction was as good as anything he had done in film, and called the script "one of the most ambitious scripts you'll see on TV this year". Lon Grahnke of the Chicago Sun-Times
gave the episode his highest rating of four stars, and called Williams portrayal "a piercing dramatic performance". Grahnke also said, "In one hour, 'Bop Gun' says more about firearms, urban tragedies, crime victims and racial politics than any yammering congressman trying to blame television for our violent society." Entertainment Weekly
critic Ken Tucker complimented the episode, noting, "Don't let Williams distract you from the real stuff here: the brilliantly jagged murder-investigation scenes and the exceptional performances from homicide-detective costars Daniel Baldwin and Melissa Leo." Tribune Company
television critic Kate O'Hare praised "Bop Gun" for focusing on characterization and dialogue rather than action, and said of the episode, "With a mix of intense emotion, dogged police work and humorous banter among the detectives, "Bop Gun" typifies the philosophy of Homicide." David P. Kalat, author of Homicide: Life on the Street - The Unofficial Companion, called it a "grueling" episode, and that Williams performed "probably his finest noncomedic performance ever". The Philadelphia Inquirer
television critic Jonathan Storm lauded the cast, the "visual art of the camera" and the "realistic, yet nearly literary dialogue" of "Bop Gun".
The Times-Picayune writer Benjamin Morrison praised the "unexpectedly understated" performance of Williams and praised the episode for not being simple or formulaic. He suggested viewers who were crime victims themselves would be particularly moved by the script. Hal Boedeker, television critic with the The Miami Herald
, called the episode an "uncompromising hour" and "the highest order for network TV". He said Williams "astonishes in every scene", and praised the script for not racing over topics as many television shows do, but rather taking "full measure of the weight of grief". Elaine Liner, television critic with the Corpus Christi Caller-Times
, described Williams' performance as "heartbreaking", but particularly praised the writers for "taking the show to a higher level" by making the perpetrator sympathetic and three-dimensional, not only the victim. Liner said, "Fontana succeeds in fleshing out the characters on both sides of this tragedy." Bob Langford of The News & Observer
called the episode "brilliant" and praised it for focusing not on the crime but on the effects of it, as well as the realistic portrayals regarding race, such as concerns the crime would keep away white tourists. Langford said it was occasionally preachy, but said "Sometimes, a good sermon is what we need. Amazing that one this powerful can come from a TV show."
Adam Sandler of Daily Variety
praised the cast, the hysteria and confusion conveyed in Gyllenhaal's direction, and the "themes of police insensitivity, victims rights and dysfunctional families" in the script. The Washington Post
writer Harriet Winslow called Williams' performance poignant and riveting, and called the fact that it did not overshadow the other actors a "tribute to the quality of this cast". John J. O'Connor of The New York Times
called the episode "extraordinary" and said "The senselessness of the incident is heartbreakingly captured". St. Louis Post-Dispatch
writer Gail Pennington praised Williams' "controlled performance" as well as several "terrific scenes". Among them, she said, were Gee's explanation of how police use humor as a buffer from the horrors of their jobs, and the scene where detectives simultaneously interrogate two suspects in different rooms, which she said was "choreographed as tightly as the Bolshoi Ballet
".
Not all reviews were so positive. The Dallas Morning News
writer Ed Bark called Williams' a "sometimes overly transparent effort to underscore the grief of the victims' survivors", and said the episode "works overtime" to make the world seem like a "bleak and scary place". Bark also said the show made itself a "target for charges of racism" by making the three murderers black, but also credited the script with making one of the perpetrators so sympathetic. Tom Shales of The Washington Post
said the writers "try a little too hard" to create sympathy for the three murder suspects, and the episode suffers due to the absence of actor Andre Braugher
, who plays Detective Frank Pembleton
. But Shales also praised Williams' performance and said the episode was particularly powerful because the actual violence is off-screen. Buzz McCain, columnist with The Washington Times
, called the episode "irritating" and "as pointless as the killing". He particularly criticized the script, which he said was clichéd and overly "misty-eyed", particularly the extended moments of Williams talking about the shooting. In a later article, McCain said, "Nothing I've written in this column generated as much visceral response as my nine paragraphs about ("Bop Gun")." In addition to responses from angry fans, McCain received a call from David Mills, who McCain said "simply wanted some insight as to what specifically I didn't like about his show and how the writers might improve on the next one."
Robin Williams' performance in "Bop Gun" was among a list of the ten best guest star moments in television history, compiled by the Star Tribune
in April 2001.
for Best Screenplay of an Episodic Drama
. It defeated competing episodes of Northern Exposure
and NYPD Blue
, as well as another second season Homicide episode, "A Many Splendored Thing". Robin Williams also received an Emmy Award
nomination for Guest Actor in a Drama Series. It was the only Emmy nomination Homicide: Life on the Street received in the 46th Primetime Emmy Awards
; the series received four nominations the previous year. Williams lost the award to Richard Kiley for his performance in CBS
drama series Picket Fences
; the other nominees were Dan Hedaya
, James Earl Jones
and Tim Curry
.
on May 27, 2003 for $69.95.
Homicide: Life on the Street (season 2)
The second season of Homicide: Life on the Street, an American police procedural drama television series, originally aired in the United States between January 6 and January 27, 1994. Due to low Nielsen ratings during the first season, NBC executives decided to order only a four-episode season,...
premiere of the American police drama television series Homicide: Life on the Street
Homicide: Life on the Street
Homicide: Life on the Street is an American police procedural television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons on NBC from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie, which also acted as the de-facto series finale...
, and the tenth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in the United States on January 6, 1994. In the episode, the Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
homicide unit investigates the shooting death of the wife of a tourist, played by guest star Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
.
The episode was written by David Mills and David Simon
David Simon
David Simon is an American author, journalist, and a writer/producer of television series. He worked for the Baltimore Sun City Desk for twelve years. He wrote Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets and co-wrote The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood with Ed Burns...
based on a story by executive producer Tom Fontana
Tom Fontana
Tom Fontana is an American writer and producer.-TV career:Fontana has been a writer/producer for such series as Oz , The Jury, The Beat, The Bedford Diaries, Homicide: Life on the Street, St...
, and directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
Stephen Gyllenhaal
-Personal life:Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Virginia Lowrie and Hugh Anders Gyllenhaal. The Gyllenhaal family is a descendant of the cavalry officer Nils Gunnesson Haal, who was ennobled in 1652 when Queen Christina of Sweden conferred upon him the crest and family name,...
. In response to network feedback and poor ratings from the first season, "Bop Gun" marked several changes in the series, including a less bleak visual style and a greater focus on one plot, rather than multiple subplots. It was also the first episode to focus primarily on a homicide victim, rather than on the detectives. Simon felt the dialogue was realistic, especially that of the dark humor employed by detectives as a coping mechanism for dealing with the horrors of the job.
Williams previously worked with Homicide executive producer Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson is an American screenwriter, film director, actor, and producer of film and television. His films include Good Morning, Vietnam, Sleepers and Rain Man.-Early life:...
on the films Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam is a 1987 American comedy-drama film set in Saigon during the Vietnam War, based on the career of Adrian Cronauer, a disc jockey on Armed Forces Radio Service , who proves hugely popular with the troops serving in South Vietnam, but infuriates his superiors with what they call...
(1987) and Toys (1992). This led to speculation that Williams took the role on "Bop Gun" as a favor to Levinson, but the actor insisted it was out of admiration for the series itself. A young Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake Gyllenhaal
Jacob Benjamin "Jake" Gyllenhaal is an American actor. The son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, Gyllenhaal began acting at age ten...
, the son of the episode's director, makes an appearance as Williams' son. The episode was the first to feature Chris Tergesen as music coordinator, which resulted in the use of more songs than previous episodes, including "Killer" by Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
and "Feels Like Rain" by Buddy Guy
Buddy Guy
George "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
.
"Bop Gun" was seen by 16.3 million viewers, one of the highest Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
of the week, thanks in large part due to interest in Williams' appearance. The episode received generally positive reviews, with several particularly complimenting the dramatic performance by Williams. "Bop Gun" won a Writers Guild of America Award
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
for Best Screenplay of an Episodic Drama
Writers Guild of America Award for Best Screenplay - Episodic Drama
This is the list of winners and nominees of the WGA Television Award for Best Writing for Drama Series - Episodic.-2000s:2000: The West Wing - Rick Cleveland/Aaron Sorkin for "In Excelsis Deo"...
. Williams also received an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nomination for Guest Actor in a Drama Series. The episode, along with the rest of the first and second seasons of Homicide: Life on the Street was released on DVD in the United States on May 27, 2003.
Plot summary
FeltonBeau Felton
Det. Beauregard D. 'Beau' Felton is a fictional character on the television drama series Homicide: Life on the Street portrayed by Daniel Baldwin for seasons 1-3. He was loosely based on Det...
(Daniel Baldwin
Daniel Baldwin
Daniel Leroy Baldwin is an American actor, producer and director. He is the second oldest of the four Baldwin brothers, all of whom are actors. Daniel Baldwin is known for his role as Detective Beau Felton in the popular NBC TV series Homicide: Life on the Street...
) and Howard
Kay Howard
Kay Howard is a fictional homicide detective from Homicide: Life on the Street. She was played by actress Melissa Leo. In the first two seasons of the show her character was the only female detective or member of the main cast. This was in keeping with the book and the actual Homicide unit in...
(Melissa Leo
Melissa Leo
Melissa Chessington Leo , is an American actress. After appearing on several television shows and films in the late '80s, her breakthrough role came in 1993 as Det. Sgt. Kay Howard on the television series Homicide: Life on the Street for the show's first five seasons from 1993 – 1997...
) investigate the murder of an Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
woman who was shot to death in front of her husband Robert Ellison (Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
) and two young children during a stick-up. Since the victims are tourists, the case becomes a "red ball" and receives considerable attention from the press, city officials and top police brass. Bayliss
Tim Bayliss
Timothy Bayliss is a fictional detective on Homicide: Life on the Street. He was a primary character, and was played by Kyle Secor. He was loosely based on the real-life Det...
(Kyle Secor
Kyle Secor
Kyle Ivan Secor is an American television and movie actor, best known for his role as Detective Tim Bayliss on the crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street.-Early years:...
) tries to interview the two young children, but Ellison stops him, protesting that the experience is too hard on them. After obtaining information from street thugs, the police arrest Marvin (Antonio Charity), who possesses 45-caliber bullets matching those used in the shooting. A mournful Ellison overhears Felton making jokes about the investigation and bragging about the overtime he expects to receive from it. He angrily demands Felton be thrown off the case, but Gee
Al Giardello
Alphonse Michael Giardello, Sr. is a fictional character from the television drama Homicide: Life on the Street. The character was played by Yaphet Kotto...
(Yaphet Kotto
Yaphet Kotto
Yaphet Frederick Kotto is an African-American actor, known for numerous film roles , and his starring role in the NBC television series Homicide: Life on the Street .-Early life:Kotto was born in New York City, the son of Gladys Marie, a...
) calms him down by explaining the police have to be detached from the victims because they encounter so many. Ellison takes his children back to their hotel room, where his daughter Abby (Julia Devin) is in denial about her mother's death, and his son Matt (Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake Gyllenhaal
Jacob Benjamin "Jake" Gyllenhaal is an American actor. The son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, Gyllenhaal began acting at age ten...
) angrily refuses to talk to his father.
The police arrest a second suspect named Tweety (Vincent Miller), who was found in possession of the murdered woman's locket. The detectives question Marvin and Tweety separately until Tweety identifies the shooter as 19-year-old Vaughn Perkins (Lloyd Goodman). Howard is surprised to learn Vaughn has a mostly clean criminal record, and his family insists Vaughn would never kill anybody. Vaughn is arrested without incident, but Ellison is unable to identify the three suspects because he does not remember their faces. Meanwhile, Ellison sees his wife's body in the morgue, and gets upset that her clothes and wedding ring have been removed. Bayliss later returns the ring to Ellison, who admits he feels guilty for not protecting his wife or stopping the shooter. Ellison asks to hold Bayliss' gun just to know how it feels, and Bayliss reluctantly agrees.
Howard repeatedly questions Vaughn, believing he is acting as the fall guy for his two friends. Vaughn says nothing, but eventually writes a letter of apology to Ellison. Felton closes the case despite Howard's protests for more time to investigate. Vaughn eventually pleads guilty at his arraignment and insists on serving life
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
without parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
. Marvin and Tweety are sentenced to 30 years in prison, but Ellison tells Howard he feels no comfort because his wife is still dead. Howard tries to give Vaughn's letter to Ellison, but he refuses to accept it. Howard eventually speaks directly to Vaughn in prison, where Vaughn admits he handled the gun during the stick-up because he thought if he had the gun, he could control the situation and prevent anyone from getting hurt. Vaughn said he lost control of the robbery, and insists he needs to serve the life sentence to make amends. A devastated Howard finally agrees with Felton's opinion that Vaughn was indeed the shooter.
Production
Despite critical acclaim, Homicide: Life on the Street suffered from poor ratings throughout its first season, prompting NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
to consider taking it off the air. After a nine-episode first season, the network approved four more episodes for the show's second season
Homicide: Life on the Street (season 2)
The second season of Homicide: Life on the Street, an American police procedural drama television series, originally aired in the United States between January 6 and January 27, 1994. Due to low Nielsen ratings during the first season, NBC executives decided to order only a four-episode season,...
as a trial run to determine whether to continue or cancel the show. The script for "Bop Gun" was completed before the first season ended, but NBC executives asked for several refinements – including less involved plots and fewer camera movements – before approving a second season. In an attempt to appease the network and improve ratings, executive producers Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson is an American screenwriter, film director, actor, and producer of film and television. His films include Good Morning, Vietnam, Sleepers and Rain Man.-Early life:...
and Tom Fontana
Tom Fontana
Tom Fontana is an American writer and producer.-TV career:Fontana has been a writer/producer for such series as Oz , The Jury, The Beat, The Bedford Diaries, Homicide: Life on the Street, St...
sought to make subtle changes to give the show a stronger mainstream appeal, while aiming not to compromise its integrity or originality. With "Bop Gun", the producers slightly toned down the bleak visual style and hand-held photography motif. It is also the first episode to focus on a single story, rather than multiple subplots, which Fontana felt allowed the writers to tell the main story better. Fontana said of the changes to the series, "We were experimenting with our first nine episodes. Whenever you try something new, you tend to err on the side of breaking ground. But we'd rather have more people watching, so the colors and lighting are slightly brighter, and the camera movements are not as jarring." "Bop Gun" marked the first episode with Jean de Segonzac
Jean de Segonzac
Jean R. B. de Segonzac is a director, screenwriter and cinematographer who has worked in documentaries and television programs...
as director of photography. The first scene, which depicts the moments immediately before the shooting, juxtaposes shots of the Ellison family admiring the tourist attractions of Baltimore with shots of their shooters playing basketball before following the family. The photography depicts the different sides of Baltimore by presenting the Ellison family shots like a cheerful tourist advertisement, with the other shots presenting a grittier image of the city.
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
. The show previously aired 9 p.m. on Wednesdays, where it was regularly defeated in the ratings by the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
comedy Home Improvement. "Bop Gun" was written by David Mills and David Simon
David Simon
David Simon is an American author, journalist, and a writer/producer of television series. He worked for the Baltimore Sun City Desk for twelve years. He wrote Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets and co-wrote The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood with Ed Burns...
based on a story by Fontana. It was directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
Stephen Gyllenhaal
-Personal life:Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Virginia Lowrie and Hugh Anders Gyllenhaal. The Gyllenhaal family is a descendant of the cavalry officer Nils Gunnesson Haal, who was ennobled in 1652 when Queen Christina of Sweden conferred upon him the crest and family name,...
, a feature director then-best known for such films as Waterland
Waterland (film)
Waterland is a 1992 film directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, based on the 1983 novel of the same name by Graham Swift. The film starred Jeremy Irons, Sinéad Cusack, Ethan Hawke, and John Heard.-Plot:...
(1992) and A Dangerous Woman
A Dangerous Woman (1993 film)
A Dangerous Woman is a 1993 film from Amblin Entertainment and Gramercy Pictures directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal and written for the screen by his then wife Naomi Foner...
(1993). It was the first television script written by Mills, who previously worked as a reporter and became friends with Simon while studying journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
. Mills said of "Bop Gun", "That script inspired me to quit journalism. It was a golden opportunity, even though I didn't know what I was doing. I developed bad habits as a newspaper feature writer. I would always stretch a project to fill the available time." "Bop Gun" served as a departure from previous Homicide: Life on the Street episodes by focusing more strongly on a murder victim, rather than on the detectives. Simon felt the script's dialogue, particularly the detectives' use of dark humor as a coping mechanism for dealing with the horrors of the homicide unit, were faithful to reality. He particularly cited the scene in which Felton angers Ellison by talking excitedly about how much overtime he expected to get. Simon said, "That's a conversation that would happen. It would happen in any homicide unit in America, and when I saw it actually being acted out I got a real kick in the pants because I thought, 'Wherever there are homicide detectives watching this, they're cracking up because they know how true it is.'"
"Bop Gun" was originally meant to serve as the second season finale, but NBC decided to make it the season premiere with the hopes of getting increased ratings from a guest appearance by Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
. Williams portrayed Robert Ellison, the husband of a slain woman tourist. Several news sources indicated Williams took on the role as a favor to Homicide executive producer Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson is an American screenwriter, film director, actor, and producer of film and television. His films include Good Morning, Vietnam, Sleepers and Rain Man.-Early life:...
, who directed Williams in the films Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam is a 1987 American comedy-drama film set in Saigon during the Vietnam War, based on the career of Adrian Cronauer, a disc jockey on Armed Forces Radio Service , who proves hugely popular with the troops serving in South Vietnam, but infuriates his superiors with what they call...
(1987) and Toys (1992). But Fontana said Williams agreed to take the part based on the actor's positive impression of both the show in general and the "Bop Gun" script in particular. Fontana said of Williams, "He read the script, responded instantly and said, 'When do you want me there?'. He could not have been more prepared or more of a gentleman to everyone, and he worked his tail off. That whole experience was a joy." Williams himself said of the show, "Visually, it was just so different from anything else on television." Although Williams was primarily known for his comedic work, the Homicide producers and Williams himself consciously decided to remain true to the original script, rejecting the idea of adding humor or jokes to the episode. Williams' scenes were filmed over three days, and the actors found the part emotionally draining. Fontana said, "[Williams] worked like a dog. It was quite a special event for all of us. It's very intense."
A 13-year-old Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake Gyllenhaal
Jacob Benjamin "Jake" Gyllenhaal is an American actor. The son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, Gyllenhaal began acting at age ten...
, son of the episode's director Stephen, made one of his earliest acting performances in "Bop Gun" as Matt, the young son of Robert Ellison. Williams and Homicide regular Richard Belzer were acquainted from a HBO comedy special they both appeared in, although the two had never acted together before. The two often joked between filming takes, except for during Williams' most dramatic scenes. The episode also featured Vincent Miller, an actor who worked primarily in the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area, as Tweety.
Music
"Bop Gun" was the first episode to feature Chris Tergesen as music coordinator, and thus more music is featured in it than any previous episodes. During the opening scene, the song "Killer" by SealSeal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
and Adamski
Adamski
Adamski is an English dance music producer, prominent at the time of acid house for his tracks "N-R-G" and "Killer" .-Career:...
plays over a brief montage of images of Vaughn Perkins, just as Tweety and Marvin preparing to rob the Ellison family. When he is arrested, Marvin is wearing headphones, listening to the Public Enemy song "Gett off My Back". The Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim were a hip-hop duo composed of DJ Eric Barrier and MC Rakim .Hailing from Long Island, New York, the pair are generally considered by hip hop enthusiasts to be one of the most influential and innovative groups in the genre...
song "Chinese Arithmetic" plays during the scene in which police simultaneously interview Tweety and Marvin. "Feels Like Rain", by the blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist and singer Buddy Guy
Buddy Guy
George "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
, plays as Howard arrives to talk to Vaughn, and when she leaves after talking to him, in the episode's final scene. The song "Don't Start Me to Talkin'", by blues harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson II
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Willie "Sonny Boy" Williamson was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi. He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and highly creative songwriting skills...
, was also featured in the episode.
Tergesen was a fan of the funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
band Parliament-Funkadelic
Parliament-Funkadelic
Parliament-Funkadelic is a funk, soul and rock music collective headed by George Clinton. Their style has been dubbed P-Funk. Collectively the group has existed under various names since the 1960s and has been known for top-notch musicianship, politically charged lyrics, outlandish concept albums...
, and the episode has several references to the group as a result. The episode's title derives from the band's song "Bop Gun (Endangered Species)
Bop Gun (Endangered Species)
"Bop Gun " is a song by the funk band Parliament, the lead track on their 1977 album Funkentelechy Vs. the Placebo Syndrome. It was released as the album's first single. The song's lead vocal is performed by Glen Goins, his last performance on a P-Funk record.The Bop Gun is an imaginary weapon that...
", and during one scene a criminal claims he shot someone over the destruction of a rare record by Eddie Hazel
Eddie Hazel
Edward Earl "Eddie" Hazel was a guitarist in early funk music in the United States who played lead guitar with Parliament-Funkadelic...
, a member of Funkadelic. Additionally, one of the street thug characters is named Kid Funkadelic.
Ratings
In its original American broadcast on January 6, 1994, "Bop Gun" was seen by 16.3 million viewers, a higher-than-usual Homicide: Life on the Street rating in large part to interest in Williams' appearance. It received an 17.3 Nielsen ratingNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
and a 28 share, the highest rating for a 10 p.m. drama series since January 1992. The rating placed Homicide among the top ten network television Nielsen ratings for the week, and outperformed the ratings of L.A. Law
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
, which normally filled the 10 p.m. Thursday timeslot. NBC Entertainment president Warren Littlefield said the ratings "far exceeded expectations", and said he expected the series to return for a third season
Homicide: Life on the Street (season 3)
The third season of Homicide: Life on the Street aired in the United States on the NBC television network from 1994-10-14 to 1995-05-05 and contained 20 episodes. It was the first full season of episodes.The third season marked the debut of character Lt...
if the viewership remained strong. Littlefield said of the Homicide ratings:
"These are outstanding numbers for a dramatic television series. If we can keep a reasonable level of audience, we believe in the work, we believe in the creative team we think we have, perhaps the most outstanding ensemble cast in all of television. We just would like to see continued signs of life."
Reviews
"Bop Gun" received generally positive reviews, and was identified by The Baltimore SunThe Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
as one of the ten best episodes of the series. Sun writer David Zurawik said Gyllenhaal's direction was as good as anything he had done in film, and called the script "one of the most ambitious scripts you'll see on TV this year". Lon Grahnke of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
gave the episode his highest rating of four stars, and called Williams portrayal "a piercing dramatic performance". Grahnke also said, "In one hour, 'Bop Gun' says more about firearms, urban tragedies, crime victims and racial politics than any yammering congressman trying to blame television for our violent society." Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
critic Ken Tucker complimented the episode, noting, "Don't let Williams distract you from the real stuff here: the brilliantly jagged murder-investigation scenes and the exceptional performances from homicide-detective costars Daniel Baldwin and Melissa Leo." Tribune Company
Tribune Company
The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...
television critic Kate O'Hare praised "Bop Gun" for focusing on characterization and dialogue rather than action, and said of the episode, "With a mix of intense emotion, dogged police work and humorous banter among the detectives, "Bop Gun" typifies the philosophy of Homicide." David P. Kalat, author of Homicide: Life on the Street - The Unofficial Companion, called it a "grueling" episode, and that Williams performed "probably his finest noncomedic performance ever". The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
television critic Jonathan Storm lauded the cast, the "visual art of the camera" and the "realistic, yet nearly literary dialogue" of "Bop Gun".
The Times-Picayune writer Benjamin Morrison praised the "unexpectedly understated" performance of Williams and praised the episode for not being simple or formulaic. He suggested viewers who were crime victims themselves would be particularly moved by the script. Hal Boedeker, television critic with the The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
, called the episode an "uncompromising hour" and "the highest order for network TV". He said Williams "astonishes in every scene", and praised the script for not racing over topics as many television shows do, but rather taking "full measure of the weight of grief". Elaine Liner, television critic with the Corpus Christi Caller-Times
Corpus Christi Caller-Times
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times is the newspaper of record for Corpus Christi, Texas.-Brief history:There has been a newspaper in Corpus Christi for almost as long as there has been a town. In 1883, the Caller was started in a frame building at 310 North Chaparral, now the site of Green's Jewelers....
, described Williams' performance as "heartbreaking", but particularly praised the writers for "taking the show to a higher level" by making the perpetrator sympathetic and three-dimensional, not only the victim. Liner said, "Fontana succeeds in fleshing out the characters on both sides of this tragedy." Bob Langford of The News & Observer
The News & Observer
The News & Observer is the regional daily newspaper of the Research Triangle area of the U.S. State of North Carolina. The N&O, as it is popularly called, is based in Raleigh and also covers Durham, Cary, and Chapel Hill. The paper also has substantial readership in most of the state east of...
called the episode "brilliant" and praised it for focusing not on the crime but on the effects of it, as well as the realistic portrayals regarding race, such as concerns the crime would keep away white tourists. Langford said it was occasionally preachy, but said "Sometimes, a good sermon is what we need. Amazing that one this powerful can come from a TV show."
Adam Sandler of Daily Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
praised the cast, the hysteria and confusion conveyed in Gyllenhaal's direction, and the "themes of police insensitivity, victims rights and dysfunctional families" in the script. The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
writer Harriet Winslow called Williams' performance poignant and riveting, and called the fact that it did not overshadow the other actors a "tribute to the quality of this cast". John J. O'Connor of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
called the episode "extraordinary" and said "The senselessness of the incident is heartbreakingly captured". St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
writer Gail Pennington praised Williams' "controlled performance" as well as several "terrific scenes". Among them, she said, were Gee's explanation of how police use humor as a buffer from the horrors of their jobs, and the scene where detectives simultaneously interrogate two suspects in different rooms, which she said was "choreographed as tightly as the Bolshoi Ballet
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world...
".
Not all reviews were so positive. The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
writer Ed Bark called Williams' a "sometimes overly transparent effort to underscore the grief of the victims' survivors", and said the episode "works overtime" to make the world seem like a "bleak and scary place". Bark also said the show made itself a "target for charges of racism" by making the three murderers black, but also credited the script with making one of the perpetrators so sympathetic. Tom Shales of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
said the writers "try a little too hard" to create sympathy for the three murder suspects, and the episode suffers due to the absence of actor Andre Braugher
Andre Braugher
Andre Braugher is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Thomas Searles in the film Glory, as the fiery detective Frank Pembleton on Homicide: Life on the Street from 1993 to 1998 and again in the 2000 made-for-TV film Homicide: Life on the Street, and as Owen Thoreau Jr...
, who plays Detective Frank Pembleton
Frank Pembleton
Francis Xavier "Frank" Pembleton is a fictional homicide detective on the television drama series Homicide: Life on the Street portrayed by Emmy Award winning actor Andre Braugher. He is a primary character of the show through the first six seasons...
. But Shales also praised Williams' performance and said the episode was particularly powerful because the actual violence is off-screen. Buzz McCain, columnist with The Washington Times
The Washington Times
The Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
, called the episode "irritating" and "as pointless as the killing". He particularly criticized the script, which he said was clichéd and overly "misty-eyed", particularly the extended moments of Williams talking about the shooting. In a later article, McCain said, "Nothing I've written in this column generated as much visceral response as my nine paragraphs about ("Bop Gun")." In addition to responses from angry fans, McCain received a call from David Mills, who McCain said "simply wanted some insight as to what specifically I didn't like about his show and how the writers might improve on the next one."
Robin Williams' performance in "Bop Gun" was among a list of the ten best guest star moments in television history, compiled by the Star Tribune
Star Tribune
The Star Tribune is the largest newspaper in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is published seven days each week in an edition for the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area. A statewide version is also available across Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota, and North Dakota. The...
in April 2001.
Awards
"Bop Gun" won a Writers Guild of America AwardWriters Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
for Best Screenplay of an Episodic Drama
Writers Guild of America Award for Best Screenplay - Episodic Drama
This is the list of winners and nominees of the WGA Television Award for Best Writing for Drama Series - Episodic.-2000s:2000: The West Wing - Rick Cleveland/Aaron Sorkin for "In Excelsis Deo"...
. It defeated competing episodes of Northern Exposure
Northern Exposure
Northern Exposure is an American television series that ran on CBS from 1990 to 1995, with a total of 110 episodes.-Overview:The series was given a pair of consecutive Peabody Awards: in 1991–92 for the show's "depict[ion] in a comedic and often poetic way, [of] the cultural clash between a...
and NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan...
, as well as another second season Homicide episode, "A Many Splendored Thing". Robin Williams also received an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nomination for Guest Actor in a Drama Series. It was the only Emmy nomination Homicide: Life on the Street received in the 46th Primetime Emmy Awards
46th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 46th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards were held Sunday, September 11, 1994. The awards show was hosted by Patricia Richardson and Ellen DeGeneres. It was broadcast on ABC...
; the series received four nominations the previous year. Williams lost the award to Richard Kiley for his performance in CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
drama series Picket Fences
Picket Fences
Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
; the other nominees were Dan Hedaya
Dan Hedaya
Daniel G. “Dan” Hedaya is an American character actor. He often plays sleazy villains or uptight, wisecracking individuals; three of his best-known roles are as Italian Mafia boss Tony Costello in Wise Guys, a cuckolded husband in the Coen brothers' crime thriller Blood Simple, and the scheming...
, James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones is an American actor. He is well-known for his distinctive bass voice and for his portrayal of characters of substance, gravitas and leadership...
and Tim Curry
Tim Curry
Timothy James "Tim" Curry is a British actor, singer, composer and voice actor, known for his work in a diverse range of theatre, film and television productions. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California....
.
DVD release
"Bop Gun" and the rest of the first and second season episodes were included in the four-DVD box-set "Homicide: Life on the Street: The Complete Seasons 1 & 2", which was released by A&E Home VideoA&E Television Networks
A&E Television Networks is a U.S. media company that owns a group of television channels available via cable & satellite in the US and abroad...
on May 27, 2003 for $69.95.