Homicide: Life on the Street
Overview
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 (122 episodes) on NBC
from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie
, which also acted as the de-facto series finale. The series was originally based on David Simon's book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets
. Many of the characters and stories used throughout the show were based on events depicted in the book, which was also used for Simon's own series, The Wire
on HBO.
Although Homicide featured an ensemble cast, Andre Braugher
emerged as the series' breakout star through his portrayal of Frank Pembleton
.
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons (122 episodes) 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...
from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie
Homicide: The Movie
Homicide: The Movie is a television movie that aired 13 February 2000, one year after the completion of the American police drama television series Homicide: Life on the Street...
, which also acted as the de-facto series finale. The series was originally based on David Simon's book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets is a 1991 book written by Baltimore Sun reporter David Simon describing a year spent with detectives from the Baltimore Police Department homicide squad...
. Many of the characters and stories used throughout the show were based on events depicted in the book, which was also used for Simon's own series, The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
on HBO.
Although Homicide featured an ensemble cast, 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...
emerged as the series' breakout star through his portrayal of 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...
.