If you haven't seen the show Homicide: Life on the Street, based on David Simon's excellent book about a year at the Baltimore PD detective's unit, run don't walk. Back in the Mesozoic internet, we called it the Best Damn Show on TV. A staggering wealth of acting talent, with Braugher as king. - ThreadSky

helenkennedy.bsky.social • 498 days ago

If you haven't seen the show Homicide: Life on the Street, based on David Simon's excellent book about a year at the Baltimore PD detective's unit, run don't walk. Back in the Mesozoic internet, we called it the Best Damn Show on TV. A staggering wealth of acting talent, with Braugher as king.

Comments

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•490 days ago

David Simon is working on securing the music rights to be able to finally stream the series as a pseudo-honor to Braugher.

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•498 days ago

I'm grateful I have the whole series. As I'm from Baltimore, I'd get giddy driving past the old station building before it turned into a hotel. Best damn show ever, along with the Wire, but Simon just knows what to do. Ugh this sucks so damn much.

brosenfeld.bsky.social•498 days ago

We bought the DVDs. On our list to start next. Meantime, if you haven’t lately, go watch Hill St. Blues. Also great!

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

You have such a treat in store.

kilgoretrout.bsky.social•498 days ago

something I never learned about this show: was it heavily cast from baltimore? I know the wire was. but homicide has a tiny fraction of the popular lore so I’m curious if you know

haskell.bsky.social•498 days ago

well Ned Beatty and Yaphet Kotto certainly weren't from Baltimore

shelleyelwood.bsky.social•498 days ago

Guest and background actors, yes. (the main cast was mostly NY based initially)

norbizness.bsky.social•498 days ago

Without stepping on anyone's toes I don't think there were any recurring characters plucked from Baltimore like the young men Robert "Proposition Joe" Chew found through his community theater to be irreplaceable parts of The Wire... although Chew himself did have a small role in Homicide/the Corner.

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Not that I know of. But I might not.

ellinst.bsky.social•497 days ago

And an emerging Melissa Leo. And Richard Belzer introducing Munch before L&O: SVU. But Braugher was indelible.

paulkirk.bsky.social•498 days ago

Yaphet Kotto — indelible

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Absolutely.

paulkirk.bsky.social•498 days ago

Posted that before I realized it was part of a thread about Andre Braugher. WTF. So glad I got to watch his portrayal on Homicide.

warrenterra.bsky.social•498 days ago

So far as I know the show has never been on any streaming service (at least in the US), and watching it pirated on YouTube was not always successful.

apearlma.bsky.social•498 days ago

There are music rights issues apparently

evanbrady.bsky.social•498 days ago

Shout Factory has a full DVD set with all the music. It's a miracle.

warrenterra.bsky.social•498 days ago

It's a 35 DVD set and (supposedly, we'll see) available for a smidgen over $1 a disc, which seems implausibly cheap.

evanbrady.bsky.social•498 days ago

It's a steal
https://bsky.app/profile/evanbrady.bsky.social/post/3kgfe4es4gg2b

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•490 days ago

David Simon is working on securing the music rights to stream it. https://www.google.com/amp/s/deadline.com/2023/12/homicide-life-on-the-streets-streaming-david-simon-update-1235670784/amp/

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

I bought the set years and years ago so I never had to worry.

noclevername.bsky.social•498 days ago

I NEVER lend it to anyone

merlink.bsky.social•498 days ago

It was SO GOOD! And Andre Braugher was brilliant in it.

riffle.bsky.social•498 days ago

I rewatched Homicide: Life on the Street a couple years ago. It really is excellent. I may do it again soon.

Braugher was such a talent. RIP.

turnmaria.bsky.social•498 days ago

💔 Frank Pembleton

blupotluv.bsky.social•498 days ago

It was must-watch TV.

virgotex.bsky.social•498 days ago

Unforgettable television.

jwbee.bsky.social•498 days ago

Pembleton and Bayliss riding in a Chevy Cavalier that's being towed around Baltimore. All-time great TV dialogue.

jwbee.bsky.social•498 days ago

If you really want to see that proto-internet stuff, Homicide was right on the cusp of where net fandom existed, but with only a handful of people. Check out alt.tv.homicide from the 90s. https://groups.google.com/g/alt.tv.homicide/search?q=before%3A1999-12-01

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

I had no idea that still existed somewhere. I posted almost every day around 95, I think it was.

heymum3.bsky.social•498 days ago

I have the boxed set, and it maybe time for a rewatch of this magnificent show.

newmexicoman.bsky.social•498 days ago

A murderer’s row of actors (both men and women) on that squad.

apearlma.bsky.social•498 days ago

that show was absolutely amazing. Braugher pulled it ahead of the Wire imo

apearlma.bsky.social•498 days ago

It is really hard to see on streaming, music rights are apparently tangled up.

roosefella.bsky.social•498 days ago

OMG. Andre Braugher

You stop paying attention for 2 damn days and something this horrible happens.

roosefella.bsky.social•498 days ago

big speed camera won't let it be released on streaming.....
they say the cuts are just TOO FAST

czelticgirl.bsky.social•498 days ago

I've been slowly rewatching the series. (My library system has all the seasons on DVD.) It's every bit as good as I remembered.

wormwood23.bsky.social•498 days ago

Not trying to detract, but I didn’t know Yaphet Kotto was in this. Wow!

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

And he was fantastic.

rogrtheshrubber.shrubberies.org•497 days ago

"I'M MOSELY!"

king-kong.bsky.social•498 days ago

When Pembleton has a stroke. Scarred for life watching that scene.

jojowiththeflow.bsky.social•498 days ago

Oh my, I'd forgotten how many superb actors that had. Braugher's passing is sad beyond words.

rocketz.bsky.social•498 days ago

Beatty, Belzer, Braugher and Kotto.
RIP

cinemastrikesback.bsky.social•498 days ago

It was the best damn show on tv all right

ephygee.bsky.social•498 days ago

Unfortunately many have correctly remarked its not anywhere on streaming. Hope NBC considers putting it up for Det. Pembleton.

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•490 days ago

It's getting there.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/deadline.com/2023/12/homicide-life-on-the-streets-streaming-david-simon-update-1235670784/amp/

literallymike.bsky.social•498 days ago

Captain Holt was the best part of Brooklyn 99.

ephygee.bsky.social•498 days ago

Sometimes I just hold onto the door frame and yell this to make my wife laugh:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU7IUprPqag&ab_channel=BrooklynNine-Nine

literallymike.bsky.social•498 days ago

I'm really hoping the animated gif comes through. Heroes get remembered; legends never die.

redoverred.bsky.social•498 days ago

Dammit. Was hoping this didn't mean what I thought.

gonebabygone.bsky.social•498 days ago

It’s annoying music-rights drama IIRC

ephygee.bsky.social•498 days ago

I remember some great needle drops so I guess 30 years on it might be a pain to get everything cleared, but such a shame it's not available. I feel like a crazy time traveller telling my friends that Holt was the second best cop character he ever played

walkingtaako.bsky.social•498 days ago

I remember when that resulted in a Quantum Leap DVD being put out with the "Georgia" scene replaced by another song

lfillingham.bsky.social•498 days ago

Much of it is on YouTube. May have to search episode by episode.

danfellars.com•498 days ago

It’s on Peacock, which I get through my xfinity account, but other that appears to be it.

ephygee.bsky.social•498 days ago

Sadly I'm north of the border and Peacock doesn't operate in Canada - so its physical media or more unsavoury mediums for me. 😔

danfellars.com•498 days ago

Yeah you’re more likely to get an expansion team in Montreal in the next 10 years than Peacock.

ephygee.bsky.social•498 days ago

A boy can dream!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovff3nwdY0Y&ab_channel=Topps

sdrose.bsky.social•498 days ago

Not NBC, it’s getting music rights.

rhcmuts.bsky.social•498 days ago

All these names! Dayum!

This was never syndicated in Europe when I was there, I guess.

lfillingham.bsky.social•498 days ago

During it's run, you could say to people, "best actor on television," they'd know who you meant.

voicepipes.bsky.social•497 days ago

Anyone know where i can stream the series in Canada?

warriorrabbit.bsky.social•498 days ago

Melissa Leo. Yaphet Kotto. Braugher. Stunning cast, riveting show.

phuff.bsky.social•498 days ago

I loved the show in its prime, and would love to re-visit it. It's a darned shame it isn't available to stream anywhere (music rights).

shelleyelwood.bsky.social•498 days ago

If they could clear Cold Case (the fiction show) to stream (first on FAST now on Max), which used far more contemporary music per episode, there is no decent reason this is still held up if its just the music

denewjohn.bsky.social•498 days ago

Prequel to The Wire. Excellent writing and acting.

knotfornow.bsky.social•493 days ago

There is hope.

elwhite.bsky.social•498 days ago

Best show ever.

cnaturale.bsky.social•498 days ago

This is so true. The whole cast was terrific, but Braugher reigned supreme. He is gone too soon.

karmageddon.bsky.social•498 days ago

It remains the Best Damn Show on TV, even 30 years later. RIP Andre Braugher.

curseyoukhan.bsky.social•498 days ago

So glad I have it on DVD. Yaphet Kotto last year and Richard Beltzer and Andre Braugher in this one. My heart is truly broken.

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Still mourning Polito and Beatty.

angelozanola.bsky.social•498 days ago

Plus by creating Detective Munch it led to the Tommy Westphalia Universe expanding exponentially.

angelozanola.bsky.social•498 days ago

Westphall… sigh.

rickinbaltimore.com•498 days ago

I grew up mere blocks from where Homicide was filmed. The police station aet was the city Rec Pier prior to the show filming.

I had the pleasure of meeting some of the actors, including Andre Braugher as a long haired teen. All of them very nice people.

And the show was FANTASTIC.

michwatsonoz.bsky.social•498 days ago

I spent many, many hours on alt.tv.homicide discussing this masterwork of tv.

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Me too!

zgoldberg.bsky.social•498 days ago

What a fucking cast.

finmycoffee.bsky.social•498 days ago

How do we get Simon over here

ellz.bsky.social•498 days ago

Incredible show. My God the acting.
Andre
Oh no
Too soon

cybergothcait.bsky.social•498 days ago

I grew up where they filmed it and it is such a true reflection of Baltimore too. Loved it as a teen and still do.

evanbrady.bsky.social•498 days ago

TBDSOT. Polito, Kotto, Belzer, Beatty, Braugher... We must protect Melissa Leo at all costs.

sdrose.bsky.social•498 days ago

Genius television. The best.

ndhapple.bsky.social•498 days ago

The book is an absolute masterclass in reporting and writing, too

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Yes! I only just lent my copy out a week ago.

wordloaf.org•498 days ago

I have a signed copy that David Simon inscribed to the governor of Maryland, Donald Schaefer

wordloaf.org•498 days ago

It says “The word in Baltimore is that they never had a murder until you went to Annapolis. Now look at things!”

wordloaf.org•498 days ago

And it’s also signed by most of the cops from the squad

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

What a remarkable possession. How did it come to you?

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

What happens to Vincent D'Onofrio in the episode called The Subway will never leave you. I covered the exact same story in nyc. It's horrific and actually happens.

sandabluedeux.bsky.social•498 days ago

Absolutely. It made quite an impression

joycemillman.bsky.social•498 days ago

Oh god that episode. Yes. But since we’re saluting Braugher, “The Gas Man” ep is the stuff of nightmares as well.

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

Which one was that?

joycemillman.bsky.social•498 days ago

Frank and his wife stalked by ex-cons who Frank had put away. Unbearable tension.

djl.bsky.social•498 days ago

My stepsister was a paramedic and had a similar experience with a man crushed by a collapsed wall. Seeing that episode years later was heartbreaking because they really caught it.

djl.bsky.social•498 days ago

Homicide was one for which I wrote a couple of spec scripts just because it was irresistible to write for his voice.

djl.bsky.social•498 days ago

And yeah, that's one where I bought the complete series box set. I just knew.

roosefella.bsky.social•498 days ago

that one is seared in my brain

trwexler.bsky.social•498 days ago

For me, it's Three Men and Adena. Pembleton, Bayliss, and the Araber in the box. That's it. That's the episode.

sanjuro89.bsky.social•498 days ago

One of the great moments of television, and it truly felt revolutionary at the time. No closure, just like the real-life case it was based on. That was not something that normally happened in TV cop shows back then.

holyshitimfucked.com•498 days ago

You are in the box for the whole episode. it is almost a character.

secretoriginz.bsky.social•497 days ago

Ever see the Dragonchasers episode of The Shield!

dethveggie.bsky.social•493 days ago

Oh my god, yeah. That is the single episode that's stuck with me more than any other one. Oof.

catfrat.bsky.social•498 days ago

That episode had astonishingly great performances

johnfix.com•498 days ago

Great episode, even as a standalone

ellz.bsky.social•498 days ago

Oh I cannot even..never did leave me

mattstefonpoems.bsky.social•498 days ago

That was a great episode, and I didn’t remember D’Onofrio in that one.

helenkennedy.bsky.social•498 days ago

He was the guy who falls.

timcarvell.bsky.social•493 days ago

If anyone is curious about the production of that exact episode:

https://youtu.be/AhQBs4ieHSI?si=sSqz_90LNi9iboYG

dethveggie.bsky.social•493 days ago

Oh wow, no. I'll definitely check that out, thanks.

tdawry.bsky.social•493 days ago

I've been watching the show for the first time, and it's very strange seeing so many actors that are no longer with us, as of just the last few years. On paper it doesn't seem like that long ago, but then you see the cars, and it's all shot on 16mm!

timcarvell.bsky.social•493 days ago

You’ve seen the PBS show where they decided to follow the writing and production of a TV drama and happened to choose that exact episode of that show, right?

helenkennedy.bsky.social•493 days ago

No! But someone linked it here the other day and I put it on my list

holyshitimfucked.com•498 days ago

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•498 days ago

That was the episode when Crosetti died. Good episode.

mattstefonpoems.bsky.social•498 days ago

That was a great ep. Braugher and also Clark Johnson shone, as I remember.

holyshitimfucked.com•497 days ago

I liked it because it emphasized how Pendleton was always walking a tightrope with his religious beliefs, his rationality, and being a cop. A lot to drop on Braugher's broad shoulders. He couldn't abide Crocetti's suicide as a Catholic, he didn't go to the funeral. Crocetti was a cop, he did this.

mattstefonpoems.bsky.social•497 days ago

I remember one of the long-arc stories (can’t remember which) with Frank asking a nun if she believed in evil. I also remember him using his seminary training in Greek philosophy in interrogating Steve Buscemi’s white supremacist serial cop killer. I have to rewatch it again. Great show.

holyshitimfucked.com•498 days ago

I mean, there were like 10 bad episodes in 7 seasons.

9tellthetruth.bsky.social•498 days ago

I won't lie the later seasons were a "what is going on, what is happening to this show," but all in all, amazing show.

holyshitimfucked.com•498 days ago

7th season was a bit of a dropoff, but still had gems.

holyshitimfucked.com•498 days ago

Woman jogging, looks at crowd, shrugs, continues jogging.