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About This Quiz
"Hill Street Blues" was a landmark police show that heavily influenced police and court TV shows that came after it. Learn more about "Hill Street Blues" with this quiz!
"Hill Street Blues" was a police show, but it also had a certain storytelling style. What style did the show have?
exaggerated glamor
great soundtrack
slice of life
"Hill Street Blues" showed how law enforcement officers reacted to everything that was happening.
criminal's point of view
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What did the "blues" in the title mean?
the music
police officers
Police officers wore blue or dark blue uniforms. "Blues" was the nickname given to them.
the sunset
the color of the station
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Where was the Hill Street police station located?
Los Angeles
Chicago
No city was disclosed
The producers intended for the Hill Street police station to be fictional. No city is ever mentioned. The closest match is a mix of Los Angeles and Chicago.
New York
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"Hill Street Blues" shows a lot of big hair and post-disco era clothes. In which decade was the show set?
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
"Hill Street Blues" was set in the 1980s, which was also the decade during which it aired. It tackled many of the issues of the times.
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Frank Furillo was the glue that held Hills Street Station together. He was their professional and spiritual leader. What was his rank?
captain
Captain Frank Furillo was the man in the middle of all the stories. He would do anything for his people.
lieutenant
sergeant
chief
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Frank Furillo was often called Pizza Man. What about pizza restaurants applied to him?
tasted good
they always deliver
Furillo was a man who always meant what he said. That's why he's the Pizza Man. He "always delivers."
Italian
could be crusty when angry
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Officers J.D. LaRue and Frank Furillo didn't always agree, but they shared something that kept them together. What was it?
idealistic
divorced
recovering alcoholics
Both Furillo and LaRue were recovering alcoholics. Their troubles were plot lines for some of the show's stories.
popular with the girls
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Joyce Davenport and Frank Furillo were opponents while on the job. What were they when they were off-duty?
neighbors
housemates
lovers
Davenport was a lawyer who often butted heads with Furillo and his police force. However, the two were also lovers.
still enemies
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Frank Furillo was known for his smart attire, thanks to Joyce Davenport, who helped him with his clothes. What piece of clothing was he known to wear?
gym clothes
runner's shirt
vest
Furillo was known for wearing vests or waistcoats. It gave him a certain air of authority in the station.
hat
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Sgt. Phil Esterhaus had this scene in every show he was in. What morning ritual was he always in charge of?
roll call
Sgt. Esterhaus always started each episode with roll call. This would usually set the mood for the show, or drop plot points for the episode.
mail call
front desk phone calls
messages from city hall
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One of the more memorable side characters in "Hill Street Blues" was Tommy Mann, who was played by this very young, future lead star of "CSI: Miami." Which actor was this?
Jorja Fox
Laurence Fishburne
David Caruso
David Caruso had an early start in his career on "Hill Street Blues." He would later play police or authority figures on other shows, such as "CSI: Miami."
Adam Levine
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David Caruso’s character, Tommy Mann, belonged to what ethnic group?
Polish
Irish
Tommy Mann was the head of the local Irish gang. He was always ready with a smile, but you never knew if he was laughing with you or at you.
Jewish
Italian
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What was Sgt. Esterhaus's daily message to all the Hill Street officers on shift?
"Let's be careful out there"
Sgt. Esterhaus was the father figure of the station, aside from Frank Furillo. His message to "be careful out there" was a daily tradition.
"Lock and load, boys"
"Pizza's in the pantry"
"Get your coffee and ride out"
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How did Sgt. Esterhaus die?
he died getting out of his chair
he died while signing out of his shift
he didn’t wake up one morning
he died while having sex
Sgt. Esterhaus may have been a bit of a traditionalist, but the producers chose to kill his character off in a non-traditional way.
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Detective Mick Belker was a special type of officer. What type of officer was he?
civilian specialist
undercover
Detective Michael Belker was an undercover police officer. Most people who weren't the from Hill Street station couldn't believe he was a cop.
nonconformist
higher-ranking officer
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While Detective Belker was hell on wheels as a cop, he did have a weakness. What was it?
he had bad luck with receiving calls
he was bad at speaking on the phone
he's was a mama's boy
Belker may have been the wild man of the station, but when his mother called, it was a different story.
he hated phones
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Lt. Henry Goldblume was a very competent community affairs officer, but sometimes he could be too good. His weakness was identifying too much with what type of people?
the criminals
the victims
Goldblume was a very dedicated and sensitive officer. However, his job sometimes had a heavy effect on him, and he identified too much with the victims.
the judges
children
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What did a wealthy mob widow give Goldblume when she died?
lots of money
Goldblume became a rich man when a mobster's wife left him a fortune in her will.
a love letter
a child
a note saying she was his long-lost sister
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Officer Bobby Hill was one of the main characters in the show's rather large cast. However, it almost wasn't the case. What happened in the very first episode?
he was up for early retirement due to injuries
he tried to quit
he was nearly fired
he was shot
Bobby Hill barely survived a shootout in the first episode. He went on to become one of the main characters at the Hill Street police station.
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Officer Bobby Hill, aside from being a good cop, was also a great athlete. What was his favorite sport?
basketball
Bobby Hill loved basketball. This figured in an episode where the officers had to play against some gang members.
tennis
football
table tennis
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Lauren Holly is best known today as Jenny Shepard, the tough Director in "NCIS." However, in "Hill Street Blues," a much younger Holly played a completely different character. What was she?
bank robber
prostitute
Lauren Holly's role in "Hill Street Blues" was her first for TV. She played a very young prostitute.
drug lord
assassin
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Police officer Howard Hunter was the target of jokes at the station. But in the field, he was something else. What specialized squad did he head?
SWAT
Howard Hunter was the head of the Emergency Action Squad. These days, it's known as the SWAT team.
Narcotics
Robbery
Murder
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People cared about Howard Hunter. That’s why J.D. LaRue changed his gun's ammunition to blanks one time. What was LaRue trying to prevent Hunter from doing?
shooting someone
committing suicide
Hunter wasn't feeling particularly good about himself, and he tried to commit suicide. It failed because LaRue switched his ammunition to blanks.
playing Russian roulette
robbing a bank
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Sgt. Lucille Bates was a streetwise cop. Why was she sometimes tougher than the other guys?
to prevent guys from dating her
to remove gender concerns
Lucille Bates had a kinder and gentler side. However, she felt her job required her to be tougher than the others, so that being a woman wouldn't be an issue.
she was a natural tomboy
to be less of a target
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What did Sgt. Lucille Bates do when she found a boy named Fabian, whose junkie mom couldn’t take care of him?
adopted him
Sgt. Bates decided to adopt Fabian. It was an unexpected move for her character.
sent him to an orphanage
beat up the mom
had him taken away by his grandparents
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What does Sgt. Jabolonski really mean when he says "Let's do it to them before they do it to us"?
do whatever is possible to stop crime
get as many suspects as you can
kill criminals
do the job right
Jablonski wasn't encouraging cops to shoot criminals. He wanted them to do their jobs right, because criminals will do their "jobs" right, too.
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Detective J.D. LaRue would have been a walking harassment case if "Hill Street Blues" were rebooted today. What was his nickname at the station?
Lover
LaRue was a ladies' man and was called "Lover." Unfortunately, the ladies didn’t always see it that way.
Macho
Handsome
Beef
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Jeffrey Tambor, the male-to-female transgender lead character in "Transparent," made a guest appearance on "Hill Street Blues" as a judge wearing this type of clothing. What was it?
high heels
shades
a dress
"Hill Street Blues" viewers could always trust Judge Wachtel to do something to bring laughs to the show. In one case, he wore a dress to deal with some gender issues.
a bra
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Detective LaRue was the lovable rogue at the station. What sort of scheme was he always trying to get in on?
get rich quick schemes
LaRue hoped for better things. However, his love for get-rich quick schemes that seemed improbable were classic.
crap game
loan sharking
extortion
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Detective LaRue's partner, Detective Washington, was the cool dude. How long could he chew on his famous toothpick?
hours
Detective Washington seemed to go for hours with a toothpick in his mouth.
minutes
seconds
days
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Even though Detective Washington was the cool guy at the station, what rattled him?
he shot an innocent man
Detective Washington had a hard time dealing with the fact that he shot an innocent man. It showed that even the most confident men can be rattled to their core.
he missed a shot during an arrest
his gun misfired
he hesitated and was shot
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What made "NYPD Blue" actor Dennis Franz's two appearances on "Hill Street Blues" special?
he played twins
he appeared only at the beginning and the end
he played two different characters
Dennis Franz played two characters, Detective Benedetto and Lt. Norman Buntz. After "Hill Street Blues" ended, he was the lead in a short spinoff series, and then rose to fame in "NYPD Blue."
they led to a permanent role on the show
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Fay Furillo was Frank's divorced wife. During the show's earlier seasons, what did she think would happen?
she would have custody of their son
she would get back together with Frank
Fay Furillo believed that Frank would come back into her life as her husband. Of course, this didn’t happen.
she would be friends with Frank
she would get a lot of money
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Like many of the "Hill Street Blues" characters, Fay had a catchphrase: "Hey buster." When did she use that line?
when she was angry
while giving orders
while flirting
to start conversations
Fay Furillo was a no-nonsense woman. It made sense that she would use "Hey, buster" as her personal quote.
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What was Coffey's vice?
coffee addict
alcoholic
compulsive gambler
Officer Coffey was a compulsive gambler.
overeater
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You Got:
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