- Cop Rock
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Cop Rock 
Cop Rock title cardGenre Police drama/Musical Created by Steven Bochco
William M. FinkelsteinWritten by Steven Bochco
William M. Finkelstein
Michael A. Graham
Toni Graphia
John RomanoDirected by Michael Fresco
Fred Gerber
Charles Haid
Gregory Hoblit
Michael M. Robin
Arlene Sanford
Gilbert M. Shilton
Brad SilberlingTheme music composer Randy Newman Opening theme "Under the Gun" performed by Randy Newman Composer(s) Greg Edmonson
Alan Elliott
Randy Newman
Mike PostCountry of origin United States Language(s) English No. of seasons 1 No. of episodes 11 Production Executive producer(s) Steven Bochco Producer(s) Charles Haid
Michael M. Robin
John Romano
Craig ZiskRunning time 45– 48 minutes Production company(s) 20th Century Fox Television
Steven Bochco ProductionsBroadcast Original channel ABC Original run September 26, 1990 – December 26, 1990 Cop Rock is an American musical police drama series that aired on ABC in 1990. The show, a police drama presented as a musical, was co-created by Steven Bochco, who also served as executive producer. TV Guide ranked it #8 on TV Guide's List of the 50 Worst TV Shows of All Time list in 2002.[1]
Contents
Synopsis
Cop Rock attempted to combine musical theater with the police drama, the latter a genre in which Bochco had already been very successful with Hill Street Blues. The series featured an ensemble cast that mixed musical numbers and choreography throughout storylines. For example, one scene in a courtroom had the jury break into song, proclaiming "He's Guilty" in Gospel style. Another episode had a lineup of Hispanic suspects proclaim in song "We're the local color with the coppertone skin / And you treat us like we're guilty of some terrible sin." Its theme, "Under the Gun", was sung by Randy Newman, who opened each episode performing it in a music video-style credit sequence. The show also featured crossover appearances from other Bochco series. In one episode, James B. Sikking reprises the role of Lt. Howard Hunter from Hill Street Blues, while another episode featured cameos by L.A. Law stars Jimmy Smits and Michele Greene. Sheryl Crow appears as a back-up singer in the final episode.
The show was a critical and commercial failure and was canceled by ABC after 11 episodes.[2] Owing to the combination of its bizarre nature and its high-powered production talent, it became infamous as one of the biggest television failures of the 1990s.[3][4] The final episode concludes with the cast breaking character and joining crew members in performing a closing song.
Despite its overwhelmingly negative reception and short run, the series still has been rebroadcast three times, in the 1990s on VH1, on A&E Network, and in the 2000s on Trio.
Mike Post was the music supervisor on Cop Rock. Post appeared in the Cop Rock opening sequence as the musician in the dark glasses sitting next to Randy Newman and playing the keyboard.
Cast
- Teri Austin - Trish Vaughn
- Anne Bobby - Off. Vicki Quinn
- Barbara Bosson - Mayor Louise Plank
- Ronny Cox - Chief Roger Kendrick
- Vondie Curtis-Hall - Cmdr. Warren Osborne
- David Gianopoulos - Off. Andy Campo
- Larry Joshua - Capt. John Hollander
- Dennis Lipscomb - Sidney Weitz
- Paul McCrane - Det. Bob McIntire
- James McDaniel - Off. Franklin Rose
- Ron McLarty - Ralph Ruskin
- Mick Murray - Det. Joseph Gaines
- Peter Onorati - Det. Vincent LaRusso
- William Thomas, Jr. - Det. William Donald Potts
- Kathleen Wilhoite - Patricia Spence
Episode list
Ep. # Prod. Code Episode Title Airdate 1 2101 Pilot September 26, 1990 2 0X02 "Ill-Gotten Gaines" October 3, 1990 3 0X03 "Happy Mudder's Day" October 10, 1990 4 0X04 "A Three-Corpse Meal" October 17, 1990 5 0X05 "The Cocaine Mutiny" October 24, 1990 6 0X06 "Oil of Ol' Lay" October 31, 1990 7 0X07 "Cop-a-Feeliac" November 7, 1990 8 2108 "Potts Don't Fail Me Now" November 21, 1990 9 2109 "Marital Blitz" December 5, 1990 10 0X10 "No Noose Is Good Noose" December 12, 1990 11 0X11 "Bang the Potts Slowly" December 26, 1990 Awards and nominations
Year Award Result Category Recipient Episode 1991 Emmy Award Nominated Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Series Robert Appere, Gary D. Rogers, Ron Estes, and Mark Server "Oil Of Ol'Lay" Nominated Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series Gregory Hoblit Pilot Nominated Outstanding Achievement in Music and Lyrics Ron Boustead and Greg Edmonson "Oil Of Ol'Lay" Won Outstanding Editing for a Series - Single Camera Production Joe Ann Fogle Pilot Won Outstanding Achievement in Music and Lyrics Randy Newman Pilot See also
- Hull High - Another television series with musical segments that debuted (and was canceled) in 1990.
- Viva Laughlin - A 2007 television drama with musical segments. The show was canceled after just two airings due to poor ratings.
References
- ^ "The Worst TV Shows Ever". cbsnews.com. 2002-07-12. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/07/12/entertainment/main515057.shtml. Retrieved 2008-08-28.
- ^ "ABC Cancels 'Cop Rock'". The New York Times. 1990-11-30. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE7DA1E3BF930A25752C1A966958260. Retrieved 2008-08-28.
- ^ Weinraub, Bernard (1991-11-06). "A Series Makes the Starting Gate". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE3D61338F935A35752C1A967958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. Retrieved 2008-08-28.
- ^ Tucker, Ken (2004-06-04). "Flops 101: Lessons From The Biz". ew.com. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,643229,00.html. Retrieved 2008-08-28.
External links
Categories:- 1990s American television series
- 1990 American television series debuts
- 1990 American television series endings
- American Broadcasting Company network shows
- Crime television series
- English-language television series
- Musical television series
- Television series by Fox Television Studios
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