‘NYPD Blue’ sparked big change in TV: bad words, anti-heroes, and nudity

ABC

• 25 years ago, ABC premiered a cop show called “NYPD
  Blue,” and a bunch of advertisers, TV stations, and pro-family
  groups freaked out.
• That’s because the show featured rough language,
  nudity, and serious topics not common to commercial, broadcast
  TV at the time.
• Today, ‘NYPD Blue’ looks rather tame, and advertisers
  find their ads next to all sorts of far racier content without
  batting an eyelash.
• But the show’s complicated lead character, Andy
  Sipowicz, continues to influence TV.

A few weeks ago, I started watching the new
Kevin Costner series “Yellowstone.” It’s decent show. It
wants to be prestige TV, but comes off more like a modern version
of “Dallas” or “Dynasty.”

Costner’s character is a rich ranch owner, has a big
dysfunctional family, and is kind of good (he’s a grandpa), but
also really bad (his ranch hands kill people).

One thing that stood out early on is there are loads of bad
words, f-bombs and all, and a fair amount of nudity — all brought
to you by Ram trucks, a major advertiser.

I’ve also just started watching Lifetime’s “You” (don’t judge
because it’s awesome). It’s about a guy (the same actor who
played Dan on “Gossip Girl”) who stalks a love interest, so
you’re not exactly signing up for a
Hallmark movie.

Just a few minutes into the first episode, the characters are
saying and doing all sorts of naughty things that in a different
time would be absolutely shocking on commercial TV.

Yet right after a scene of intense stalking and public
masturbation, there was an ad for a bunch of great appetizer
specials at Applebee’s. Talk about feeling good in the
neighborhood.

The common thread between these two shows: nobody seemed to care
about the explicit content. There was no controversy.

As far as I can tell, there were no protests, blackouts,
boycotts, or even press releases from family-focused
organizations. Presumably, some viewers may have even watched
both shows, jumped in their Ram trucks and happily headed off to
happy hour at
Applebee’s.

The reaction was a bit different 25 years ago when “NYPD Blue”
hit the air.

If you spend most of your time in a Netflix, HBO, anything-goes
TV world,  it’s hard to express what a big deal it was when
ABC announced plans to launch “NYPD Blue.” The show promised
frequent cursing and tastefully shot nude scenes on network
television, beamed out to the whole country, in 1993. (Variety
has a great retrospective
here.) Unlike HBO, this was definitely TV.

For one thing, each
episode was preceded by a scary disclaimer, like you were
about to buy a pack of cigarettes:

“This police drama contains adult language and scenes
with partial nudity. Viewer discretion is
advised.” 

When it premiered on September 21, 1993, a bunch of ABC
stations refused to air it,
the Los Angeles Times reported, and advertisers were
“skittish.” Remember, this was pre-Sopranos, pre-ER, and way
before “Breaking Bad” and “Sons of Anarchy.” TGIF was in full
swing.

Here’s how you know it was a really long time ago: “NYPD
Blue” depicted the East Village as a super gritty place with
murders happening every week. Now you can get a one bedroom on
Avenue
B for like three grand a month.

Right before “NYPD Blue” premiered, fundamentalist minister
Donald E. Wildmon told the LA Times: “ABC must be embarrassed and
humiliated at this point.”

Not so much. Right out of the gate, “NYPD Blue” was a major
hit. It turns out, people really like mild cursing and modest
nudity. And they really like dark, complex characters. Soon
advertisers and ABC stations all got on board.

Initially, “NYPD’s” racy scenes featured on its lead
characters played by David Caruso and Amy Brenneman (who
went onto “Judging Amy”and eventually “The Leftovers”).

Getty
Images

But it was Andy Sipowicz, played by Dennis Franz, who broke
out, and changed TV. In the pilot, Andy grabs his crotch and
shouts, “ipso
this, you pissy little bitch” at a female district attorney.
No one knew what that meant, but it was definitely adult.

Sipowicz also boozed a ton, cavorted with prostitutes,
might have been mildly racist, and was definitely not afraid to
cross the line into police brutality territory. Yet he also had a
heart of gold.

You can trace a direct line from Sipowicz to Walter White,
or anyone from”The Shield” or “Peaky Blinders” — even Don Draper.
To be fair, most of these envelope-pushing shows ran on cable,
which doesn’t have to deal with the Federal Communications
Commission, which still regulates what is broadcast over the air
(and cares about stuff like Super Bowl Wardrobe Malfunctions,
even more than advertisers seem to).

But the point is, modern prestige TV, or even cheese TV, is
a lot rougher around the edges than it used to be.

In terms of the peak 1990s — “I can’t believe that was just
on TV” — it’s hard not to think of a
1995 “NYPD Blue” episode featuring Sipowicz in the shower
with the DA he previously cursed out. If you like your TV shows
edgy, you can thank
Sipowicz’s butt.

Back then, advertisers were surely holding their breath and
waiting for the angry calls. Today, they’d just be happy to have
people watch their ads on TV at all.