TMC
03-22-2022, 08:41 PM
https://www.looper.com/806935/the-set-detail-chicago-p-d-shares-with-hill-street-blues/
Both series are set in the same building
https://www.looper.com/img/gallery/the-set-detail-chicago-p-d-shares-with-hill-street-blues/both-series-are-set-in-the-same-building-1647974683.webp
As more hardcore fans of the series might be aware, the exterior location used for the police station in "Chicago P.D." is the Maxwell Street Station in Chicago (per University of Illinois (https://web.archive.org/web/20120629152135/http://www.uic.edu/depts/police/History%20of%20Maxwell%20Street%20Station.htm)), which also served as the police station exterior for "Hill Street Blues" (via Choose Chicago (https://www.choosechicago.com/blog/arts-culture-entertainment/location-guide-chicago-tv-shows/)).
What makes this detail so jarring is the fact that the building itself is most well known for being the "signature image" of "Hill Street Blues." As such, one has to wonder what was going through the producers' heads when they decided to reuse the location for "Chicago P.D.," or if the allusion is intentional. After all, if there had never been a "Hill Street Blues," (https://www.looper.com/749705/hill-street-blues-actors-you-may-not-know-passed-away/) there also might never have been a Chicago P.D. at all.
That's because "Hill Street Blues" is credited as one of the most revolutionary television series of all time. The series helped to bring serialized storytelling into mainstream television, and provided audiences with a grittier, more realistic sort of crime drama. The use of serialized storytelling and gritty realism have become a staple of the police procedural in modern day, and "Chicago P.D." is no exception. Still, it is a bit odd that the two shows share a police office, when "Hill Street Blues" remains to this day one of the most iconic crime drama shows of all time.
Both series are set in the same building
https://www.looper.com/img/gallery/the-set-detail-chicago-p-d-shares-with-hill-street-blues/both-series-are-set-in-the-same-building-1647974683.webp
As more hardcore fans of the series might be aware, the exterior location used for the police station in "Chicago P.D." is the Maxwell Street Station in Chicago (per University of Illinois (https://web.archive.org/web/20120629152135/http://www.uic.edu/depts/police/History%20of%20Maxwell%20Street%20Station.htm)), which also served as the police station exterior for "Hill Street Blues" (via Choose Chicago (https://www.choosechicago.com/blog/arts-culture-entertainment/location-guide-chicago-tv-shows/)).
What makes this detail so jarring is the fact that the building itself is most well known for being the "signature image" of "Hill Street Blues." As such, one has to wonder what was going through the producers' heads when they decided to reuse the location for "Chicago P.D.," or if the allusion is intentional. After all, if there had never been a "Hill Street Blues," (https://www.looper.com/749705/hill-street-blues-actors-you-may-not-know-passed-away/) there also might never have been a Chicago P.D. at all.
That's because "Hill Street Blues" is credited as one of the most revolutionary television series of all time. The series helped to bring serialized storytelling into mainstream television, and provided audiences with a grittier, more realistic sort of crime drama. The use of serialized storytelling and gritty realism have become a staple of the police procedural in modern day, and "Chicago P.D." is no exception. Still, it is a bit odd that the two shows share a police office, when "Hill Street Blues" remains to this day one of the most iconic crime drama shows of all time.