Its enormous cast, pseudo-documentary style and overlapping dialogue defied the conventional wisdom that a TV show had to be understood by those who were half-asleep. It looked like a movie and unfolded like a novel. TV was amusing enough back then, but it was seldom accused of being 'art.'

When 'Hill Street Blues' premiered, the highest-rated police drama on the air was 'CHiPS,' while 'The Love Boat' and 'The Dukes of Hazzard' were still going strong. With so much good drama on TV today, it's hard to remember what the medium was like a quarter-century ago. Law,' 'Miami Vice,' 'Law & Order,' 'Twin Peaks,' 'NYPD Blue' and 'Deadwood.'įor those who missed the groundbreaking show or who want to see it again, a three-disc DVD set with all 17 episodes from the first season is available next week. Elsewhere,' 'thirtysomething' and 'Moonlighting.' Alumni from the show went on to produce 'L.A. It launched a second golden age of television drama: The model it established inspired a long string of literate dramas, including 'St. Twenty-five years ago this month, 'Hill Street Blues' debuted on NBC.

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