1.3. Who are the recurring characters on the show? (NYPD Blue)
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This article is from the NYPD Blue FAQ, by Dave Chapman, Alan Sepinwall and Jeff Knapp with numerous contributions by others.
1.3. Who are the recurring characters on the show? (NYPD Blue)
In addition to the regular cast members, the show features a number
of other actors who appear on a semi-regular basis. In fact, Greg
Medavoy, Sylvia Costas and Donna Abandando were all recurring
characters in the first season who got added to the main cast in
the second, just as Adrianne Lesniak and Diane Russell became
regulars after several guest shots in season two. Jill Kirkendall
made the leap from feature to regular cast as well. Some of the
people listed below may or may not return to the show, but
considering their characters' professions and relationships with
the series regulars, the prospect is likely.
ADA SYLVIA COSTAS (Sharon Lawrence)
An elegant, beautiful assistant District Attorney and a
balding, overweight, slovenly cop getting married? It's not an
obvious match, to be sure, but Sylvia saw the decent, caring
human being underneath Andy's gruff exterior and fell in love
with him. She's been very supportive of his attempts to stay
sober, which probably has something to do with the fact that
half her family members appear to be alcoholics. She's very
confident on the job, and has been known to wield an acid
tongue when cops' procedural errors blow her cases. Sylvia was
raped back in law school, which makes her (and Andy, once he
found out) especially sensitive about rape cases. She's taken
some time off from work to care for her newborn son Theo, and
has the added burden of making sure Andy stays on the wagon
after Andy Jr's death.
Sylvia moved from recurring character to regular cast member,
back to featured player, since Sharon Lawrence is now starring
in a sitcom ("Fired Up") on NBC.
ADA LEO COHEN (Michael Buchman Silver)
The young-looking Cohen's not particularly popular with the
15th squad, in part because he was in charge of the aborted
murder prosecution of Diane's mother, and in part because he
tends to smirk on every third word. However, things are
getting interesting with him, since he appears to be the
object of Jill Kirkendall's desires...
GINA COLON (Lourdes Benedicto)
The lovely Ms. Colon came over from Borough Command to serve
as Police Administrative Assistant for the 15th precinct's
Anti-Crime unit, and quickly began flirting with Det.
Martinez. Shortly after they started dating, she was
transferred downstairs to the detective's squad after her
predecessor, Geri Turner, had difficulty getting along with
Sipowicz.
Gina is now about four months pregnant with James' child, tho
she has been reluctant to accept his marriage proposal, since
she does not want to trap him into something he does not want.
ABBY SULLIVAN (Paige Turco)
Abby was the subject of Greg Medavoy's desires ever since she
peeked in on him while he was working out... at least she was
until she revealed that she is gay. After introducing Greg to
her lover, Abby asked Greg to be a sperm donor so they could
have a baby. After much chestbeating, Greg agreed. What
resulted was possibly one of the worst storylines the show has
ever tackled.
INTERNAL AFFAIRS SGT. MARTENS (Scott Allan Campbell)
Martens is no dummy; he knows that most cops (including the
ones at the 15) can't stand him and the rest of "The Rat
Squad." But he also can't help but get frustrated when he
tries to do his best to keep a cop from getting into trouble
and still gets ripped for it. Though his job requires him to
bust dirty cops, he's overlooked at least one indiscretion by
Simone.
INSPECTOR AIELLO (Andy Romano)
We don't know Aiello's exact title, or even his first name,
but he's generally the representative of the upper brass who
deals with Fancy on a regular basis. At times, he seems more
concerned with the department's image than with justice, but
he has his occasional moments as a stand-up guy.
DA MAURY ABRAMS (Charles Levin)
The Manhattan District Attorney, Abrams generally only handles
cases that he hopes will boost his would-be political career.
MIKE ROBERTS (Michael Harney)
Roberts was one of Fancy's detectives, but definitely not one
of his favorites. He was forced to leave the NYPD after a
scandal involving his informant (who later turned out to be
his lover) dying of a drug overdose that Roberts neglected to
report. Since quitting, Mike has started up his own private
investigation/bodyguarding firm, occasionally doing side work
for his ex-co-workers (and occasionally employing them), but
is sleazier than ever - and his clients have a tendency to die
in his care.
OFFICER REGGIE FANCY (Michael Jai White)
Imagine Arthur Fancy without the incredible self-restraint and
you have his kid brother Reggie, a uniformed cop with a world-
class chip on his shoulder. He's a loudmouth who sees racism
in every white man he works with, whether it's there or not.
Reggie's often right (his sergeant, for example, was a major
bigot), but his bluster and hot temper usually make him look
like the bad guy. Though he and Art don't get along too well,
Lt. Fancy still looks out for him.
CAPT. CLIFFORD BASS (Larry Joshua)
Bass spent his entire career in uniform before becoming the
Manhattan Borough Commander in charge of detectives (and
Fancy's immediate superior). Because of that, he didn't really
have much idea how detectives do things, and rubbed a lot of
people the wrong way in his first few days on the job. He's
since found his footing, and has proved to be a pretty fair
guy -and certainly better than his predecessor, the devoutly
racist Capt. Haverill. Bass usually only shows up to supervise
major investigations.
MARIE MEDAVOY (Deborah Taylor)
The shrewish, crass Marie would be hard to get along with for
just about anyone - Greg probably only stayed with her for
that long out of some sense of masochism. She was just as
responsible for the break-up as him, because while Greg was
sleeping with Donna, Marie was cheating on him herself.
SERGEANT VINNIE AGOSTINI (Vincent Guastaferro)
The desk sergeant on the dayshift at the 15, Agostini doesn't
particularly enjoy relaying phone messages to the detectives,
though that's all we ever see him do. From seeing him quite
a bit in the early seasons to only seeing him once during the
fourth season, it may be a safe bet that Gustaferro has moved
on to greener pastures.
OFFICER JAMES SHANNON (James McBride)
Shannon's been a uniformed cop in the 15th precinct for at
least four years, and is usually handling crime scenes for
Andy and Bobby.
DETECTIVE STU MORRISSEY (Conor O'Farrell)
Stu, like Vince Gotelli, works the 4 to 12 shift in the 15th
detective's squad. Though he's certainly not as slick as
either Andy or Bobby, he's also not nearly as dumb as Vince.
DOC MONDZAC (Titus Welliver)
A trauma surgeon at the Bellevue Hospital emergency room, Dr.
Mondzac has treated detectives from the 15 on a number of
occasions - he handled James' gunshot wound, for instance.
Welliver, the actor who plays Mondzac, can now be seen as a
patrolman on Bochco/Milch's new police drama "Brooklyn South."
DET. NICK SAVINO (Steven Antin)
Formerly a detective in Narcotics, Savino now works as a
homicide cop in Brooklyn. He first crossed paths with our
heroes when he mistakenly arrested Andy Jr. for drug dealing,
but he and Andy managed to rectify the situation. Later, he
got Andy's help in solving a murder case at a candy store
where Sipowicz had worked as a kid. Most recently, he was
placed in charge of a homicide at Simone's new apartment
building. There is no truth to the rumor that Savino only
works on days when acquaintances of the 15th squad are being
arrested or killed.
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