2.10. Are there any books about the show? (NYPD Blue)
Description
This article is from the NYPD Blue FAQ, by Dave Chapman, Alan Sepinwall and Jeff Knapp with numerous contributions by others.
2.10. Are there any books about the show? (NYPD Blue)
There are three books about Blue currently in print - one non-
fiction, two fiction, with more of the latter supposedly on
the way.
"True Blue: the Real Stories Behind NYPD Blue" is a non-
fiction book written by NYPD Blue co-creator David Milch. He
shares author's credit with Bill Clark, a former NYPD
detective who now serves as the show's technical advisor. The
book essentially tells two different stories: 1)The history of
the show, including the initial controversy over the nudity
and language, the difficulty of working with David Caruso,
etc., and 2)Bill Clark's career as a detective, including
lengthy descriptions (told in his voice) about the cases he
worked, most of which were turned into plotlines on NYPD Blue.
It's a good read if you're a true crime fan or a fan of the
show, though it helps to be both.
The ISBN number for the hardcover edition is 0-688-14081-5.
The recently-released paperback edition (which I don't have
the ISBN for yet) features some extra material, including Bill
Clark's thoughts on the O.J. Simpson case (just imagine if
Sipowicz had been the one to interrogate the Juice) and Milch
discussing the death of Andy Jr. arc.
"NYPD Blue: Blue Beginning," on the other hand, is a novel by
noted mystery author Max Allan Collins. A prequel to the
series, it essentially functions as "the episode *before* the
first episode," following Kelly and Sipowicz around in the
weeks before the first episode of the series took place. It
also features Laura in a far more prominent role than any
episode of the show ever did, and has brief appearances by
Fancy, Martinez, and Medavoy.
It's very entertaining - Collins has the characters down pat,
so much so that you'll be able to hear Dennis Franz's voice
everytime Sipowicz utters one of his pithy comebacks. But, let
the buyer beware: the book assumes the reader is familiar with
the events of the early episodes of the first season, and
doesn't end with much closure, so if you don't know the final
fate of Angelo Marino, Alphonse Giardello, John & Laura's
marriage, etc., you'll probably feel rather disappointed until
you see those episodes.
The ISBN number for "Blue Beginning" is 0-451-18391-6
Collins second "blue" novel, "Blue Blood" was published in
September. It was originally going to feature Simone and
Kelly meeting, but is now a solely Andy and Bobby affair, set
shortly after Andy's wedding.
The ISBN for "Blue Blood" (according to amazon.com) is 0-451-
18392-4.
Sales on "Blue Beginning" weren't all that high, so this new
book could be the last one, so go out and buy it, okay?
I have not read it, and apparently, no one else on the group
has yet either, since there haven't been any reviews.. so get
cracking! :-)
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