Francis Xavier "Frank" Pembleton is a
fictional homicide detective on the
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
series ''
Homicide: Life on the Street'' portrayed by Emmy Award winning actor
Andre Braugher
Andre Keith Braugher (; born July 1, 1962) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective Frank Pembleton in the police drama series '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' (1993–1999), used car salesman Owen Thoreau Jr. in the com ...
.
He is a primary character of the show through the first six seasons. Although the show featured an
ensemble cast, Pembleton would become the fan favorite and is often identified by as the show's signature character. He is based on
Baltimore Police Department Detective
Harry Edgerton, who, like Pembleton, was an eccentric New York bred
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
detective in the BPD homicide unit featured in David Simon's book. ''
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets''. The character also appeared in the ''
Law & Order'' episode "Charm City".
Early life
Pembleton was born into a
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
family in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
on July 1, 1961. It was implied that he had siblings, but they never appear on the show. He was educated first in a Catholic elementary school and then in a
Jesuit high school, a reference to Braugher attending a Jesuit school,
St. Ignatius College Prep, in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. Frank later said that "the Jesuits taught me how to think," which comes up on the show from time to time. He knows
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
and
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
and is well versed in
Catholic theology. He met his future wife, Mary, on the Great Lawn in
Central Park
Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...
shortly after graduating from the
Police academy
A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or othe ...
when he was 24. He claims that he knew as soon as he met her that she was "the one." They were married in 1986.
In October 1988, Frank and Mary moved to
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
because Frank wanted to be a detective and felt there was no room for advancement in the
NYPD
The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
. The move caused a permanent rift between him and his in-laws, since he had moved "their little girl" so far from home. He loved working in Baltimore, however, and Mary got a job as a
lobbyist
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...
and often took trips to
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
where her family lives.
He had become a homicide detective by 1989.
['' Homicide: Life on the Street'' episode "The Gas Man", originally aired May 5, 1995.]
Family
Frank and Mary, once settled in their careers, decided to have a family. They were forced to see a variety of fertility specialists before Mary was able to become pregnant. They had two children, a daughter Olivia (born 1996) and a son, Frank, Jr.
Frank was the only detective to maintain a marriage — the others either never married, had their spouses die, or got divorced. Frank and Mary's did go through some rough times, owing to Frank's incredible drive for work. Even after marriage counseling, Mary felt that he had become too detached from his family. She was also bothered when he lost his faith, especially when he denied Olivia a
baptism
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...
for many months. Mary left for a couple of months while pregnant with Frank, Jr. but eventually came back. She was happy that he quit the force in the Season 6 finale.
Career
From the first episode right through to the movie finale, references are made to Pembleton's reputation as a "legend" in terms of his skills as a detective; he is especially skilled in interrogation, and is depicted as a master of getting confessions from suspects in "the Box." Through a mixture of sympathy, confusion and fear, Pembleton almost always gets a suspect to crack. At the same time, he often fails to endear himself to his fellow detectives, who resent his black-and-white attitude toward the job and arrogant demeanor.
Frank's religious faith is tested in the three-part premiere of Season 3, when he investigates a series of killings that are revealed to have been religiously-motivated. The thought that God can allow such crimes to be committed greatly disturbs Frank, and he chooses to renounce his faith, refusing even to go to church until near the end of Season 5.
In Season 3, Pembleton is asked by Deputy Commissioner James C. Harris to help Congressman Jeremy Wade cover up a homosexual liaison by dismissing a report that he was kidnapped. Pembleton reaches an agreement with Wade to admit the report was false, but word gets to the press and accusations of a cover up costs Wade an election. When confronted, Pembleton looks to Harris, who denies that he sanctioned any agreement, and Al Giardello (who was deliberately kept in the dark) can offer no help. Disgusted with the situation, Pembleton throws down his badge and quits. However, his intuitive attitude towards his work meshes poorly with his home life, and annoys Mary to the point that she gently pressures him to go back to work, which he eventually does. Pembleton is later called to testify about the cover up and reluctantly states that he decided to offer Wade the deal on his own; however, he continues to harbor a deep resentment for Harris long after the incident is closed.
Except for target practice in Season 4 and re-certification training in Season 5, Frank never fires his gun during the course of the series. It is implied on a few occasions that he is in fact unwilling to use deadly force, which becomes significant during the two-part finale of Season 6.
The stroke
In the fourth season finale, Frank suffers a
stroke while interrogating a suspect, and nearly dies. When he returns to duty, his speech and memory have been noticeably impaired. He is assigned desk duty until he passes his firearms exam, and is frustrated when others baby him. When his blood pressure medication impairs his focus and sexual relations with Mary, he briefly stops taking it, but resumes after failing his first attempt at the exam.
The effects of Pembleton's stroke rapidly diminish over the course of the fifth season, mostly due to pressure from NBC who felt that Pembleton's halting delivery and memory lapses made his character difficult to watch. By the middle of the season, only a slight occasional stammer remains; by sixth season, the effects of Pembleton's stroke seem to have been almost magically eradicated. However, the stroke adversely affects his effectiveness when he refuses to take his medication for a time; in the episode "Kaddish", he aggressively questions a suspect he believes to be guilty of a shooting in a fast food restaurant, only to be told that another person has confessed to the crime. Also, in the two-part finale of Season 6, he seems to struggle to aim his weapon and appears unable to see clearly, switching from one eye to the other. His determination to overcome his stroke and return to police work also alienate him from Mary and their daughter Olivia, and they leave him for a time.
Pembleton and Bayliss
When Det.
Tim Bayliss is assigned to the homicide unit, Lieutenant Giardello partnered him with Pembleton, who had no patience for a rookie. They were partners for most of the series, though Frank never allowed Tim to get too close. Although Bayliss had great respect for Frank, to the point of calling Frank his best friend, Pembleton was often dismissive of Bayliss' attempts at friendship. When Bayliss expresses sadness at Frank's abrupt resignation in Season 3, Pembleton is indifferent, although he willingly partners with him again after coming back to the force.
Their partnership was strained when Pembleton investigated the accidental shooting of a foreign exchange student by Tim's cousin, Jim (portrayed by
David Morse
David Bowditch Morse (born October 11, 1953) is an American actor, singer, television director, and writer. He first came to national attention as Dr. Jack "Boomer" Morrison in the medical drama series '' St. Elsewhere'' (1982–88). His film c ...
). Pembleton was convinced that Jim, if only in the few seconds before the shot was fired, was motivated by racism. Pembleton investigates the case vigorously, and is outraged when Jim is acquitted.
In the Season 5 episode "Betrayal," a case involving a man beating his stepdaughter to death causes an emotional Bayliss to tell Frank about how his uncle sexually abused him as a child, and his father was dismissive when told about it. When Frank attempts to be consoling, Bayliss rebuffs him and ends their partnership, causing them to become cold and indifferent toward one another. They make amends after Mary's leaving causes Frank to tentatively reach out.
In the Season 6 finale, during a gun battle with members of dead drug kingpin Luther Mahoney's organization. Frank takes aim at a suspect but cannot bring himself to fire. Bayliss pushes Frank out of the way. As a result, he is shot and critically wounded. Since Mahoney was shot by Detective Mike Kellerman, of Lt. Giardello's squad, Giardello became suspicious about the circumstances of Mahoney's shooting, even though it was officially ruled justified. When he orders Pembleton to re-investigate the shooting, Pembleton interrogates a hostile Kellerman, who finally admits, without remorse, he shot Mahoney when the dealer's weapon was pointed downward, endangering no one.
Pembleton met Bayliss's mother, Virginia, while Tim recovered from surgery. She told Frank what Tim thought of their friendship: "He thinks the world of you. He says you're his friend. He says you're not a person who has friends, but he's your friend." Shortly afterwards, Pembleton and Mary say a prayer for Tim, during which Pembleton is visibly distraught (something he is almost never shown to be in the course of the show) and refers to Tim as his friend.
Disgusted by Giardello allowing Kellerman to resign without charges and tormented by guilt over Bayliss's shooting, Frank quits the force and is absent for Season 7.
Retirement and Return
Pembleton retires from the force after Bayliss is shot, but two years later, Bayliss and Pembleton (who is now working as a professor at a Jesuit college) both come out of retirement to help solve the shooting of their former lieutenant,
Al Giardello
Alphonse Michael 'Gee' Giardello Sr. is a fictional character from the television drama '' Homicide: Life on the Street''. The character was played by Yaphet Kotto. He is based on Baltimore Police Department Shift Lieutenant Gary D'Addario, a membe ...
. After the case is solved, Pembleton inadvertently "solves" one final case when Bayliss confesses to murdering serial killer Luke Ryland.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pembleton, Frank
Fictional Baltimore Police Department detectives
Homicide: Life on the Street characters
Fictional African-American people
Fictional characters based on real people
Fictional characters from New York City
Television characters introduced in 1993
Crossover characters in television