''The Beat'' is an American

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 ...

television series which was produced by

Viacom Productions Viacom Productions (formerly Viacom Enterprises) was a television production arm of Viacom International. The division was active from 1974 until 2004, when the company was folded into Paramount Network Television 10 years following Viacom's ac ...

. It premiered on

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...

on March 21, 2000, and ended after only six episodes a month later on April 25. Seven additional episodes were produced although they were never broadcast.

Premise

The series focuses on the day-to-day experiences of two uniformed

police officers A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

, Mike Dorrigan and Zane Marinelli, of 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 ...

and their attempts to deal with day-to-day life with their girlfriends Elizabeth and Beatrice, and work in New York City.

Cast

Main

Derek Cecil Derek Cecil (born January 5, 1973) is an American actor. He played the role of Seth Grayson on the Netflix series ''House of Cards'', starred in the short-lived series ''Push, Nevada'' and '' The Beat'', and made several appearances in the series ...

as Mike Dorigan *

Mark Ruffalo Mark Alan Ruffalo (; born November 22, 1967) is an American actor and producer best known for playing Bruce Banner / Hulk since 2012 in the superhero franchise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and in the television series '' She-Hulk: Attorne ...

as Zane Marinelli * Heather Burns as Beatrice Felsen *

Poppy Montgomery Poppy Montgomery (born Poppy Petal Emma Elizabeth Deveraux Donahue; June 19,1972) is an Australian-born actress. She played FBI agent Samantha Spade on the CBS mystery drama ''Without a Trace'' from 2002 to 2009 and played Detective Carrie Well ...

as Elizabeth Waclawek *

Tom Noonan Tom Noonan (born April 12, 1951) is an American actor, director, and screenwriter, best known for his roles as Francis Dolarhyde in '' Manhunter'' (1986), Frankenstein's Monster in ''The Monster Squad'' (1987), Cain in '' RoboCop 2'' (1990), T ...

as Howard Schmidt *

Lea DeLaria Lea DeLaria (born May 23, 1958) is an American comedian, actress, and jazz singer. DeLaria is credited with being the first openly gay comic to appear on American television with her 1993 appearance on ''The Arsenio Hall Show''. She is best kno ...

as Kathy Speck

Recurring

Jeffrey Donovan Jeffrey Donovan (born May 11, 1968) is an American actor. He played Michael Westen in the television series ''Burn Notice'', and appeared in films such as '' Hitch'', '' Believe in Me'', '' Changeling'', and ''Come Early Morning''. He played Ro ...

as Brad Ulrich *

Lee Tergesen Lee Allen Tergesen (; born July 8, 1965) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in '' Weird Science'', as Tobias Beecher in HBO's prison drama '' Oz'', and as Evan Wright in '' Generation Kill,'' as well as guest starring in many othe ...

as Steve Dorigan *

David Zayas David Zayas (born August 15, 1962) is a Puerto Rican actor. He is best known for his roles as Angel Batista on Showtime's series ''Dexter'' and Enrique Morales on the HBO prison drama series '' Oz''. Early life Zayas was born in Ponce, Puer ...

as Rei Morales

Production

The series was produced by many people who worked on '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' including

Barry Levinson Barry Lee Levinson (born April 6, 1942) is an American filmmaker, comedian and actor. Levinson's best-known works are mid-budget comedy drama and drama films such as '' Diner'' (1982); ''The Natural'' (1984); '' Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987); ...

Tom Fontana Tom Fontana (born September 12, 1951) is an American screenwriter, writer, and television producer. Fontana worked on NBC's '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' and created HBO's ''Oz.'' Early life and education Fontana was born on the west si ...

, Anya Epstein,

Eric Overmyer Eric Ellis Overmyer (born September 25, 1951) is an American writer and producer. He has written and/or produced numerous TV shows, including ''St. Elsewhere'', '' Homicide: Life on the Street'', ''Law & Order'', ''The Wire'', ''New Amsterdam'', ...

, Irene Burns and Jim Finnerty. Many of the producers also collaborated on '' Oz'' including Barry Levinson, Tom Fontana, Irene Burns and Jim Finnerty. The series is also notable as being one of the many series in which the character Det. John Munch, played by

Richard Belzer Richard Jay Belzer (born August 4, 1944) is a retired American actor, stand-up comedian, and author. He is best known for his role as BPD Detective, NYPD Detective/Sergeant, and DA Investigator John Munch, whom he has portrayed as a regular cas ...

, has appeared. The others include: '' Homicide: Life on the Street'', '' Law & Order'', ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction drama television series created by Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who ...

'', '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', '' Law & Order: Trial by Jury'', ''

Arrested Development The term "arrested development" has had multiple meanings for over 200 years. In the field of medicine, the term "arrested development" was first used, ''circa'' 1835–1836, to mean a stoppage of physical development; the term continues to be use ...

'', and ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The Wire'' premiered on June 2 ...

''.

Episodes

References

External links

* * 2000s American crime drama television series 2000s American police procedural television series 2000 American television series debuts 2000 American television series endings English-language television shows Television series by CBS Studios Television shows set in New York City UPN original programming {{US-drama-tv-prog-stub