Hill Street Blues

Hill Street Blues is an American serialpolice procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the Metropolitan Police Department staff of a single police station located on Hill Street in an unnamed large U.S. city. The "blues" are the police officers in their blue uniforms. It also describes the mood of weary resignation, melancholy, and quiet struggle mixed with a small, hopeful readiness the officers faced every shift.

The show received critical acclaim, and its production innovations influenced many subsequent dramatic television series produced in the United States and Canada. In 1981, the series won eight Emmy Awards, a debut season record surpassed only by The West Wing in 2000. The show won a total of 26 Emmy Awards (out of 98 Emmy Award nominations) during its run, including four consecutive wins for Outstanding Drama Series from 1981 to 1984.