---
name: "Steven Bochco"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/steven-bochco"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "16 December 1943"
died: "1 April 2018"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 85
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-17T16:11:47.514389+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Steven Bochco

Writer. Born 16 December 1943 in New York City, New York, USA. Died 1 April 2018.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 16 December 1943, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 1 April 2018
- **Active:** 1971–1993
- **Frequently works with:** [David Milch](https://film.one/person/david-milch.md), [Dennis Dugan](https://film.one/person/dennis-dugan.md), [Gregory Hoblit](https://film.one/person/gregory-hoblit.md), [Michael Switzer](https://film.one/person/michael-switzer.md), [Rick Wallace](https://film.one/person/rick-wallace.md), [Robert Butler](https://film.one/person/robert-butler.md), [Robert Ward](https://film.one/person/robert-ward.md), [Walon Green](https://film.one/person/walon-green.md)
- **Primetime Emmy Awards:** 10 Emmys (10 won)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 85, as writer, over 3 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1970s 86 (1), 1980s 86 (1), 1990s 82 (1)
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 0 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 3, Crime 2, Mystery 1
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Bochco, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1350541, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004766/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/12115

## Streaming the US now

- **Peacock:** [*Columbo*](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md) (86)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Steven Bochco

> Steven Bochco made crowded workplaces worth returning to, giving the people around a case lives that continued after it closed. We value the compassion in his television, even when the characterisation is less careful than the storytelling.

The officers in *Hill Street Blues* (1981) have personal difficulties that survive the end of an investigation. Bochco lets those difficulties run across episodes, so learning the ensemble’s names becomes part of getting to know people whose lives cannot be tidied up on schedule. We were moved by its willingness to stay with the officers’ troubles after the police work was done. That patience makes the supporting officers worth following, too; the case does not have to depend on them for their difficulties to matter.

Bochco’s writing and teleplay work on *Columbo* (1971) came before that crowded ensemble. The pleasure there rests largely with Peter Falk’s patient questioning and the suspects’ misplaced superiority, though the routine can leave an episode feeling stretched. Co-creating *Hill Street Blues* with Michael Kozoll allowed Bochco to work with overlapping stories, continuing personal troubles and a larger share of attention for supporting officers. High drama and low humour sit together, and the officers remain recognisably fallible in both.

The same interest in working lives extended to lawyers in *L.A. Law* (1986), before another police collaboration with David Milch on *NYPD Blue* (1993). The latter pushed network limits on language, partial nudity and adult material, but those provocations are not the main reason to take Bochco seriously. More useful is the documentary-style approach, with handheld camerawork making station houses and courtrooms feel less arranged for our benefit. For a writer building such busy ensembles, that visual looseness helps: the people can seem to belong to a workplace rather than to arrive solely when the plot needs them.

The approach did not suit every experiment. *Cop Rock* (1990), his musical police drama, was a critical failure, and a willingness to try something awkward is not enough to make it work. The more relevant reservation is already there in *Hill Street Blues*: some characterisation has dated more than its storytelling. When the writing settles for those broad strokes, spending longer with a character does not necessarily make them more convincing. Start with *Hill Street Blues*, and give it enough attention to learn the names.

## Biography

Steven Bochco was an American television writer and producer. Born in New York City on 16 December 1943, he died in Los Angeles on 1 April 2018. He graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BFA in theatre in 1966.

He began his career at Universal Studios as a writer and story editor on series including *Columbo* (1971). He later moved to MTM Enterprises, where he co-created *Hill Street Blues* (1981). Bochco created or co-created *L.A. Law* (1986), *Doogie Howser, M.D.* (1989) and *NYPD Blue* (1993). He won ten Primetime Emmy Awards over the course of his career.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, britannica.com, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *NYPD Blue* (1993), Fi1m 82, Creator, Story — [page](https://film.one/tv/nypd-blue.md)
- *Hill Street Blues* (1981), Fi1m 86, Writer, Creator, Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/hill-street-blues.md)
- *Columbo* (1971), Fi1m 86, Teleplay, Writer — [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)

## Complete filmography (47)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.* (2021), series, Original Series Creator
- *Murder in the First* (2014), series, Story, Creator
- *Raising the Bar* (2008), series, Executive Producer, Story, Creator
- *Hollis & Rae* (2006), Executive Producer
- *Over There* (2005), series, Executive Producer, Creator
- *Commander in Chief* (2005), series, Story
- *Blind Justice* (2005), series, Producer, Creator
- *TV Revolution* (2004), series, Acting
- *NYPD 2069* (2004), Writer, Producer
- *L.A. Law: The Movie* (2002), Original Series Creator
- *Philly* (2001), series, Writer, Story, Executive Producer, Creator
- *City of Angels* (2000), series, Writer, Producer, Creator
- *Total Security* (1997), series, Writer, Producer, Creator
- *Brooklyn South* (1997), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator
- *Murder One: Diary of a Serial Killer* (1997), Writer
- *Public Morals* (1996), series, Producer, Creator
- *Murder One* (1995), series, Writer, Story, Executive Producer, Creator
- *The Byrds of Paradise* (1994), series, Producer
- *NYPD Blue* (1993), series, Story, Executive Producer, Creator — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/tv/nypd-blue.md)
- *Capitol Critters* (1992), series, Creator
- *Civil Wars* (1991), series, Teleplay, Executive Producer
- *Cop Rock* (1990), series, Writer, Creator
- *Doogie Howser, M.D.* (1989), series, Writer, Creator
- *Hooperman* (1987), series, Writer, Creator
- *L.A. Law* (1986), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator, Story
- *Bay City Blues* (1983), series, Writer, Creator
- *The Magic Statue* (1982), Writer
- *Hill Street Blues* (1981), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/hill-street-blues.md)
- *Vampire* (1979), Writer, Executive Producer
- *Paris* (1979), series, Writer, Producer, Creator
- *Turnabout* (1979), series, Writer
- *The White Shadow* (1978), series, Writer
- *The Case of the Baltimore Girls* (1978), Producer
- *Richie Brockelman: The Missing 24 Hours* (1976), Executive Producer, Writer
- *Gemini Man* (1976), series, Creator
- *Riding with Death* (1976), Writer
- *The Invisible Man* (1975), series, Producer, Creator
- *The Invisible Man* (1975), Writer
- *Double Indemnity* (1973), Teleplay
- *Griff* (1973), series, Producer
- *Lieutenant Schuster's Wife* (1972), Producer, Writer
- *Silent Running* (1972), Screenplay
- *McMillan & Wife* (1971), series, Writer
- *Columbo* (1971), series, Writer, Teleplay — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)
- *The Bold Ones: The New Doctors* (1969), series, Creator
- *The Name of the Game* (1968), series, Writer
- *The Counterfeit Killer* (1968), Writer

## Gallery

- ![1994 Emmy Awards NOTE: Permission granted to copy, publish, broadcast or post any of my photos, but please credit "photo by Alan Light" if you can. Thanks. Scan](https://film.one/media/person/160323/gallery-ce72da81164f.jpg) 1994 Emmy Awards NOTE: Permission granted to copy, publish, broadcast or post any of my photos, but please credit "photo by Alan Light" if you can. Thanks. Scan — Alan Light, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Steven_Bochco%2C_Barbara_Bosson_%282076466219%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Steven Bochco](https://film.one/media/person/160323/gallery-d83d28ccd2ef.jpg) Steven Bochco — Alan Light, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Steven_Bochco_and_Barbara_Bosson_3849.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)

## Awards

### Primetime Emmy Awards — 10 won

- 1995: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *NYPD Blue*
- 1989: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *L.A. Law*
- 1987: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *L.A. Law*
- 1987: Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (won)
- 1984: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *Hill Street Blues*
- 1983: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *Hill Street Blues*
- 1982: Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (won)
- 1982: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *Hill Street Blues*
- 1981: Outstanding Drama Series (won), for *Hill Street Blues*
- 1981: Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (won), for *Hill Street Station*

### Other awards — 10 won

- Directors Guild of America Award 1999: Directors Guild of America Award (won)
- Humanitas Prize 1999: Humanitas Prize (won), for *NYPD Blue*
- Peabody Awards 1998: Peabody Awards (won), for *Raging Bulls*
- Peabody Awards 1996: Peabody Awards (won), for *NYPD Blue*
- Edgar Awards 1995: Edgar Awards (won), for *Simone Says*
- Laurel Award for TV Writing Achievement 1994: Laurel Award for TV Writing Achievement (won)
- Peabody Awards 1987: Peabody Awards (won), for *L.A. Law*
- Edgar Awards 1982: Edgar Awards (won), for *Hill Street Station*
- Humanitas Prize 1981: Humanitas Prize (won), for *Hill Street Blues*
- Peabody Awards 1981: Peabody Awards (won), for *Hill Street Blues*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/steven-bochco