David Milch

In his two-and-a-half-hour interview, David Milch discusses his early life and influences, and how he came to write for Hill Street Blues. He talks about his stint as a writer for Hill Street Blues under Steven Bochco and his unconventional personal life at the time. He describes co-creating NYPD Blue with Bochco and helping to create the tone, feel, and language of the show. Milch recounts some of the tumultuous times on the show with David Caruso, talks of Caruso's replacement, Jimmy Smits, and explains his own eventual exit from the show. He outlines the creation of the classic HBO series Deadwood and what he was trying to accomplish with that show through symbolism and language, and he talks about the show's lead character "Al Swearengen," played by Ian McShane. He recalls his less successful HBO ventures John from Cincinnati and Luck, and talks of personal difficulties that resulted from the two series. Finally, he talks about his unconventional writing process and offers advice to aspiring television writers. Stephen J. Abramson conducted the interview on December 27, 2012 in Santa Monica, CA.