Death, Hollywood Style

Literally nothing in long-form television drama today would be what it is without writer and producer Steven Bochco. Ensemble casts, story arcs -- the list of things he brought to the small screen through Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law and NYPD Blue is a long one.

In 2003, Bochco joined writer and producer Stephen J. Cannell in the club of "Hit TV Show Producers Who Write Best-Sellers." It's small; I think they may be the only two members. Unlike Cannell, who wrote quite a few books, Bochco has so far had just one, the semi-satirical mystery Death by Hollywood. Eddie Jelko is an cynical Hollywood agent -- which is saying the same thing twice -- who has a client, a writer named Bobby Newman. At the end of a really bad day in which his wife leaves him and Eddie (temporarily) fires him, Bobby happens to look through his telescope and see a crime being committed. Rather than call the police, he sneaks over to the house to see what he can learn, and slowly develops the idea of a screenplay from what he's seen. Detective Dennis Farentino investigates the crime, and several paths cross each other while he does.

Bochco's insider Hollywood knowledge gives Jelko's cynical spin a lot of realism; he's very definitely writing what he knows. Eddie plays a minor role in the story overall, but since he's telling it like someone might spin a yarn over drinks, his voice comes through the dialogue, action and descriptions.  That voice wanders off sometimes into side-stories and anecdotes, and a few of those stretch the reader's patience but never cross the line into complete distraction. Bochco, who had a tussle on his hands when he first showed NYPD Blue because of its adult language and frequently racy situations, doesn't shy away from those at all in the book.

For whatever reason, Death by Hollywood remains Bochco's only book. The story plays out in such a way that a sequel wouldn't work, but surely other stories remain in his head and if this one's any indication they'd be fun reads as well.