Homicide and Suicide: Yaphet Kotto as Det. Let. Al Giardello

[Previously: “‘Three Men and Adina’: Watch a Complete, Brilliant, Heart-Breaking Early Episode of Homicide: Life on the Streets (1992) S01E05.”]

Re-posted by N.S.

Homicide: Life on the Street S03E18 - G’s Speech

Channel T
I love this scene with Lt. Al Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) talking about life and loneliness. Great show, great actor. This one gets me every time. (note: took a couple of liberties with the scene...edited out comments from Ned Beatty's character, Stan Bolander)



N.S.
Was G contemplating suicide? (The detective he mentions, Crosetti, committed suicide early in the series.) Note the way his office was set up and lit. Was that possibly inspired by the opening scene in The Godfather?

He was the secret star on that show. The problem was that the producers insisted on making Andre Braugher (Det. Frank Pembleton) the star. The problems in that were two-fold: 1. They took Kotto for granted, which was utter foolishness; and 2. Braugher let his newfound status go to his head, and the producers went along with it, permitting him to leave the Department (stroke story arc). Braugher was great, as long as he was the brilliant prima donna Detective Frank Pembleton, who didn't want a partner, and who was a virtuoso interrogating killers in “The Box.” But as Frank Pembleton, retired on disability, saddled with domestic stories (as opposed to domestic beefs), he was much less interesting. Who can write such scenes, so as to make them as fascinating as a confrontation with a psychopathic serial killer who’s trying to sell herself as psychotic, so as to play the crazy card in court? Kotto was forced to start writing scripts featuring his character, in order to be able to give meaty performances.