# TV series set in Chicago? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2013, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733 "2013-03-23T12:45:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/21 "2013-03-23T17:18:55Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > I thought HSB went out of its way NOT to mention what city it was in? Although certain exterior scenes (such as the Maxwell Street Police Station) were clearly filmed in Chicago, other scenes were clearly not. The actual Hill Street from the name is in downtown LA. IIRC, the show creators said it was set in a city somewhere between Boston and Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/22 "2013-03-23T17:32:39Z")
The late, great Due South, a culture-clash cop show about a Canadian Mountie assigned to Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/23 "2013-03-23T23:13:07Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > The actual Hill Street from the name is in downtown LA. IIRC, the show creators said it was set in a city somewhere between Boston and Chicago. And there sure ain’t no _hills_ in Chicago. Flattest city I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/24 "2013-03-23T23:27:04Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > > [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > > > I thought HSB went out of its way NOT to mention what city it was in? Although certain exterior scenes (such as the Maxwell Street Police Station) were clearly filmed in Chicago, other scenes were clearly not. > > The actual Hill Street from the name is in downtown LA. IIRC, the show creators said it was set in a city somewhere between Boston and Chicago. I read somewhere that they were thinking Pittsburgh. I believe some of the creators and actors went to school there. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/25 "2013-03-24T00:52:35Z")
> [@Peanuthead](#): > > And there sure ain’t no _hills_ in Chicago. Flattest city I’ve ever seen. But there is a Hill Street in Chicago. It’s near where Cabrini Green used to be. It’s about three blocks long, and flat as a pancake. ---
**Author:** ![Cayuga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Cayuga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cayuga)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/26 "2013-03-24T01:11:11Z")
I was told by two different people who worked on the show (one actor, one production staff) that _Hill Street Blues_ was set in a fictitious (and unnamed) city. Exteriors were shot in LA, of course, but establishing shots were also from Chicago and (I think) Detroit. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/27 "2013-03-24T01:49:14Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > Oh and “Bosom Buddies”… Yeah, nothing is ever set in Chicago, weird right? Are you sure about “Bosom Buddies”? I don’t think it was ever specifically said, but it gave off a Manhattan vibe to me. Since Kip and Henry worked in advertising, this seemed most likely to me. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/28 "2013-03-24T04:08:13Z")
The beloved\*\* My Boys\*\*. Important because P.J. is a sportswriter and her brother (the wonderful Jim Gaffigan) is married and living in Hoffman Estates. (Sorry, **Jophiel**! I swear I scanned the thread before posting!) ---
**Author:** ![LateComer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b5ac83/32.png) [@LateComer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LateComer)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/29 "2013-03-24T04:19:33Z")
[the league.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1480684/) ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/30 "2013-03-24T05:18:20Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > The beloved\*\* My Boys\*\*. Important because P.J. is a sportswriter and her brother (the wonderful Jim Gaffigan) is married and living in Hoffman Estates. > > (Sorry, **Jophiel**! I swear I scanned the thread before posting!) I thought it was interesting that Jordana Spiro, the chick who played PJ in \*My Boys \*(set in Chicago) also played \*The Mob Doctor \*(also set in Chicago). I thought maybe she was a Chicago girl who refused to work outside her home town. But nope; according to IMDb, she is from New York City. PS - Get a rope! ---
**Author:** ![Coriolanus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coriolanus/32/18769_2.png) [@Coriolanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coriolanus)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/31 "2013-03-24T09:11:19Z")
Bonnie Hunt was in a short-lived series in 1993, The Building, set overlooking Wrigley Field. A running gag was home runs would periodically come crashing through her window. In 1995 she had a show with much the same cast, “Bonnie/The Bonnie Hunt Show” also set in Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/32 "2013-03-24T12:35:34Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > The late, great Due South, a culture-clash cop show about a Canadian Mountie assigned to Chicago. A favorite! Although, aside from a few establishing shots, it was actually _filmed_ in Toronto. ---
**Author:** ![crucible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@crucible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crucible)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/33 "2013-03-24T13:52:19Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > The actual Hill Street from the name is in downtown LA. IIRC, the show creators said it was set in a city somewhere between Boston and Chicago. Many references to things in Buffalo. One of the writers/directors/producers was from there. A friend of mine went to Catholic high school with him there and made a list of the Buffalo references. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/34 "2013-03-24T16:19:46Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Are you sure about “Bosom Buddies”? I don’t think it was ever specifically said, but it gave off a Manhattan vibe to me. Since Kip and Henry worked in advertising, this seemed most likely to me. I’m sure you’re right. I think I’d heard that the exteriors filmed for the opening credits were in Lincoln Park though. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/35 "2013-03-24T16:23:14Z")
> [@Coriolanus](#): > > Bonnie Hunt was in a short-lived series in 1993, The Building, set overlooking Wrigley Field. A running gag was home runs would periodically come crashing through her window. In 1995 she had a show with much the same cast, “Bonnie/The Bonnie Hunt Show” also set in Chicago. It would be tough to throw a home-run ball back onto the field from your living room! ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/36 "2013-03-24T17:31:29Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > I’m sure you’re right. I think I’d heard that the exteriors filmed for the opening credits were in Lincoln Park though. The opening credits were filmed in Los Angeles’s Lafayette Park. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/37 "2013-03-24T18:02:14Z")
The police cars in _Hill Street Blues_ were with the ones the Chicago PD used at the time, but as said uptread, Hill Street’s characters were careful never to actually name the city they were in. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/38 "2013-03-24T20:54:02Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > A favorite! Although, aside from a few establishing shots, it was actually _filmed_ in Toronto. Yep, you’re right, and I knew that. I mentioned it because the OP said “set in Chicago” and very very few TV shows are actually filmed here 100%. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/39 "2013-03-24T23:39:11Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Don’t forget _The Father Dowling Mysteries_, set in a magical Chicago which featured palm trees, and where Clark and State streets intersected. Also, most of the cars had Colorado plates and the Rockies could often be seen in much of the back ground. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733/40 "2013-03-25T00:39:34Z")
> [@obfusciatrist](#): > > The opening credits were filmed in Los Angeles’s Lafayette Park. In that case, I’m incredibly off. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-series-set-in-chicago/653733.md?page=3)