Arthur Fancy

Last updated
Arthur Fancy
NYPD Blue character
Arthurfancy.jpg
James McDaniel as Lt. Arthur Fancy
First appearance"Pilot"
Last appearance"Flight of Fancy"
Portrayed byJames McDaniel
In-universe information
TitleLieutenant
Occupation NYPD Detective
FamilyReggie (brother)
SpouseLillian
Children4
NationalityAmerican

Capt. Arthur Fancy is a character in the television series NYPD Blue . He is played by James McDaniel from seasons one through eight. McDaniel appears in all 167 episodes, from the show's 1993 pilot to the 2001 episode in which his departure is depicted.

Contents

Background

In an episode in late summer 1995, Fancy stated that he is 42 years old and that he was 41 when his wife gave birth in January 1995. [1] This places his birthday sometime between January and August 1953. He also alluded in Season 2 to recently passing his 20-year service mark on the police force. Fancy previously worked as a detective prior to entering the management track and was promoted to lieutenant in charge of the 15th detective squad about a year prior to the start of the show's timeline.

Fancy was one of the newly recruited African American commanders on a force previously controlled by Irish American police officers. According to officer Jack Hanlon during a conversation with John Kelly, "the force up until the 1960s was comprised of a majority Irish Americans with some Italian American and Jewish officers, but only a few African Americans." [2]

Fancy commands the respect of black community activists and the (entirely white) upper leadership of the fictional version of New York City Police Department. [3] He expresses a pragmatic attitude towards older cops' outdated beliefs. In different episodes, Fancy manages to thwart the attempts of his superior, Captain Haverhill, who opposes appointing black commanders, to frame him for misconduct and threatens a civil lawsuit over racial discrimination. Fancy also reprimands the officer Szymanski for a racially motivated traffic stop. He also demands that a crime victim's father, who always uses racial slurs, be removed from the house.

Family

Fancy's wife, Lillian, is played by Tamara Tunie. When the show began, they had two daughters and a son, Arthur Jr., born during the run of the show. The family also participates in the foster care program. Lillian is diabetic, which causes Fancy to be overprotective during her last pregnancy, which he later apologizes for.

He has a younger brother, an officer named Reggie (played by Michael Jai White), who is distrustful of whites. In an attempt to get Reggie fired, McNamara helps a black gypsy cab driver falsely accuse Reggie of taking kickbacks, which led Reggie to be suspended. McNamara claims he is merely following departmental procedures. Fancy informed his detectives. They conducted an investigation that revealed McNamara's misdeeds.

It is revealed in Season 6 that Fancy's father was an alcoholic who stole his mother's money and died as a poor man in the streets. His family takes in a foster child named Maceo in season 1, and Fancy is devastated when Maceo's mom, a reformed drug abuser, later returns to reclaim custody. In season 4, when Maceo is arrested for running drugs for his off-the-wagon mom, Fancy has to convince him to cooperate with the NYPD in a sting against her associates. His mother blames him and says prison might do him some good.

Relationship

15th Precinct commanders

When a borough commander named Haverhill (played by James Handy) planned to fabricate reasons to remove Fancy from command, Andy Sipowicz used information about an unsolved organized crime murder to blackmail Haverhill into leaving Fancy alone. Haverill later started a witch hunt directed at Detective John Kelly, one of Fancy's best detectives. After stoking an investigation based on flimsy allegations, Haverhill provoked Kelly into committing an act of insubordination. Haverhill assigns him to menial work as a dispatcher. Kelly resigns from the force.

Haverhill later tried to use one of Fancy's informants to make it appear Fancy was corrupt. Fancy uncovered the plan and got the informant to record Haverhill calling Fancy a "nigger". Haverhill angrily retired.

Detective Sipowicz

Fancy was one of the characters who most influenced Andy Sipowicz, changing his once-openly racist views. Most of Sipowicz's hostility toward Fancy originated from Sipowicz's troubled past with African Americans from his childhood and early days on the force infiltrating the Black Panther Party. Fancy, at the same time, had dealt with white police officers since his days at the police academy. Fancy and Sipowicz clashed over a racially charged police shooting and Sipowicz's exchange of racist words with a black community activist, but eventually they grew to respect each other.

Bayside, Queens, incident

In Season 4, Fancy and his wife were stopped at a traffic light and treated in a rough and possibly racist manner by two police officers in Bayside, Queens.

The following day, Fancy called the officers in, claiming that they had pulled them over as if they were suspects in an armed robbery. After questioning the officers, Fancy concluded that he and his wife were pulled over at gunpoint strictly on the basis of their race. The senior officer, Szymanski, denied pulling them over on the basis of their race. Fancy went to Captain Bass, requesting that the Chief of Patrol transfer Officer Szymanski out of the predominantly Caucasian precinct of Bayside, Queens. Junior Officer McCaslin had only been on the force for 10 months. He was seated in the passenger's seat of the squad car, and Fancy believed he was merely backing Szymanski, his superior.

Captain Bass then came to Fancy, telling him that putting Szymanski in Bedford-Stuyvesant was a bad idea. Fancy got Szymanski transferred under his command to the 15th precinct, where he was assigned a Black partner. Szymanski later faced false accusations of robbing a black drug dealer and assassinating a Black undercover officer while at the 15th.

Promotion to captain

After nine years as the commander of the 15th Precinct's detective squad, Fancy was promoted to captain. When the 15th Squad discovered that Captain Bass's wife was injuring herself as a means of getting attention, Bass expressed gratitude that they kept the matter from becoming a criminal case or a news story. He retired to care for her and recommended Fancy as his replacement. When Lieutenant Susan Dalto was transferred in as his replacement, Fancy called on Bass. Fancy was replaced by Lieutenant Tony Rodriguez.

Related Research Articles

<i>NYPD Blue</i> American television police procedural (1993–2005)

NYPD Blue is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble cast. The show was created by Steven Bochco and David Milch, and was inspired by Milch's relationship with Bill Clark, a former member of the New York City Police Department who eventually became one of the show's producers. The series was originally broadcast by ABC from September 21, 1993‚ to March 1, 2005. It was ABC's longest-running primetime one-hour drama series until Grey's Anatomy surpassed it in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Sipowicz</span> Fictional character in television series NYPD Blue

Andrew Sipowicz Sr. is a fictional character on the popular ABC television series NYPD Blue. Andy began as the secondary focus of a more ensemble-like show, but by the middle of Season 6 he is the clear protagonist of the show and receives the main storyline in every episode. Dennis Franz portrayed the character for its entire run.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olivia Benson</span> Fictional character on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Olivia "Liv" Margaret Benson is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the NBC police procedural drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, portrayed by Mariska Hargitay. Benson holds the rank and pay-grade of Captain and is the Commanding Officer of the Special Victims Unit of the New York City Police Department, which operates out of the 16th Precinct. She investigates sexual offenses such as rape and child sexual abuse.

<i>New York Undercover</i> American police drama TV series

New York Undercover is an American police drama that aired on the Fox television network from September 8, 1994, to February 11, 1999. The series starred Malik Yoba as Detective J.C. Williams and Michael DeLorenzo as Detective Eddie Torres, two undercover detectives in New York City's Fourth Precinct who were assigned to investigate various crimes and gang-related cases. The cast also included Patti D'Arbanville-Quinn as their superior, Lt. Virginia Cooper, and Lauren Vélez, who joined the cast in the second season as Nina Moreno, fellow detective and love interest to Torres. New York Undercover was co-created and produced by Dick Wolf, and its storyline takes place in the same fictional universe as Wolf's NBC series Law & Order, its spin-offs, the Chicago and FBI series, and Homicide: Life on the Street.

The New York City Police Department's Medal for Valor is the department's third highest medal. It is conferred upon police officers for acts of outstanding personal bravery intelligently performed in the line of duty at imminent personal hazard to life under circumstances evincing a disregard for personal consequences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Simone</span> Fictional character in television series NYPD Blue

Detective Robert "Bobby" Simone is a fictional character in the American television series NYPD Blue. Played by Jimmy Smits for four seasons, Simone is known for his sensitivity and street smarts, as well as his friendship with his detective-partner Andy Sipowicz.

<i>NYPD Blue</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of NYPD Blue, an American television police drama set in New York City, aired as part of the 1993–94 United States network television schedule for ABC, premiering on September 21, 1993 and concluding on May 17, 1994. The show explores the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble cast. The season led to a record 26 Emmy nominations. and six awards.

<i>NYPD Blue</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of NYPD Blue, an American television police drama set in New York City, aired as part of the 1994-95 United States network television schedule for ABC, premiering on October 11, 1994 and concluding on May 23, 1995. The show explores the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble cast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greg Medavoy</span> Fictional character

Gregory Medavoy is a fictional character in the television series NYPD Blue. He was played by Gordon Clapp from the third episode of the 1st season to the last episode of the series. Aside from Andy Sipowicz, he was the longest running regular character in the series.

John Clark Jr. is a fictional character in the television series NYPD Blue. He was played by Mark-Paul Gosselaar for four years, from season 9 until the end of the series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janice Licalsi</span> Fictional character in television series NYPD Blue

Janice Licalsi is a fictional character portrayed by Amy Brenneman on the television series NYPD Blue. She appeared in 18 episodes during the first two seasons of the show. The character was written out after technical advisor and producer Bill Clark became uneasy with the thought of having a murderous police officer as a main character.

"Hearts and Souls" is the fifth episode of the sixth season and 115th overall of the American crime drama NYPD Blue. "Hearts and Souls" originally aired in the United States on ABC on Tuesday November 24, 1998, at 9:30 pm Eastern time as a 90-minute special. The episode was directed by Paris Barclay and written by Steven Bochco, David Milch, Bill Clark and Nicholas Wootton. It was the culmination of months of public speculation on the method of closure that would be employed to write Jimmy Smits's critically acclaimed Bobby Simone character out of the regular cast and clear the way for Smits' replacement, Rick Schroder. "Hearts and Souls" was a critical and commercial success, achieving both high ratings and positive critical feedback and is now regarded as one of the greatest episodes in television history. It marked the second high-profile replacement of the partner for lead character Detective Andy Sipowicz, played by Dennis Franz.

James Martinez was a fictional character in the television series NYPD Blue. He was played by Nicholas Turturro from Seasons 1 to 7.

Baldwin Jones is a fictional character in the television series NYPD Blue. He was played by Henry Simmons from Season 7 until the end of the series in Season 12.

Connie McDowell is a fictional character in the television series NYPD Blue. She was played by Charlotte Ross from Season 8 to 11. Ross had previously guest starred on the show as another character in two episodes of Season 5.

"Suicide Squad" is the eighteenth episode and season finale of the sixth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and the 130th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by series co-creator Dan Goor and Luke Del Tredici and directed by Goor. It aired on May 16, 2019 on NBC, airing back-to-back with the previous episode, "Sicko".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Reagan (Blue Bloods)</span> Fictional character

Francis Xavier Reagan is a fictional character from the TV series Blue Bloods portrayed by Tom Selleck. In the series, Reagan is the New York City Police Commissioner, the son of a former Commissioner, and the patriarch of a family of police officers and others involved in aspects of the city's criminal justice system. Selleck's performance in the role has been critically praised, but the character has been criticized by some for presenting an overly positive view of law enforcement administration.

References

  1. ↑ NYPD Blue. Season 3, episode 2, "Torah! Torah! Torah!"
  2. ↑ "NYPD Blue" Emission Accomplished (TV Episode 1993) - Quotes - IMDb. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved 2024-05-25– via Internet Movie Database.
  3. ↑ In the show, every person depicted above the rank of lieutenant is a white male.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.