TVXOHOF, MAY 2023 - OLIVIA BENSON, LONGEST-RUNNING PRIME-TIME TV CHARACTER

Sorry I'm late in delivering this.

And speaking of Time, it was about time for this induction.....

CAPTAIN OLIVIA BENSON, NYPD

From Wikipedia:

Olivia 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 Manhattan 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.

When the series began, Benson held the rank of detective. Benson was partnered with Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni), serving as the junior member of the pair. Following Stabler's departure at the end of the 12th season after a deadly shootout in the precinct, she is partnered with Detective Nick Amaro (Danny Pino) and becomes the senior member. During the 15th season, Benson is promoted to sergeant and appointed as squad supervisor in the wake of the retirement of Sergeant John Munch (Richard Belzer). Soon afterward, Captain Donald Cragen (Dann Florek) retires, and appoints Benson acting commanding officer of SVU until Lieutenant Declan Murphy (Donal Logue) comes to the squad. In Season 17, she is promoted to Lieutenant and becomes the squad's official commanding officer. She is promoted to Captain in the 21st season.

The character first appeared in the 'Law & Order: Special Victims Unit' pilot episode, "Payback", which aired September 20, 1999. Hargitay remains the only original cast member still present on the series. As of season 24, Benson has been credited in 538 episodes of SVU (559 in the franchise/universe).

With the premiere of season 21, Hargitay's Benson became the longest running prime-time live-action character of all time, surpassing the record held by Marshall Matt Dillon of  'Gunsmoke' and Kelsey Grammer's character Frasier Crane from 'Cheers' and 'Frasier', as well as Belzer’s John Munch, who was a regular character for 22 seasons (7 on 'Homicide: Life on the Street' and 15 on SVU).

[The key word is "prime-time".  According to Wikipedia - "As of 2023, William Roache holds the Guinness World Record for the longest-serving actor in a television soap opera, having played Ken Barlow on Coronation Street since 1960."]

List of assignments

• Patrol Officer, NYPD 55th Precinct (1992)16th Precinct (1993)
• Junior Detective, NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (May 1998–May 18, 2011)
• Senior Detective, NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (September 21, 2011 – January 15, 2014)
• Acting Commanding Officer (Sergeant), NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (January 22, 2014 – April 9, 2014)
• Sergeant—Supervisor Detective Squad, NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (April 9, 2014 – May 21, 2014)
• Acting Commanding Officer (Sergeant), NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (May 21, 2014 – October 7, 2015)
• Lieutenant—Commander Detective Squad, NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (October 7, 2015 – September 26, 2019)
• Captain, Commanding Officer, NYPD 16th Precinct (Special Victims Unit) (September 26, 2019—Present)

Temporary assignments

• Detective, NYPD Computer Crimes Unit (May 2, 2006 – May 9, 2006)
• Undercover operative, FBI Domestic Terrorism Unit (September 19, 2006 – October 31, 2006)
• Special Deputy United States Marshal for the Eastern District of New York (October 6, 2010)
• Public Relations Officer, NYPD One Police Plaza (Public Relations) (March 2, 2016 – March 23, 2016)

Ranks

• Officer
• Detective 3rd Grade
• Detective 2nd Grade
• Detective 1st Grade (Shield number 40115)
•  Sergeant (Shield number 01139)
•  Lieutenant
•  Captain

OLIVIA BENSON
CREDITS TALLY
(As of 5/19/2023)

LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT

538 episodes

LAW & ORDER: ORGANIZED CRIME

13 episodes

LAW & ORDER

5 episodes

CHICAGO P.D.

3 episodes

CHICAGO FIRE

1 episode

LAW & ORDER: TRIAL BY JURY

1 episode

O'Bservation: I have to take it on faith that Benson is in the background with Stabler, who can be seen in the distance.

SKITLANDIA

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE

1 episode

O'Bservation: This was actually an appearance by the televersion of Mariska Hargitay playing Olivia Benson in a 'Game of Thrones' version of 'Law & Order'.  (She appeared with Ice-T's televersion of Fin Tuotola, who was inducted into the TVXOHOF in February of 2020.)

From Wikipedia:
Benson appears on five episodes of Law & Order, one episode of Law & Order: Trial by Jury, three episodes of Chicago P.D. and one episode of Chicago Fire.

• Law & Order: "Entitled: Part 2" (February 18, 2000)
• Law & Order: "Fools for Love" (February 23, 2000)
• Law & Order: Trial by Jury: "Day" (May 3, 2005)
• Law & Order: "Flaw" (September 28, 2005)
• Chicago P.D.: "They'll Have to Go Through Me" (November 12, 2014)
• Chicago Fire: "We Called Her Jellybean" (April 28, 2015)
• Chicago P.D.: "The Number of Rats" (April 29, 2015)
• Chicago P.D.: "The Song of Gregory William Yates" (February 10, 2016)
• Law & Order: "Black and Blue" (May 19, 2022)
• Law & Order: "Gimme Shelter – Part Three" (September 22, 2022)
• Law & Order: Organized Crime

To date, Benson further appears recurringly as a special guest in [thirteen] episodes of the spin-off 'Law & Order: Organized Crime':

• "What happens in Puglia" (April 1, 2021)
• "Not Your Father's Organized Crime" (April 8, 2021)
• "The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of" (April 22, 2021)
• "An Inferior Product" (May 13, 2021)
• "Forget It Jake; It's Chinatown" (June 3, 2021)
• "The Outlaw Eddie Wagner" (September 30, 2021)
• "The Good, The Bad, and The Lovely" (October 14, 2021)
• "The Christmas Episode" (December 9, 2021)
• "Takeover" (March 10, 2022)
• "Lost One" (May 5, 2022)
• "Gimme Shelter – Part One" (September 22, 2022)
• "Shadowerk" (May 11, 2023)
• "With Many Names" (May 18, 2023)

I think it's safe to say that Olivia Benson is the Queen of TV Crossovers.

Welcome to the Hall, Captain.  Long may she reign....

TVXOHOF - APRIL 2023: THE 12TH PRECINCT OF THE NYPD

I couldn’t think of a good candidate for the traditional April Fool’s Day induction for the Television Crossover Hall of Fame.  Took me nine days to finally come up with something at least unique for the month’s latest member.

And so….

12TH PRECINCT

NYPD

Every so often a location does get inducted into the TVXOHOF.  They include places which can only be found in Toobworld – the Montecito Casino and Hotel, St. Eligius Hospital, Hooterville, Mayberry, Altair IV, and Fernwood, Ohio.  There have been a few Real World locations as well, beginning with the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.  Other locations which can be found here in the Trueniverse include Las Vegas, the Playboy Mansion, the Cathedral of Notre Dame, The White House, and the OK Corral.

The 12th Precinct is a multi-dimensional location.  It might even be multiversal if it exists in movies or literature.  But you won’t find it anywhere in the five boroughs of New York City.  For safety concerns, the NYPD doesn’t allow real precincts to be cited in movies and TV shows.

The most famous appearance by the 12th Precinct is in ‘Barney Miller’, where it is the main setting.  Here are other places where the 12th Precinct showed up in Earth Prime-Time, the main Toobworld:

• ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’
• ‘Law & Order: Criminal Intent’
• ‘CSI: NY’

As you can see, that’s four TV series which covers the minimum requirement, plus one.

But wait!  There’s more!

Back in 2011, Vincent Audette wrote to me:

“This precinct is the home of TV's 'McCloud', 'Barney Miller', 'The Unusuals', 'Can't Hurry Love', 'Castle' and 'The Beat'.”

Of those, ‘Castle’ is one of the series which makes the 12th Precinct a multi-dimensional location and I’ll be getting to that later.

As for the others….

‘McCLOUD’ – This “fish out of water” cop show had the Deputy Marshal Sam McCloud from Taos, New Mexico, on loan to the NYPD to learn new techniques.  He worked out of the 27th Precinct, but there was always some interaction with other precincts.  So the 12th Precinct may have been cited or actually shown up in at least one episode.

‘THE UNUSUALS’ – I don't remember if I ever saw this short-lived series.  But one of my old blog posts says I was really enjoying it.   No matter; I found it available online.  I will be watching for any references to the Ol’ One-Two.  But the detectives in the Second Squad worked out of the 2nd Precinct according to the episode summary on the IMDb.

‘CAN’T HURRY LOVE’ – In three episodes of this one-season sitcom, the main character dated an NYPD detective, including the episode which was included in the Elizabeth Taylor crossover event, “Taylor-Made Monday”.  He may have been working at the 12th Precinct.

‘THE BEAT’ - Despite its pedigree behind the scenes, and an appearance by Crossover King Detective John Munch, this series about patrolmen had a very short run, with only a few of the produced episodes ever getting broadcast.  But the two patrolmen could have been working at the 12th.

Here are the shows which I can definitely say establish the 12th Precinct as existing in the main Toobworld:

‘BARNEY MILLER’ (Duh.  O’Bviously.)
Most famously, the 12th, originally located on East 6th Street in Greenwich Village, was the home of 'Barney Miller' and his squad of detectives, throughout the run of the series.  But that original building is now home to the Theodore Roosevelt Police Commissioner Museum as seen in the 3-episode finale.  (Its lamp outside that original building will be the emblem for all of its representations in other series.)

‘LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT’
“INTERNAL AFFAIRS”
Detective Brian Cassidy was forced to infiltrate a corrupt precinct whose officers were suspected of raping young women during their shifts.  Ed Tucker later investigated the entire precinct for kickbacks, extortion and rape.  

“GAMBLER’S FALLACY”
It is later mentioned that a dirty cop from the 12th that was previously thought to have committed suicide was actually killed by Anton Nadari.

‘LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT’
“MONSTER”
Detectives Robert Goren and Alexandra Eames visited the precinct during their investigation into the death of Laura Dietrich.  (Hopefully no relation to Detective Arthur Dietrich of 'Barney Miller', but then again - it is a small world.)

‘CSI: NY'
I am not sure if the 12th Precinct worked most closely, if intermittently, with the crime lab, or if it was the regular precinct throughout the series.

ALTERNATE TOOBWORLDS

‘CASTLE’
Detective Kate Beckett is working out of the 12th Precinct. (It was embossed on the elevator doors in "Always Buy Retail".)  The backdrop against which the events of Castle are seen, this is home to Beckett, Esposito, and Ryan and permanent playground to Rick Castle. The 12th has had two captains so far whilst Castle has been running loose, Roy Montgomery and Victoria Gates.

In 2015, Captain Gates was promoted, and Beckett was assigned as the new precinct commander in "XY".

What keeps ‘Castle’ out of the main Toobworld is that New York City had a different mayor than the one established for Earth Prime-Time.  That mayor must always be the same as the one from the Real World.

BLUE BLOODS
Jameson Reagan was formerly assigned to this precinct, along with Eddie Janko-Reagan.  Before he died, Joseph Reagan, also worked at the 12th Precinct.

The same reason why ‘Castle’ is out of the main Toobworld can be applied to ‘Blue Bloods’ – because the mayor was different from the one in the Real World.

'ELEMENTARY'
"THE BEST WAY OUT IS ALWAYS THROUGH"
Detective Marcus Bell of the 11th Precinct was dating Detective Shauna Scott of the 12th Precinct.  What Bell didn't know was that Scott was also working for the Internal Affairs Bureau....

Since the series is about the Sherlock Holmes of the modern age in a world in which Arthur Conan Doyle never took credit for the stories about a similarly named consulting detective in the Victorian era (of which there is no mention in 'Elementary'), I've placed the show in the same TV dimension as 'Sleepy Hollow'.  For that series, Washington Irving apparently never wrote about Ichabod Crane who - like Sherlock - exists in the modern age (although he did begin life in the Colonial period.)

‘24’
“DAY 8: 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM”
When Victor Aruz went to Jack Bauer with information about a possible threat against President Omar Hassan, he contacted CTU New York. The Special Agent in Charge, Brian Hastings, told Jack to take Victor to the 12th Precinct where he would have him picked up. However, when Jack was en route to the precinct, he was ambushed by Red Square assassins.

This exclusion goes beyond different mayors.  It goes to the top, with a slew of fictional Presidents when it should be the same one as in the Real World.

So…. Four series in the main Toobworld, four in alternate Toobworlds.

And that ain’t all!

Thanks to shows like ‘Primeval’ and the mega-crossover event for all the DC superhero shows (plus a few others), not to mention TV shows which focused on time travel like ‘Doctor Who’ and ‘The Time Tunnel’, the timeline for Earth is always being revamped.  Perhaps it has happened so much that the Earths depicted in the alternate Toobworlds mentioned here have been changed so that they have been brought into alignment with Earth Prime-Time and no longer exist as different Earths.  That is, if the shows are no longer on the air and thus unable to contradict this theory.

So ‘Castle’ could be blended back into the main Toobworld if we assume it now has a back-story which eliminates the show’s mayor and all the episodes he was involved with.  (There is precedent for this – ‘Primeval’ caused the appearance of Ford Rainey as the POTUS in episodes of ‘Lost In Space’ (voice only) and ‘Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea’ to be replaced by whoever was the actual President at the time.

If we apply the same scenario to ‘Elementary’, now it is in a world in which Conan Doyle at least served as the literary agent for Dr. Watson.  This means that the entire series of ‘Elementary’ no longer exists.

‘Blue Bloods’ is still in production, so for the time being, we, as the TV PTB, have a hands-off policy in effect.

And finally, I think it saves a lot headaches to keep ‘24’ in its own TV dimension.  Too many presidents to contend with.

Welcome to the TVXOHOF, 12th Precinct!

Thanks to:
Vince Audette
Brad Mengel
Brett McKee

One final O'Bservation....

I was just starting to add the pictures to the post when I realized I did have a candidate for the Hall following the very loose tradition of April's Fool. Considering who he is, I should have thought of him almost immediately.

I'll save him for next year....

MARCH MADNESS - 2023 TVXOHOF INDUCTEE, SEAN LENNON

I AM SOOOO LATE WITH THIS!

SEAN LENNON

From Wikipedia:

Sean Taro Ono Lennon (born October 9, 1975) is an American–British musician, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and half-brother to Julian Lennon. Over the course of his career, he has been a member of the bands Cibo Matto, The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, The Claypool Lennon Delirium and his parents' group Plastic Ono Band. He has released two solo albums: Into the Sun (1998) and Friendly Fire (2006). He has produced numerous albums for various artists, including Black Lips and the Plastic Ono Band.

Here were the TV appearances which qualified him for membership in the TVXOHOF as a member in the League of Themselves:

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER

WHEN SHE WAS BAD (1997)

O’Bservation – He is seen performing with Cibo Matto at The Bronze.

From the IMDb:
The sexy music that Buffy is seducing Xander with on the dance floor is being performed by Cibo Matto entitled "Sugar Water".

BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD
BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD DO THANKSGIVING (1997)

O'Bservation - During MTV’s coverage of the Macy’s parade, Kurt Loder cuts away from those cartoon creeps and shows various musicians talking about their Thanksgiving memories.  One of them is Sean Lennon.

MELROSE PLACE

THE WORLD ACCORDING TO MATT (1998)

O’Bservation – He was still playing as a member of the band Cibo Matto.

THE COLBERT REPORT

THE CHRISTMAS EPISODE (2012)

O'Bservations - Lennon performed with Mavis Staples and Jeff Tweedy with Christmas songs.

Also, since this “Stephen Colbert” was a right-wing clone, it is a fictional setting.

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE

MATT DAMON EPISODE (2018)

O'Bservation - He performed as one of the musical guests, backing up Miley Cyrus.

POKER FACE

THE ORPHEUS SYNDROME (2023)

O'Bservation - He and his girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl attended a celebration of the life of the late special effects creator Arthur Lipton.

I apologize for being late with this.  I got caught up in building my other realm of Pooticuck.  I'll do better.

FEBRUARY 2023 - SAM HANNA

I apologize.  February has always been a bad month for me and this was one of the worst.  You just have to check out the previous blog entry to see why….

With the February inductions, we honor Black History Month… even now, with only the one day left to do so.

As for our honoree this month….

SAM HANNA

From Wikipedia:
Sam Hanna (portrayed by LL Cool J) is a fictional character in the show NCIS: Los Angeles. He is a former U.S. Navy SEAL and a Senior NCIS Special Agent. He first appeared in the NCIS season six episode "Legend (Part I)".

The son of Marine Colonel Raymond Hanna, Osama "Sam" Hanna attended a military school and excelled in football, playing wide receiver. Like the actor, Hanna is a native of New York City.

Outside his job, Hanna has a varied range of interests, including boxing, origami, acting, vinyl records, and antique cars. He also tends to follow the latest health food and fitness fads. He suffers from coulrophobia (fear of clowns) and has a fear of maggots.

Prior to joining NCIS, Hanna served in the U.S. Navy, from which he retired with the rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer (E-8), although this contradicts his service record as shown in the episode "Betrayal" which states that he left as a Chief Petty officer (E-7). When in uniform in the 20th episode of season 4, he is seen wearing the rank of a Senior Chief. He was a member of the Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU) (formerly "Team Six") based in Dam Neck in Virginia.

Despite his inability to swim when he first enlisted, he went on to have a distinguished career as a SEAL and various characters have referenced his "legendary" status within the SEAL community. Much of his career is vague due to the highly classified nature of most of his missions, although it has been mentioned that he served in Bosnia (Yugoslav Wars), Chad (Pan Sahel Initiative), Iraq and Afghanistan and was stationed at the Naval Special Warfare Center in Coronado at some point.

His area of expertise is the Middle East and he reads and speaks Arabic fluently and has an encyclopedic knowledge of the Qur'an. He is also multilingual, having a working knowledge of Japanese, Persian, Danish, Hebrew, Korean, and Spanish. Due to his background in the SEALs, he is able to withstand torture due to SERE training required for all special forces operators and detach himself emotionally during investigations.

Although usually reticent about his service, Sam has hinted several times about how his experiences overseas has affected him: he mentions about getting help in "Field of Fire" when interviewing a homeless veteran who was distrustful of him and admits to Nate Getz in the episode "Impact" of his worries that he would one day lose himself.

Hanna has a strong sense of duty and becomes particularly indignant when the criminal is from a military background. In the episode "Vengeance", he was forced to interrogate a group of SEALs about their involvement in the death of a Navy officer suspected of leaking classified information and was visibly affected, leading Hetty to observe that she felt like she was "making him interrogate his family".

In the final episode of season 11, "Code of Conduct", when investigating claims that a SEAL chief petty officer has murdered an unarmed prisoner, it is revealed that Sam is widely known and respected long after his service ended, with multiple SEALs willing to defy their chief's orders after he reveals his presence.

In the two-part crossover episode with 'Hawaii Five-0' it is revealed that he is friends with head of the Five-0 Task Force and former SEAL Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, although the story of how they met has yet to be addressed.

O'BSERVATION: With the remake of 'Hawaii Five-0' cancelled, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it.

From NCIS Fandom Database:
Samuel "Sam" Hanna is an NCIS Senior Special Agent and former Navy SEAL. He’s also a member of the OSP in LA, which is Run by Operations Manager Hetty Lange. He is partnered to his good friend, Grisha “G.“ Callen.

He is the husband/widower of Michelle Hanna, and the father of Aiden Hanna and Kamran Hanna.

He was born in the 70s. As a child, he was sent to Military Academy by his father Colonel Hanna who served in the Marines. He disciplined Sam very hard and was disappointed when Sam joined the Navy instead of the Marines.

After finishing the Academy, Sam achieved his dream of becoming a SEAL and becoming a part of SEAL Team 6. During his time as a SEAL, Sam served in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Chad and Iraq. While on a mission in Bosnia, Sam along with another member of his unit, Bryan Dickerson were captured and tortured before being buried alive. [Dickerson, who had been shot, died of his wounds before the rest of the unit rescued them.]

Here are the shows which qualify Sam Hanna to be inducted into the TVXOHOF….

SAM HANNA

NCIS

LEGEND PARTS 1&2

[1] Gibbs and company start looking into the murder of a Marine. Gibbs and McGee go to Los Angeles for a joint gig with the NCIS Office of Special Projects in LA due to a suspected link. The investigation continues on both coasts.

[2] Gibbs and McGee continue with the OSP in LA. Rifkin shows up and interferes with the NCIS investigation. Two sleepers in a terrorist cell die, but OSP agents swarm a shop and grab others. Gibbs intercepts Rifkin and tells him to go home.

NCIS: LOS ANGELES

317 episodes (2009–2023)

This year, the NCIS corner of the TV Universe had a three-way crossover in one night.  These were the episodes in broadcast order:

Three - Three! - Shows In One!

NCIS

TOO MANY COOKS (2023)

The entire NCISverse are in Washington D.C. to celebrate the retirement of their former professor. However, their worlds intertwine when the NCIS agents are forced to investigate the same professor's suicide.

NCIS: HAWAI’I
DEEP FAKE (2023)

In Washington D.C. to celebrate the retirement of a former professor. NCIS agents are forced to investigate the professor's suicide. Tennant, Jimmy Palmer and Sam Hanna are kidnapped, and it all ties into the mysterious suicide.

NCIS: LOS ANGELES
A LONG TIME COMING

In Washington D.C. to celebrate the retirement of a former professor. The NCIS agents are forced to investigate the professor's suicide. Each member learns a hitman is out to kill each and every one of them - with $200,000 bounties on them.

Sam Hanna is a multidimensional in the TV Universe.  These are his appearances – so far – in other TV dimensions….

TOOBWORLD2 (Earth Prime-Time & Again)

HAWAII FIVE-0

PA MAKE LOA (TOUCH OF DEATH)

O’BSERVATION:
From the NCIS Database Wiki: At some Point, Sam met and befriended fellow SEAL LCDR Steve McGarrett, who promised him a steak dinner. Sam is also a good friend of fellow SEAL Tom Olsen.

That fact applies only to the Sam Hanna in an alternate Toobworld.  This would not hold true for the Sam Hanna of Earth Prime-Time as that Steve McGarrett was of an earlier generation.

THE TOONIVERSE

AMERICAN DAD!
CASINO NORMALE

I have not seen this episode, but it sounds like this was a "Not Quite Zonk", in that NCIS: Los Angeles is a TV show and doesn't exist as "reality" in the Tooniverse. LL Cool J and Chris O'Donnell provided the voices, so if they are ever considered for membership as themselves, this cameo would count.

This trivia note in the IMDb makes me question LL Cool J's listing as “Sam Hanna”:

REFERENCES
NCIS: Los Angeles (TV Series 2009–2023)
Roger mentions he got a role on the show.

O'BSERVATION:
All episode summaries are from the IMDb.

At any rate, Sam Hanna’s appearances on the three series anchored in the Main Toobworld guaranteed him a place in the Hall.

Welcome, Mr. Hanna.  Thanks to that three-way crossover, you’ll be seeing more members of the various NCIS teams joining you one day.