Gregory Hoblit Explained

Gregory Hoblit
Birth Name:Gregory King Hoblit
Birth Date:27 November 1944
Birth Place:Abilene, Texas, U.S.
Occupation:Film director, television director, television producer
Years Active:1974–present

Gregory Hoblit (born November 27, 1944) is an American film director, television director and television producer. He is known for directing the feature films Primal Fear (1996), Fallen (1998), Frequency (2000), Hart's War (2002), Fracture (2007), and Untraceable (2008). He has won nine Emmy Awards for directing and producing, an accolade which includes work on the television series Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, L.A. Law, and Hooperman, and the television film Roe vs. Wade.

Early life and education

Hoblit was born Gregory King Hoblit in Abilene, Texas on November 27, 1944,[1] the son of Elizabeth Hubbard King and Harold Foster Hoblit, an FBI agent.

Career

Hoblit was "[a] longtime associate of Steven Bochco,[1] the late, celebrated writer and producer of television police and courtroom dramas.[2] Much of Hoblit's work is oriented towards police, attorneys, and legal cases. An element of career that has been noted by the entertainment media is the casting of young talent into serious roles that have elevated them to stardom (e.g., for Edward Norton and Ryan Gosling).[3]

Hoblit is known for directing the feature films Primal Fear (1996), Fallen (1998), Frequency (2000), Hart's War (2002), Fracture (2007), and Untraceable (2008).[1]

As described by Jerry Roberts in the 2009 edition of his Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors, Hoblit's directing included episodes of Bay City Blues, Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, Cop Rock, L.A. Law, among other television series.[1] His credits also include having directed the science fiction police drama, NYPD 2069 (2004), which was described as "unaired" as of that date.[1] He also wrote an episode of Hill Street Blues.

Awards and recognition

Hoblit has won nine Emmy Awards for directing and producing,[1] an accolade which includes six for producing episodes of the television series Hill Street Blues (1981-1984), L.A. Law (1987), Hooperman (1988), and NYPD Blue (1995);[1] the Emmy for L.A. Law was for the pilot episode.[1] [4] The 1981 Emmy for his work on Hill Street Blues was for Outstanding Drama Series, and his fellow awardees were Steven Bochco and Michael Kozoll.[5]

He was further recognized as a producer with an Emmy for the television film Roe vs. Wade (1989).[1]

Filmography

YearFilmDirectorProducerWriterNotes
1974Goodnight Jackie
1978Loose ChangeMade for television
Dr. StrangeMade for television
What Really Happened to the Class of '65?Television series (1 episode)
1979ParisTelevision series
VampiroMade for television
1981Every Stray Dog and KidMade for television
1981–1985Hill Street BluesTelevision series (45 episodes)
1983Bay City BluesTelevision series (1 episode)
1986–1988L.A. LawTelevision series (35 episodes)
1987HoopermanTelevision series (2 episodes)
1989Roe vs. WadeMade for television
1990Equal JusticeTelevision series (1 episode)
Cop RockTelevision series (2 episodes)
1993Class of '61Made for television
1993–1994NYPD BlueTelevision series (9 episodes)
1996Primal Fear
1998Fallen
2000Frequency
2002Hart's War
2004NYPD 2069Television series (1 episode)
2007Fracture
2008Untraceable
2009Solving CharlieTelevision series (1 episode)
2013Monday MorningsTelevision series (1 episode)
2014The AmericansTelevision series (1 episode)
2015The StrainTelevision series (1 episode)

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Book: Roberts, Jerry . 2009 . Gregory Hoblit . Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors . 254 . Lanham, MD . Scarecrow Press-Rowman & Littlefield . 9780810863781 . https://books.google.com/books?id=kW8j6sHvrewC&pg=PA254 . 10 August 2023.
  2. News: Haag, Matthew & Mele, Christopher . April 2, 2018. Steven Bochco, Producer of 'Hill Street Blues' and 'NYPD Blue,' Dies at 74 . The New York Times. August 10, 2021 .
  3. Web site: Stevens, Dana . April 19, 2007 . Hello, Mr. Gosling: A Mainstream Star is Born in Fracture . . 10 August 2023 . Fracture (New Line Cinema) may be remembered as the movie that brought Ryan Gosling into the mainstream (just as Primal Fear, director Gregory Hoblit’s 1996 feature debut, introduced audiences to a young Edward Norton)... casting Gosling opposite Hopkins in a big-budget legal thriller is clearly Hollywood’s way of saying, 'Here he is folks: the next big thing.'.
  4. The Emmy for the Hooperman has also been stated as being for the pilot episode.
  5. Web site: ATAS Staff . June 10, 2022 . Outstanding Drama Series Nominees—Winners 1981 . . June 10, 2022 . Los Angeles, CA . Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS).