After acknowledging in an interview that he felt a need to move out of Steven Bochco's shadow, David Milch exited NYPD Blue to create the generically titled drama Big Apple. His co-creator was Anthony Yerkovich, the creator of Miami Vice and a former Hill Street Blues writer. (Reportedly, Yerkovich conceived Miami Vice as a serious drama, and not the fashion showcase that Michael Mann envisioned.) CBS was enthusiastic about the series, positioning Big Apple as its adult drama for Thursday nights, a night the network felt it could own with Survivor and CSI at 8:00 and 9:00 respectively.
