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# André Braugher, an Emmy Award-winning actor who was lead in Baltimore-based “Homicide: Life on the Street,” dies at age 61
- URL: https://capitolcommunicator.com/andre-braugher-an-emmy-award-winning-dramatic-actor-who-was-lead-in-a-baltimore-based-tv-drama-series-dies-at-age-61/
- Published: 2023-12-13T19:20:33.000Z
- Updated: 2023-12-13T23:41:40.000Z
- Author: Capitol Communicator
- Tags: People, Maryland News, #wp-top-right-sponsored, #Import 2026-10-08 18:53

[**André Braugher**](https://www.npr.org/2023/12/12/1218964271/andre-braugher-dead-brooklyn-99-homicide?ref=capitolcommunicator.com)**, an Emmy Award-winning dramatic actor, died at age 61 after a brief illness.**

Braugher spent 100 episodes playing Det. Frank Pembleton on *Homicide: Life on the Street*, where he won a primetime Emmy for outstanding lead actor in the Baltimore-based drama series. He won his second Emmy for the FX miniseries *Thief*, in which he played the leader of a heist crew. Braugher also acted in memorable movies like *Glory*, Spike Lee’s *Get on The Bus, Primal Fear* and *City of Angels*.

According to Wikipedia, *Homicide: Life on the Street* is an American police drama television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the [Baltimore Police Department](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore%5FPolice%5FDepartment?ref=capitolcommunicator.com)‘s Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons (122 episodes) on NBC from January 31, 1993, to May 21, 1999, and was succeeded by *Homicide: The Movie* (2000), which served as the series finale. The series was created by [Paul Attanasio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul%5FAttanasio?ref=capitolcommunicator.com) and based on [David Simon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David%5FSimon?ref=capitolcommunicator.com)‘s book [*Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homicide:%5FA%5FYear%5Fon%5Fthe%5FKilling%5FStreets?ref=capitolcommunicator.com) (1991). Many of the characters and stories used throughout the show were based on events depicted in the book. The show was adapted from the non-fiction book by Simon, a Baltimore Sun reporter, and based on his experience following a Baltimore Police Department homicide unit in 1988.

[Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homicide:%5FLife%5Fon%5Fthe%5FStreet?ref=capitolcommunicator.com#:~:text=In%20its%20attempt%20to%20do,something%20of%20a%20character%20itself%29.) adds that the show’s purpose was to provide its viewers with a no-nonsense, police procedural-type glimpse into the lives of a squad of inner-city detectives. As opposed to many television shows and movies involving cops, *Homicide* initially opted for a bleak sort of realism in its depiction of “The Job”, portraying it as repetitive, spiritually draining, an existential threat to one’s psyche, often glamour- and glory-free—but, nonetheless, a social necessity. In its attempt to do so, *Homicide* developed a trademark feel and look that distinguished itself from its contemporaries. For example, the series was filmed with hand-held 16 mm cameras almost entirely on-location in Baltimore (making the idiosyncratic city something of a character itself).

Image: Chris Haston / NBC