Mystic native and Hollywood agent Pete Stone 'packaged' the new ABC drama 'Detroit 1-8-7'

One of the most anticipated movies of all time is the adaptation of John Kennedy Toole's hilarious Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, "A Confederacy of Dunces." Variously, John Belushi, John Candy, Chris Farley and, recently, Will Ferrell, were set to star. The only problem: despite several attempts over 26 years, it's never been made.

In 1999, a pilot episode for a comedy/science fiction television series, called "Heat Vision and Jack," was directed by Ben Stiller and starred Jack Black and Owen Wilson. Sounds like a no-lose proposition, right? The only problem: after that pilot, nothing else ever happened.

The point is, despite all the surface gloss and magic of Hollywood, it just ain't easy to get a film or television project off the ground. Ask Mystic native Peter Stone, a television and literary agent for ICM in Hollywood. For almost 10 years, with writer/executive producer Jason Richman, Stone has been working to develop a television series. Tonight at 10 on ABC, the fruits of their labor, a cop drama called "Detroit 1-8-7," premieres.

Pitched as "NYPD Blue" meets "48 Hours," "Detroit 1-8-7" is a darkly comic drama that's been getting very nice advance critical notice. Filmed in Michigan, the show stars Michael Imperioli ("The Sopranos," "Life On Mars"), James McDaniel ("NYPD Blue") and Aisha Hinds ("True Blood") as members of a Detroit homicide unit. The show follows them at work and in private in mock documentary fashion.

"I'm really excited but I can't get too excited," Stone says by phone from his office in Los Angeles. "I'm way too superstitious and, in this business, everything is a long process. I will say I'm proud of this show. I think it's not just great entertainment but it's an important show."

Stone knew and was a fan of Richman's work long before he became involved in the project. Richman has a long list of feature film credits - he wrote "Swing Vote" and "Bangkok Dangerous," among others - but he'd never tried television before.

"He's just an amazing and creative guy," Stone says of Richman. "We've been friends for years and I really wanted to work with him. He's such a great character writer with a lot of humor. I thought he could write terrific television."

Richman didn't particularly want to try television, but Stone was persuasive.

"Pete talked me into TV," Richman says from Detroit, where he's at work on the series. "I worked primarily in feature films, so I kept saying no. But he didn't give up. He's like a pit bull - in a nicer suit, of course."

A lot of Stone's job description involves "packaging" - putting together artists with production teams - in whatever magical configurations that can give a project a green light.

For three years, Richman came up with scripts and series concepts, and Stone would try to package them. They had two close calls - during last year's development season, they went to the 11th hour with a project for Fox before the network dropped it - and Richman was getting weary of the grind. He told Stone he wanted to take a break.

"I thought he was so close," Stone says. "I said, 'Try it just one more time.' And he did. And it was 'Detroit.'"

"You know, it's just as hard to write a TV pilot as it is to write a movie script," Richman says. "However, if TV scripts aren't made, they die an instant death and hardly ever come back to life. I had written two scripts I was very proud of; I didn't think I could do any better. I thought, 'What's the point?'"

Stone prevailed, though. Richman says he struggled for ideas and one, the concept for "Detroit 1-8-7," seemed simplest. He says, "It seemed so simple I wasn't sure anyone would go for it. Pete read the pages and encouraged me to run with it - and now we're in Detroit shooting. Third time's a charm, I guess."

Stone worked his packaging sorcery with a pairing between Richman and Todd Lieberman, an executive producer with Mandeville Films and Television - the two had worked together previously in features.

"There are a lot of moving parts in Hollywood," Stone laughs, "but ultimately there was a sort of perfect storm between executives who are fans of Jason's, and this sort of idea that it was maybe time for a new, gritty cop show."

At first, city officials weren't happy that a police show called "Detroit 1-8-7" was being filmed on site. The "187" designation is the dispatch code for a homicide, and Stone says the troubled city, going through an extremely rough economic slump, assumed the show would exploit negative perceptions.

"But once they saw what it was about and how nuanced it is, the mayor and business leaders were, like, completely onboard," Stone says. "They realized it's not about Detroit being a dumping ground. It's a cop show with awesome characters but it could have been anywhere. It could have been New London, but it's an authentic depiction of a great American town that's seen better days."

Stone, a Fitch High School graduate whose father, Greg Stone, is a former deputy editorial page editor at The Day, has had steady success in Hollywood. The USA network series "Covert Affairs," for example, is a recent project - but "Detroit 1-8-7" is his first official major network show.

Stone stays connected with the series; his job doesn't end just because the deal is done. "I'm involved every step of the way," he says. "I visit the set, I sneak over and watch the episodes and read the scripts in advance. Plus, these guys are my pals. They loop me in because we're dealing with studios and actors and networks - and it's my job to sort of sit here and keep everyone calm."

Now, tonight, it's up to Stone to stay calm.

"It was nice to crack ABC, finally," he says. "I'm over the moon."

As for SoCal-style celebrations, Stone says he hates to disappoint but …

"I was actually getting my hair cut when I heard the official news the show had been picked up," he says. "I wanted to scream but it wasn't really the place. So I said YES quietly in my head."

As for future demonstrative glee, he's staying optimistic but cautious. "There's always another round of confirmation with the public and critics and so on. It's hard to get comfortable. (Tonight) is huge, and we'll be waiting for reviews. You don't want to gloat or go too crazy. What if it comes out and no one watches? But no matter what happens, I'm so proud of the project. I knew it was great from the moment Jason pitched it to me."

And from Detroit, Richman laughs, "If this goes well, Pete should get some of the credit. If it doesn't, he should get ALL the blame."