19 “Blue Bloods” characters from the Reagan family and beyond

When we first met New York Police Commissioner Francis Xavier Reagan, played by Tom Selleck, in the opening episode of Blue Blood. When Frank was dressed, the stripes and crest shining on his jacket, he projected an image of strength and success. But then he paused, his stoic gaze warming as he looked from his own professional reflection to a row of family photos on his dresser. There he stood, smiling and casual in khakis, surrounded by relatives of all ages. The scene made it immediately clear that this patriarch combines his power at work with caring for his family, while simultaneously struggling with the responsibilities of both.

At One Police Plaza, Frank runs one of the largest police departments in the world (over 35,000 strong!). At home in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where he lives with his father Henry (Len Cariou), a former police chief, he is the head of an extended family of law enforcement officers that includes his sons Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) and Jamie (Will Estes), who are police officers, and his daughter Erin (Bridget Moynahan), a lawyer in the district attorney’s office.

The complexity and humanity of the character, as well as the way she deals with the burden of fatherhood, are important reasons why Selleck was interested in the CBS drama. “It was clear that there are very few positive models of a patriarch (on televisionsion),” the actor told TV GInstructions Mmagazine as he finished filming season 14 earlier this year. “Frank has a lot of flaws, but he’s a strong patriarch and most shows aren’t written that way these days. There’s nothing wrong with seeing a positive patriarch on TV. I think that’s important.”

Frank, who is over 70 years old, is a highly principled officer who listens to others respectfully and always tries to make the right decision in every difficult situation. As Commissioner, he can look back on a lifetime of experience: he served in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War (where he was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal), then became a police officer and helped in the North Tower on 9/11. After decades with the NYPD, Frank was appointed Commissioner by Mayor Frank Russo (Bruce Altman). When he took the position, Frank’s children were already grown and his beloved wife Mary had died of cancer.

Frank’s personal loss is profound. Even years after his wife’s death, he wears his wedding ring. Since he can’t leave the love of his life behind, Frank flirts only a little with a few potential partners over the course of the series and never dares to take the leap into a serious relationship.

Rather, he represents his immediate family and his job. In 14 seasons, Frank has often was at the interface between law and human weakness and did his best to both. In season two’s “Thanksgiving,” Frank helped Jamie’s partner (who had trained him), Sergeant Anthony Renzulli (Nicholas Turturro), pay off his $3,000 gambling debt. And in season nine’s “Blues,” he forgave an otherwise exemplary cop who, as a troubled youth, attempted an armed robbery of a liquor store.

It’s decisions like these that help Frank remain a positive leader – which is quite a challenge considering how many problems he faces every week, from potential PR scandals to terrorist threats. “The challenge of playing Frank is to somehow convey to the audience that he has the weight of the world on his shoulders, but he can’t show that to anyone,” notes Selleck.

His inner circle, a trio of top officers who are among the PC’s closest advisors – chief of Department Sid Gormley (Robert Clohessy), Assistant Commissioner for Public Information Garrett Moore (Gregory Jbara) and his first assistant, Det. Abigail Baker (Abigail Hawk), not only help Frank with any problems that arise, but obviously also love and admire their friend.

Still, balancing his duty with his hopes for his family is a tricky part for Frank, especially in Season 7 when he had second thoughts about recommending Jamie for a promotion to detective. (Fair enough: Jamie got the promotion because he deserved it, after all.) Frank tries not to be partial to his family, who are never safe from dangerous assignments. Naming relatives for such cases is a difficult part of the Commissioner’s job, as Frank knows well: His eldest son Joe, a police detective, was killed in the line of duty before the series began.

At times, Frank has considered giving up his post as commissioner. And we often see him in difficult moments of his job lost in thought, searching for the emotional truth. “Everything worthwhile has its personal price,” he said.

That doesn’t mean, however, that Frank never cracks a joke. With his light-hearted humor, he often defuses the rising tension on Sunday evenings at home.

And no matter how challenging the job, most of Frank’s worries disappear when he’s surrounded by his family. With a full life filled with professional accolades and personal hardships, Selleck’s heroic PC is a wise, caring father figure who has earned his place at the head of the table – and in our hearts. —Connie Passalacqua Hayman, with reporting by Ileane Rudolph

Selleck’s favorite episode In season 2 “The Job” Frank visits the 9/11 memorial in New York (Blue Blood was the first scripted series to be filmed there). “We shot at night and it was really beautiful,” says Selleck. “The place was so overwhelming,” he adds, admitting that he had a hard time acting because “it wasn’t appropriate to have Frank crying all over the place.”