Al Giardello

Alphonse Michael "Gee" Giardello Senior.
Shift Commander Lieutenant Al 'Gee' Giardello
First appearance	January 31, 1993 (1x01, "Gone for Goode")
Last appearance	May 21, 1999 (7x22, "Forgive Us Our Trespasses") (HLOTS) February 13, 2000 Homicide: The Movie
Created by	Tom Fontana
Portrayed by	Yaphet Kotto
Information
Nickname(s)	Gee
Gender	Male
Occupation	Deceased Shift Commander of Homicide Unit (formerly)
Title	Lieutenant
Family	Al (grandson) Rosina Giardello (paternal grandmother)
Spouse(s)	Joanne (deceased)
Children	Mike Giardello (son) Teresa (daughter) Charisse (daughter)

Alphonse Michael 'Gee' Giardello, Sr. is a fictional character from the television drama Homicide: Life on the Street. The character was played by Yaphet Kotto. He is based on Baltimore Police Department Shift Lieutenant Gary D'Addario, a member of the BPD homicide unit described in David Simon's book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets which served as the inspiration for the series as a whole. The character also appeared in the Law & Order episode "Baby, It's You".

Al Giardello — nicknamed "Gee" after the only thing he could say when called to his first murder scene as a rookie as well as a reference to his last name — is the commander of the Homicide unit shift followed by the series. Holding the rank of lieutenant, he encounters a number of opportunities for promotion during the series, only to have his hopes dashed by the political maneuvering of his superiors. At the end of the seventh season, Giardello is offered a promotion to Captain but turns it down, since the position would require him to transfer out of the homicide unit.

He is introduced early in the series as a widower of mixed Sicilian American and African American heritage. He originates from Southeast Baltimore, where his father was from Baltimore's Little Italy and his mother was from a neighboring housing project known as the Perkins Homes. He played three sports and was Prom King when he was in high school. He takes a degree of pride in both heritages, speaking near fluent Italian and fraternizing with many of the BPD's African American and Italian American officers alike. According to the episodes "Black and Blue" and "Narcissus", he began his career in the department in 1968.