After ‘Cop Killer,’ Ice-T Will Lay Down Law on TV

Outlined against a white stucco wall, rap artist Ice-T is crouched and ready, just waiting for a chance to steal something valuable. This move, however, has nothing to do with his criminal past. It’s Nielsen ratings the man is after.

“This isn’t gonna be like any other show you’ve seen on TV. We’re gonna do a lot of different things to keep people interested and tuned in,” Ice-T says from his expansive Hollywood Hills home. The project is called “Players,” a would-be show produced by TV veteran Dick Wolf, with Ice-T in a starring role. The premise is that the government enlists the aid of convicted criminals--Ice-T among them--who fight crime using criminal tactics.

“The whole idea behind the show is that it takes a thief to catch a thief,” says Wolf, whose other credits include “Miami Vice,” “Law & Order” and “New York Undercover.”

“This is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Ice-T says about television. “I came up with the concept. . . . I did [a guest shot on] ‘New York Undercover,’ and I got good responses from that, so I was able to parlay that into ‘Players.’ ”

Ice-T says that with a grin. He grins a lot. But behind the smile, he’s tight-lipped about his personal life. He won’t reveal his age (“I follow the don’t ask, don’t tell policy”) or comment on the furor over “Cop Killer,” the controversial song he recorded in 1992 with his band Body Count (“I gotta thank Bob Dole. He brought a lot of attention to the song and sold a lot of records for me”).

Ice-T still makes records, although lately not at the level of “Cop Killer,” with Body Count. His latest album, “Return of the Real,” on his Rhyme Syndicate label, has sold 52,000 in six weeks. The first single, “I Must Stand,” sits at No. 138 on Billboard’s rap singles chart and the album is No. 37 on the rap album chart.

He performs Thursday night at the House of Blues to promote the album, part of a small tour that takes him to Europe next.

But most of his attention these days is on “Players.”

“The show has been in development for the past six months and we’re hoping to get it on in the ’97 season,” Wolf says.

“No actors have been cast yet, but Ice-T will definitely star. The budget per show will be about $1.3 million, and it’s receiving power play from NBC.”

The success of “Players” will sit on the shoulders of Ice-T, who has already enjoyed success in acting. His fans enjoyed his portrayal of a streetwise detective in 1991’s “New Jack City” and his role in 1994’s “Surviving the Game,” in which he played a homeless derelict fighting for his life in the wilderness. Yet acting out the lives of others hasn’t always been on Ice-T’s career choice list.

His film debut came in 1984 with “Breakin’,” a picture that depicted the struggles of Los Angeles street dancers. At the time Ice-T was either breaking the law (which he won’t discuss now) or making underground rap records in Los Angeles.

Had it not been for the advice of friends, he would have passed up the small role of a club emcee altogether. “I didn’t want to take the opportunity,” he says. “My friends was going to rob Palm Springs, and they wouldn’t let me go. They wanted me to go to the auditions, so I went. I did it, got in there, and that was the beginning. . . .

“I didn’t know if I wanted to be [in film]. I didn’t know if I wanted to have my face seen ‘cause I was [still active criminally]. I had things going on. But my friends [said], ‘Go on and do this. White people like you, man.’ ”

Unlike most actors in Hollywood, Ice-T will have the experiences of his shadowed past to draw on when he prepares for scenes in “Players.”

“My stuff happened in high school ‘cause I went to Crenshaw, and Crenshaw had all Crips. I’ve never done a drive-by [shooting or] put in work like that, but I was heavily affiliated with Rollin 60 Crips and Hoover Crips. My daughter’s mother was a Crip-lette and when I would go out with her, I had to [fight] with Hoover,” Ice-T says in a matter-of-fact tone.

Although the former gang member won’t offer an apology for his previous crimes, he says that former evils will definitely stay in the past.

“If you grow up in it, you become indoctrinated with it. I’m legit now, so I can clear the table. I’ve done it all. I got down. I got cuts on my hands from bash hammerin’ [breaking jewel display cases]. The more I talk about it, the more it seems like I didn’t do it, so I learned not to talk about it too much.”

Ice-T’s lips may be sealed about his past, but the fire he has for “Players” shines through. “I’m excited about this,” he says. “There hasn’t been nothing like it on TV.”

* Ice-T performs Thursday at 9 p.m. at the House of Blues, 8430 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. (213) 650-1451. $22.50. Opening acts are Delinquent Habits and Outkast.