his performance in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Tierney gained new fame playing Joe Cabot in Quentin Tarantino's film Reservoir Dogs (1992). Wheaton later recalled he felt intimidated by Tierney during filming, as he was 15 and Tierney had a reputation for having a character similar to the tough guys he typically played. Tierney returned to Star Trek in 1997 to play an alien Regent in the Deep Space Nine episode, "Business as Usual". Wheaton said that after 12 previous episodes in the series at the time, he and the cast and crew preferred "The Big Goodbye" as it allowed them to play a period piece. The Dixon Hill holoprogram reappeared in the second season episode "Manhunt", the fourth-season episode "Clues", and the film Star Trek: First Contact (1996). The Dixon Hill characters are also featured in the licensed novel, A Hard Rain. In the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Cogenitor," Trip Tucker selects a movie to watch. On the list of titles, one is called Dixon Hill and the Black Orchid. Awards The episode won an Emmy for Outstanding Costume Design for a Series and the Peabody award. In recognition of its "new standard of quality for first-run syndication", the episode was honored with a Peabody Award in 1987. "The Big Goodbye" was also nominated for two Emmy Awards in the categories of Outstanding Cinematography for a Series and Outstanding Costumes for a Series, with costume designer William Ware Theiss winning the award in the latter category. Reception The episode first aired on January 11, 1988, receiving Nielsen ratings of 11.5 million. It was the first new episode broadcast since the previous November, when 10.3 million viewers watched "Haven". "The Big Goodbye" received more viewers than the following episode "Datalore", which also had only 10.3 million viewers. After its initial release, a review in TV Guide criticised the episode for its similarity to The Original Series episode "A Piece of the Action", which featured a planet based on 1930s gangland Chicago. Several reviewers re-watched the episode after the end of the series. Keith DeCandido of Tor.com praised the "stellar guest casting" and said that Tierney "own[ed] the episode". He compared the episode to The Maltese Falcon and said that the episode featured "charming performances" by the entire cast. DeCandido gave the episode a score of seven out of ten. Cast member Wil Wheaton called the episode a "fantastic collaborative effort,