CSI: Crime Scene Investigation/Trivia


 * Gil Grissom wasn't the character's original name, William Petersen dubbed him Grissom after astronaut Gus Grissom because he (Petersen) was a fan of the space program.
 * Gil Grissom's otosclerosis was supposed to be a more major storyline and a possible reason for him to retire. However, the show got a lot of letters about the fact that the condition is not that serious when corrected surgically. Hence, the surgery at the end of season 3..
 * Corpsing Speaking of the surgery, Catherine's smirk is probably Marg Helgenberger's own; William Peterson wasn't wearing anything under his hospital gown during the scene. You can infer for yourself the view during Grissom's walking-away part of the scene.
 * Helgenberger said in an interview once that the original idea was to have "THE END" superimposed over William Petersen's bottom as he walked away in the hospital gown, as a joke. Executives nixed the idea as they thought that was too corny and odd for a crime drama series.
 * Hey, It's That Guy!:
 * You may remember Archie as Kai the Blue Ranger.
 * Cordelia, Darla and Fred from the Buffy-Angelverse have all been on various episodes. So has Andy Umberger, who played more minor roles on both shows.
 * Speaking of Buffy... Callisto cleaned up her act and is now a dentist by day -- and biting fetishist by night. Guess what her SN is?
 * She has a talent for causing things pain. She'll be a dentist. People will PAY her to be inhumane.
 * Jennifer Parker will succeed Cat Willows.
 * Apparently, Sam Malone and Roz Doyle got married.
 * Ray Vecchio is in Vegas now.
 * Danny Messer must have been undercover during season 3. And let's not even talk about what Adam was doing...
 * Hey, It's That Voice!: In the first few video games, many actors from The Ocean Group play supporting roles. In most of the later games, Catherine Willows is actually Millia Fallyna.
 * I Am Not Spock: Petersen learned sign language for the ep it was in, but fans have tried speaking to him in sign not realizing he doesn't really know it.
 * Real Life Relative: Marg Helgenberger's now-ex-husband in two episodes (Weeping Willows and one more).
 * Real Life Writes the Plot: Two of the original CSI series' eps had to be rewritten to accommodate actor absences at the last minute. 'Gum Drops' originally had Grissom as the character believing Cassie was still alive, but William Petersen had to miss the episode due to a death in his family. So Nick was shifted into the lead. More recently, in 'Genetic Disorder', Greg had to be shifted into the lead role intended for Nick because George Eads was attending his father's funeral.
 * You Look Familiar: Three of the franchise's primary actors (the ones in the opening credits) have appeared on all 3 series (there may have been more with the one time guest stars, a lot have done at least two) Lawrence Fishburne, David Caurso and Carmine Giovinazzo. But only characters Ray Langston and Horatio Caine have been on all 3 series since Carmine's guest appearence on the original CSI was 2 years before he began playing his CSI: NY character. Word of God says the guest role didn't influence the CSI NY casting.
 * Marlee Matlin appeared in a role each in CSI and CSI NY.
 * A.J. Buckley, who plays Adam on CSI New York, appeared in one episode of the original CSI series beforehand.
 * Fans of both Xena: Warrior Princess and Firefly may recognize Lady Heather as a rogue Amazon and brothel madam, respectively.
 * What Could Have Been: A fourth CSI series was considered before CSI: NY had ratings problems. It would have taken place in either New Orleans (another reason why the series never came to be, as Hurricane Katrina hit around that time) or London (which presumably would have set a new record for number of cast members being a Fake Brit).