GIL GRISSOM

'Gilbert "Gil" Grissom', Ph.D. (born August 17, 1956) is a fictional character featured on the TV crime drama '', loosely based on real life Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department criminalist Daniel Holstein. Grissom is played by William Petersen, who is also one of the show's producers.
Grissom is the night-shift supervisor of the Clark County, Nevada CSI (forensics) team, investigating many cases in and around the city of Las Vegas. He is a forensic entomologist who earned his degree in biology from UCLA; coincidentally, Petersen's character in the film ''Manhunter'' (based upon the Thomas Harris novel ''Red Dragon''), Will Graham, wrote "the standard monograph on determining time of death by insect activity". He has a wide and varied knowledge of insects and entomology, which he applies to his investigations. This has led to his nickname, "The Bug Man". When asked why he is a CSI, he responds, "Because the dead can't speak for themselves." This is one of his favorite quotes and he uses it frequently (episode 703, "Toe Tags").
The character was originally intended to be named Gil ''Scheinbaum''. According to William Petersen, interviewed for UK TV channel Five US, Petersen was considered 'insufficiently Jewish' by series creator Anthony E. Zuiker for the name and the character was renamed for astronaut Gus Grissom.

Contents

Character

Background

Personal life

Notes

References

Character

His dispassionate demeanor and high intellect often work to his advantage in his job and in his personal life. However, his avoidance of job politics (and paperwork) often alienates his superiors (and sometimes his subordinates). Occasionally, right-hand woman Catherine Willows has to prod him to perform such menial tasks as employee evaluations (episode 122, "Evaluation Day"). Grissom is rarely disturbed by the various subcultures with which his job brings him into contact. Additionally, his unyielding intestinal fortitude and morbid fascination with the bizarre (to the extent that his desire to interact with a given environment is inversely proportional to the number of people willing to approach it) has earned him another popular nickname, "Gruesome Grissom". He hates abusive husbands, child predators, and drug dealers who "deal death to kids." While Gil is usually very calm and collected, he has been shown to have quite a violent temper when it surfaces. He is also the least trigger-happy CSI, rarely drawing his firearm, a tendency that has brought about several scoldings from friend and cop Jim Brass. Despite this, he is an excellent marksman as seen in episode 401, "Assume Nothing," where he demonstrates exceptional accuracy at the firing range (he has never discharged his firearm in the line of duty). Grissom's hobbies include his work, cockroach racing, reading, solving crossword puzzles, and riding roller coasters (episode 122, "Evaluation Day"). He claims to have never hired a prostitute for sex, stating that sex is intended to create a human emotional connection, and hired sex does just the opposite (episode 721, "Ending Happy").
Grissom keeps a variety of specimens in his office, including a radiated fetal pig, a tarantula, and a two headed scorpion. He also has a fish-shaped bulletin board on which unsolved cases go ("the ones that got away") (episode 106, "Who Are You?"). In keeping with the fish theme, he has a Big Mouth Billy Bass over the door to his office, claiming that it's "better than a watchdog." He also occasionally keeps evidence from closed cases (such as the models created by "The Miniature Killer"). CSI newcomer Michael Keppler expresses interest while examining these miniatures when he first comes to the lab in episode 712, "Sweet Jane."
Grissom has a more than passing similarity to Sherlock Holmes. Like Holmes, Grissom is dispassionate with a fierce devotion to logic and little regard for societal norms of behavior (Grissom once smashed mustard jars in a grocery store to illustrate a theory (episode 111, "I-15 Murders"); similarly, Holmes once practiced spearing a pig at a market to determine how strong a man would have to be to transfix a man with a harpoon). He possesses a Moriarty-like nemesis, Paul Millander, whom he pursues in several episodes (episodes 101, "Pilot;" 108, "Anonymous;" 213, "Identity Crisis"), as well as a woman in whom he has taken an unusual interest, Lady Heather, who is a parallel to Irene Adler (episodes 208, "Slaves of Las Vegas;" 315, "Lady Heather's Box;" 615, "Pirates of the Third Reich"; 723, "The Good, the Bad, and the Dominatrix" ).
Grissom often offers quotes from a variety of literary sources, particularly Shakespeare. He also works 'advanced' crossword puzzles and listens to loud classical music and opera in his office, especially when he wants to think. He has asperger-like traits, and in Episode 5x05 ("Caged")it is hinted that he has Asperger's syndrome, just like Aaron, the witness on his case. The other character on CSI who also has Asperger-like traits, is his subordinate and current girlfriend on the show, Sara Sidle.
In 2007, Grissom took a sabbatical to teach a class at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts for four weeks (episode 711, "Leaving Las Vegas"). Prior to his sabbatical, Grissom had been showing signs of "burnout". Upon his return, however, (episode 715, "Law of Gravity") he appears reinvigorated and tells Warrick Brown that he "missed Las Vegas."

Background

Little is known about Grissom's past or personal life. He grew up in Marina Del Rey, California. According to the character's original CBS biography, his father was in the importing/exporting business. This was later revised. A later CBS sanctioned biography states that Grissom was born in Santa Monica, California to a middle-class family and that his father taught botany at a local college. His father helped young Grissom develop a love for the natural sciences. The curious young Grissom grew up conducting necropsies on the corpses of animals he found in the neighborhood.^[1] He also read Ian Flemming's James Bond novels as a child. In the season six episode "Still Life", Grissom tells Catherine Willows his father was a botanist. His father died when Grissom was nine years old, most likely from heat stroke. His mother ran an art gallery in Venice. In "Ellie", he tells Warrick that in high school, he was a "ghost." When he was in college, Grissom financed his first body farm with his winnings from a high stakes poker game, as he recalls in the season three episode "Revenge Is Best Served Cold". At the same time, he also attended boxing matches to learn about the patterns of bruise formations on bodies. In the episode "Precious Metal," Grissom also mentions losing a body while in Minneapolis, implying he spent time there before taking a job in Las Vegas. This is referenced again in "The Accused is Entitled", when he works with his former mentor, Dr. Phillip Gerard, played by Raymond J. Barry, stating that he used to work for him in Hennepin County, whose seat is Minneapolis.
He was raised Roman Catholic, but has said, "That guilt's not a part of my life anymore." Also when speaking with a priest who heard the confession of a murderer he said "I believe in God, in science, in Sunday supper. I don't believe in rules about how I should live my life." In the season seven episode "Double-Cross," he tells Sara Sidle that, while he isn't really a Catholic anymore, he is a sort of "secular Catholic" who infuses his work with more meaning than it might otherwise have. He also continues to believe in God, as he tells her he believes both science and faith are necessary. He keeps his mother's rosary beads in a box in his office.
Grissom's mother is deaf and because of this, he knows sign language (episode 120, "Sounds of Silence"). He has inherited his mother's otosclerosis, a disease which was causing him to slowly go deaf, but he underwent corrective surgery (episode 323, "Inside the Box"). His hearing loss is most evident in episodes such as episode 202, "Chaos Theory". He also suffers from unrelated occasional migraines (which he claims he gets about once a year), for which he has prescription medication.
He also showed understanding of lip reading ("Grave Danger").

Personal life

In so much as Grissom confides to anyone, he confides in Catherine Willows. He once likened her to being his "wife" though the two have never been more than very good friends. Grissom has also been involved with forensic anthropologist Terri Miller (Pamela Gidley) (episode 114, "To Halve and to Hold") and S&M parlor operator Lady Heather. He has supported Warrick Brown through several brushes with the law and has a fatherly bond with Nick Stokes and, later on, Greg Sanders. He also shares a good friendship with Dr. Al Robbins, and in the season six finale, it was revealed that Jim Brass's living will gave Grissom power of attorney, showing that Grissom was the one person Brass trusted with his life.
Of all of his fellow investigators, he is most similar to Sara Sidle. Both are self-described "science nerds" (episode 110, Sex, Lies and Larvae) and are the most socially awkward members of the team. While at times both have expressed more than a hint of interest in the other romantically, it is not until the sixth season finale that they are definitely shown to be involved. In seventh season episodes, he continues to be involved with Sara Sidle, but is keeping the relationship a secret from others in the lab, probably because of the repercussions it could have for both their careers. In the episode "Fallen Idols," Grissom says that he trusts Sara intimately.
Throughout the seventh season, small glimpses of their relationship are given to fans, and it becomes somewhat evident Grissom has difficulty in expressing his feelings toward Sara. But as time passes, he makes consistent efforts, and with subtlety consistent with his character, he makes his affections clear. In the episode Leaving Las Vegas, he tells her "I'll miss you" before leaving for his sabbatical, and a flashback in the episode Meet Market shows him writing her a letter, ending in his use of William Shakespeare's Sonnet '47'. Also, in the episode Ending Happy, while investigating a murder at a brothel, Sara questions Grissom on whether he had ever been to such an establishment. Grissom denies it, going on to state that he thinks paying for sex pointless, as he finds that physical intimacy without love makes one sad. When Sara comments that she doesn't think she's made him sad, Grissom replies that no, she makes him happy.
In the season 7 finale "Living Doll", Grissom and Sara's relationship was revealed to the rest of the CSIs following Sara's abduction by The Miniature Killer. As a bystander in a crowd of people at a past crime scene, Natalie, the killer, witnessed Grissom caress Sara's arm as he was taking an equipment bag off her shoulder. During the investigation, Grissom sees Natalie at the scene in the crime scene photos and remembers the public display of affection that Natalie must have seen. He explained to the CSIs that Natalie blames him for the death of her foster father, the only person she ever loved, and that Natalie is now doing the same thing to him. Warrick, Nick, Greg and Catherine were present during this revelation, but only brief, surprised reactions were shown. Grissom later tried to persuade Natalie to tell him what she had done with Sara. Natalie said she had not killed Sara, but did not reveal her whereabouts. The closing scene of the finale showed a car wreck, with a completely concealed person trapped under the wreckage. A woman's hand, presumably Sara's, protruded from under the wreckage, matching the model Natalie delivered to Grissom's office before her capture. The hand twitched and then groped around the ground. The cliffhanger episode will be continued in the premiere episode of the eighth season of CSI.
Most people call Grissom by his last name, though Catherine Willows, Jim Brass, Dr. Al Robbins, and Conrad Ecklie sometimes address him as "Gil," and Warrick Brown uses the shortened form "Griss." Also, in the 14th episode of season 7, Nick Stokes calls him "Griss". On a few occasions, Grissom has been known by the nickname "Bugman".
Grissom has a dog named Bruno, who is portrayed by William Petersen's real-life dog of the same name. In "Slaves of Las Vegas", he lists his hobbies to Lady Heather: "I have outlets. I read. I study bugs. I sometimes even ride roller coasters." Later in the season, he is revealed to also be a baseball fan ("Primum Non Nocere" Season 2 Episode 16). Sara notes that this is typical of Grissom, saying that he would like "all those stats", referring to baseball's reputation as a statistics-driven game.

Notes

1. Marrinan and Parker (2006), p. 22

References

★ Marrinan, Corinne and Parker, Steve. ''Ultimate CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' (2006). DK Publishing Inc. ISBN 0-7566-2353-7