Thread: Ted Danson on CSI replacing Fishbourne ( replacing Peterson )

Suddenly, Ted Danson is hard at work on 'CSI'
By FRAZIER MOORE - AP Television Writer | AP – 29 mins ago

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — It was just three weeks ago that Ted Danson was announced as the new star of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," and now he's in production — and a bit dazed by the suddenness. "My jaw is kind of hanging down from the newness of all of this," Danson told reporters on Wednesday as he recalled that just two weeks earlier, he was leisurely staring out at the ocean from Martha's Vineyard, Mass.

Danson plays the new supervisor for the Las Vegas CSI team on the CBS drama, which films in Los Angeles. Danson steps into the position originally held by William Petersen and then filled by Laurence Fishburne, who had been on the show since its 2008-09 season.

Danson's character, D.B. Russell, is the child of counterculture parents who schooled him themselves at home and during travels in their van. He has a less obsessive way of experiencing the world than his fellow investigators.

Explained "CSI" executive producer Don McGill, "Here's this character who has things really, really in balance: family; work; life."

"I feel like I have walked into this perfect situation for me," Danson said.

The 63-year-old actor first found TV stardom nearly 30 years ago playing Boston bar owner Sam Malone on "Cheers," a comedy hit on NBC that ran for 11 seasons. And though he has had a variety of roles since then, he said he had never played a crime-buster before. But even now, he said, "They still won't give me a gun."

"CSI," whose stars also include Marg Helgenberger and George Eads, will begin its 12th season on Sept. 21. But will it go on to match the longevity of "Law & Order" and "Gunsmoke," which tie the record for TV drama at 20 seasons?

"Ted has signed on for an additional 12 years, plus an option," joked executive producer Carol Mendelsohn. "Yeah — I think it will."

http://news.yahoo.com/suddenly-ted-d...204317871.html

Ted Danson: 5 Things to Know About 'CSI' Star
The Hollywood Reporter – Wed, Jul 13, 2011 5:05 AM

Ted Danson will replace Laurence Fishburne on CSI, it was announced Tuesday.

"You can create a new character on the page, but until the perfect actor comes along and breathes life into it, it's just words," executive producer Carol Mendelsohn says. "We're very excited Ted Danson came along."

Here are a few things to know about the actor.

1. He makes his debut in CSI's Season 12 premiere on Sept. 21 at 10 p.m., which is the series' new time slot. He will remain a series regular on HBO's Bored to Death.

2. Although probably best known for playing Sam Malone in the '80s on Cheers, he earned an Emmy notation for his role as a villain on FX's Damages. He's been nominated for 14 Primetime Emmy Awards (he won two); 10 Golden Globe Awards (winning three) and one Screen Actors Guild Award.

3. He's an activist for ocean conservation. In March of this year, he wrote his first book, "Oceana: Our Endangered Oceans And What We Can Do To Save Them" with bestselling author Michael D'Orso.

4. He's follows a strict diet. He told Conan O'Brien in 2007 that he follows a vegan diet, except for occasionally eating fish.

5. He came under fire in 1993 for appearing in blackface at the Friar Club's roast of then-girlfriend Whoopi Goldberg and delivering a controversial, expletive-filled monologue. Goldberg later said they co-wrote the skit. He married actress Mary Steenburgen on October 7, 1995.

http://movies.yahoo.com/news/ted-dan...090501224.html