Carol Mendelsohn

 October 2008

Carol Mendelsohn is the first to admit that she watched way too much TV when she was a child, but all those hours spent absorbed in story lines and characters have certainly paid off. As executive producer and showrunner of CSI and the co-creator and executive producer of CSI: Miami and CSI: NY, she oversees television’s most successful international franchise.

WS: What are the challenges involved in keeping the CSI franchise fresh and appealing to viewers?

MENDELSOHN: As long as the scientific community continues to develop new and more visually interesting technologies and equipment to catch criminals, and the criminals continue to commit crimes that are “stranger than fiction,” the challenges for the writers are minimal.

WS: How do you and your writers keep the flow of ideas going?

MENDELSOHN: The writers read a lot, surf the Internet a lot (very way-out sites), wine and dine the real-life experts—CSIs [crime scene investigators], medical examiners, cops—ride along with Daniel Holstein and the Vegas Crime Lab on the graveyard shift every so often, attend autopsies, etc. And then, all of us have families, relatives and friends who send us every newspaper article involving crime and mayhem. The writers are only as good as their families and friends.

WS: CSI is a procedural drama in which science plays a key role. Does this make the characters any less important than in other drama series?

MENDELSOHN: Character rules in television. Viewers tune in to watch the characters they love. CSI isn’t a soap opera, but that has never meant the writers and the actors have not spent endless hours talking about and developing the back stories and relationships of the CSIs, lab techs and Captain Brass. While the characterization in the show is often played in subtext, it is there. Procedural is not a synonym for lack of character development. 

WS: With less time available to flesh out dialogue or relationships between characters than other drama series, how do you still manage to make viewers care about the characters in your shows?

MENDELSOHN: Billy Petersen [who plays Gil Grissom] said it best. CSI is a show about heroes. Why are the CSIs heroes? Because they are ordinary people who come to work every day and make the world a safer place. They are the little Dutch boy with his finger in the dike. They hold back the dark forces. And they do it simply because it’s their job. And they care. And that is the best definition of hero. Not super-heroes—scientists, geeks, more Peter Parker than Spider-Man.

WS: What impact has the CSI franchise had on the drama genre?

MENDELSOHN: CSI has been the catalyst for a boom in procedural dramas. It has reinvented the cop drama. Watch Law & Order. At every crime scene there are now forensic investigators in jackets and latex gloves. Watch any cop show or film for that matter, and you will see CSIs. Watch any stunningly visual film today, and you will see CSI shots. Anthony Zuiker’s pilot for CSI, directed by Danny Cannon, created a new visual language for the screen.

WS: How do you know how far to go with special effects so that they don’t take over the storytelling? And how do you know how far to go with the gory scenes?

MENDELSOHN: Regarding visual effects, I’m not sure there is “too far,” as long as the images are servicing the story, the science and the discovery of the truth. As far as the goriness goes, you kind of know it’s too far when you see it. And if for some reason we don’t see it, the CBS legal department will remind us. In this present political climate, we are not permitted to go “too far”—the definition of which is nebulous and ever-changing, and oftentimes incomprehensible.

WS: What impact has CSI had on juries and on the criminal justice system?

MENDELSOHN: Jurors in criminal cases now expect more from prosecutors and investigators. This is the “CSI Effect.” They often demand more than testimonial or hearsay evidence to convict. To hold law enforcement to a higher standard is not in and of itself a bad thing. When you are a potential juror, during the voir dire, the judge will often ask: “Can you separate what you see on CSI (which is fictional) from reality?” Most people can.

WS: With universities, prosecutors and defense attorneys, even the U.S. Department of Justice all studying the “CSI Effect,” it can be argued that CSI is more than just a hit show. What is it about the franchise that has impacted viewers and society so strongly?

MENDELSOHN: When CSI burst on the scene it took viewers into a new world, in a new way and—the kicker—it starred William Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, etc. Great shows always have great casts with great chemistry. And in this case, I don’t mean a chemistry lab. We are blessed with amazingly talented actors who have inhabited their characters for almost nine years. The success of CSI is due in large part to them. And, as far as the writing goes, our ability to find the darkest and most bizarre corners of society hasn’t hurt. None of us can look at a stuffed animal and not immediately imagine the most depraved usages of it.

WS: As CSI is the most successful TV franchise around the world, this impact obviously crosses cultures. What has made the story lines and subject matter so universal?

MENDELSOHN: Post pilot, first season, our marching orders from Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman were: The show is set in Vegas (the Strip), but the stories should be off-Strip, in Anywhere, U.S.A. We didn’t realize at the time that by doing that, we were writing stories that were Anywhere, Earth. Crime is crime no matter where you live. And, I’ve never been to a city in the world where I haven’t seen a grown man dressed as a baby! 

WS: Besides the responsibility you feel to your writers, to the audience and to CBS, do you feel extra responsibility knowing you are overseeing the success of a megabrand?

MENDELSOHN: I think it’s like most things in life, our view is somewhat limited by the mountains in front of us. I think about the show and the current episode, and the next episode and the one after that. I only think about our sister shows when they’ve beaten us to a good story. Day to day, honestly, I don’t think about the franchise. I know that if I do my job right, CSI will flourish, and that is good for all three shows.

WS: How much more life is in the CSI franchise? How much longer can the series last?

MENDELSOHN: CSI will last as long as it lasts. It’s not the kind of thing [where] you can look down a microscope and see your answer. My crystal ball is heavily fingerprinted and out of service. So we will take it one season at a time, and hope that there’s a lot of life, a lot of story left in the show.

WS: What do you envision doing after CSI? Can a writer hope for more than one mega-hit like CSI in the course of his/her career?

MENDELSOHN: I assume that I will have multi-megahits and will be a megahit show-runner. Just kidding! I am building a house at the beach, and I hope so­­me day to just sit on the deck and stare out at the ocean and do nothing. At least for a week or two. After that, please direct all job offers to my agent, Paul Haas.

WS: What have been some of your favorite TV series?

MENDELSOHN: Among my favorite TV shows are anything Steven Bochco, almost any soap opera from Aaron Spelling, Mad Men, Lost, Six Feet Under, Remington Steele (love Pierce Brosnan), Moonlighting (love Bruce Willis) and all the Westerns I watched as a kid, with my six guns strapped to my waist. Which was odd considering I’m from Chicago. I always wanted to be a cowgirl, but never a gangster. Still do.

WS: What do you enjoy most about your work?

MENDELSOHN: Growing up, my dream was to watch TV all-day long, 24/7. Now I do. It doesn’t get better than this.