Petersen Is Immortalized

Hollywood pays tribute to a former leading man.

As CSI Files previously reported, William Petersen (Gil Grissom) became the 2379th celebrity to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony took place February 3, and Petersen was joined by former CSI costars Marg Helgenberger (Catherine Willows), George Eads (Nick Stokes), Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle), Eric Szmanda (Greg Sanders), Robert David Hall (Dr Al Robbins) and Liz Vassey (Wendy Simms). "I have never considered anything like this happening in my life," Petersen told Entertainment Tonight.

"It has always been one job after another, trying to do good work," the actor explained of his career. "I have come over the years to appreciate the work that is done here and how hard it is and how hard everybody works. To be a part of this, and to be on the same street with Jack Benny, Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis, what better thing is there?"

"Millions of fans love him for his many memorable roles, yet the some of all the parts he's played don't come close to the complexity, the kindness, the mystery, the loyalty and the generosity that is Billy himself," Helgenberger shared at the ceremony. "I know it's something said so often that it sounds like a cliché, but at CSI over the years we've become a family, and like every family we've been through a lot together. Nine years of world events, personal triumphs and tragedies, and Billy is always in the thick of every discussion, the first to give congratulations or condolences. He is both charismatic and down to earth. He's become a success without losing any of himself in the process, and that is his greatest achievement of all."

"Billy Petersen created, in Gil Grissom, a man of such brilliance and curiosity that it stimulated curiosity in all of us who watched him," said executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar in a statement, according to NBC Los Angeles. "Because Billy can say more with a look than most actors can with an entire monologue, Grissom's humanity always shined, whether he was bringing closure to a victim's family, sharing a meal with a bug, or an intimate moment with Sara Sidle." They added, "From the moment he picked up his crime scene kit, Billy didn't just play Grissom, he was Grissom. And that is the magic of Billy Petersen."

After more than eight seasons of playing Grissom, Petersen left CSI to return to the theater. However, the actor remains an executive producer on the show and does not rule out making a guest appearance in the future. Petersen joined the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in December, and he is scheduled to portray the tyrannical character Hamm in the Samuel Beckett play Endgame with Steppenwolf starting in April 2010.

The original information is from ET Online, NBC Los Angeles and the Chicago Tribune.

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