Zuiker On Running The Show In 'New York'

Those who said lightning couldn't strike twice have been proved twice wrong by Anthony Zuiker, creator of the CSI shows. But how is he handling the challenges of the latest Big Apple incarnation of his work?

"It's a lot of fish to fry", said Zuiker in an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Although he has held numerous posts of responsibility behind the scenes of the previous two shows (creator, executive producer and writer at various points during the run of both CSI: Miami and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation), he believes none of them compare to the task that lays ahead of him - as newly-appointed show-runner of CSI: New York.

"The show runner is in charge of the entire production - from the vision of the show to the responsibility of keeping scripts at a high standard," said Zuiker. "You're in charge of every creative and physical aspect of producing the show." Despite this the CSI creator keeps a packed schedule, regularly travelling from production HQ in California to his home in Vegas and filming in New York itself.

It doesn't appear to have taken a toll on Zuiker's enjoyment and enthusiasm for the show, however. "It's currently the No. 1 TV show in the country -- and in the world... [it] airs in every country in the world except seven," he said of the original show. That he still waxes lyrical over the show is a testament to its appeal – he notes that he "loves" the fact that a CSI rerun beat the premiere of NBC's The Apprentice.

But it wasn't always this way for the scribe, who credits fellow staff members Ann Donahue and Carol Mendehlson as the "crutches" that taught him everything he knows about the business. "Seven years ago, I was driving a tram down the street," he said, in reference to his previous job with the Mirage hotel-casino in Vegas.

That said, he still admits to running into difficulty occasionally – a recent shoot called off on account of rain cost his team $300,000. Zuiker described a shoot at Times Square as a "total madhouse", with passersby frequently calling out to Gary Sinise (Mac Taylor)... even addressing him by his Forrest Gump alter ego "Lieutenant Dan"!

For more of the interview with Zuiker, including his thoughts on the various shooting locations of the three shows and what he plans to do in the future, read the original article at the Las Vegas Review-Journal website.

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