George Eads was born on March 1, 1967, in Fort worth, Texas. At Belton High School, he was an avid athlete who excelled in football and basketball. He acted in a few plays, but football was his life. Subsequently, he graduated from Belton High School in Belton, TX in 1985 and finished a marketing degree in Texas Tech University in 1990. It was during his college years at Texas Tech that he began to think about pursuing an acting career. "I mentioned it to my mother one day while I was in college, and she said she thought it was a pretty good idea," he says. "I was close to finishing school, so she wanted me to complete that so I would have something to fall back on. George Eads' immense fondness for playing "make-believe" while growing up should have been a good indication that he would not end up with a career in sales, as was his initial intention. When an opportunity to teach drama presented itself at a local middle school, Eads jumped at it. He supposedly studied in an Acting School called KD Studio! Honing his acting skills and studies, first in Texas, Eads eventually made the move to Los Angeles with the money he saved doing commercial work.

George Coleman Eads III was born March 1, 1967 in Fort Worth, Texas and raised in Waco, Texas. The son of a lawyer and a mother who's a superintendant of Belton schools, he was brought up in Texas. George has a sister Angela. He graduated from Belton High School in Belton, TX in 1985 and he is Texas Tech University graduate of 1990. When he arrived in Los Angeles, he could only drive during the day because the truck he owned had two broken headlights (after landing his role on Savannah, Eads bought a new truck). He also used to work as a copy machine salesman. George is a member of Phi Delta Theta's Texas Epsilon Chapter, Texas Tech University.

On his character Greg Powell: "I got a lot of recognition from that role. I mean, like, I'd be in a Burger King getting a burger and the girl at the window goes, 'Hey, you're the guy who kissed Julianna Margulies on ER'." Right now, at 33, his career is finally starting to take off with the success of CSI. Eads' television movie credits include The Spring, Broken Crown, and The Ultimate Lie. He has appeared as a guest star in Strange Luck, as well as multiple episodes of ER and starred in the drama Savannah. Eads' feature film credits include Only in America and Dust to Dust.

 

George Eads wanted: Dead or Alive

Killed off in the debut, the actor has gotten a new life. George Eads was broke, hungry, and desperate. The Texas Tech marketing grad had drifted from job to job until finally he found himself wiping down weight machines at a gym and driving a pickup truck with two busted headlights. The acting thing just wasn't working. "I used to go out to the Santa Monica pier, look at the ocean, and cry my eyes out," he says. "I mean, I had really lost it. When you start having visions about driving your car into a brick wall, you're in trouble. I'd look out at the ocean and say, 'Oh, man, just throw me a crumb. Just a chance.'"

Then he got his crumb: a one-shot part in Savannah's pilot as Travis, a dirty dog of a guy who slept with his fiancée's best friend just hours before his wedding.

"I just thought, 'This is my chance. I don't care if I look like a freak, I'm just going to go for it.'"

Boy, did he. He was so good at being bad that even though the producers had killed him off, they decided to resurrect him as Travis's brother, Nick. "When they said, 'Hey, we want George back,' I said, 'No way, man. I want to do this John Woo movie where I get to rappel off buildings. I don't want to play Joe Beefcake who's on the cover of Teen Beat."

Eventually, Eads relented. "I was tired of auditions. Now, I've got a lot more money, a huge trailer with a TV, a stereo, and a couch." And what promises to be a meatier role than any other male actor's in a show dominated by beautiful, y actresses. Guess what he did to celebrate: "I bought a new truck."

But more important, he's lifted himself out of his funk. "I was swinging in the dark, but now I know I can do it. I don't have that anxiety anymore. And I don't have to worry every time a meal rolls around. I can eat."

Fun chat with George Eads

Straight from a Venice Beach in California, George Eads chatted with the fans of CSI on a Yahoo!

Q: Have you gained a new perspective on newfound respect for forensic science?
A: Newfound respect? Hm, I think I always had respect for the profession, my dad was a district attorney back home for over 20 years, so I had that going in. I find it more interesting though how you apply the science. The gadgets are the icing on the case to make you look cool!

Q: Okay, the basics: How old are you, where are you from?
A: You want my measurements?

Q: This has nothing to do with CSI, but from your fans here in Texas - are you a Texas Rangers or a Houston Astros fan?
A: I'm a Texas fan!

Q: Is CSI really filmed on location in Las Vegas?
A: No, there are some location shoots in Vegas, maybe four trips a year. It's shot in Santa Clarita, CA.

Q: Do you have any plans for your time off before season 2 begins production?
A: I'm interested to go other places, I've been the boy in the bubble since we've been shooting, I need to go travel a little bit, see where the action is, other than going to see family, of course.

Q: We don't know much about Nicky's personal life. We will get to learn more next season?
A: Yeah, it's interesting, we are having a meeting tomorrow night about next year and about trying to take more risks. We don't want to bore our audience. WE showed them where we could go, and now there are plenty of places to go, because we didn't give away too much.

Q: Favorite episode so far?
A: I loved it when Grissom rode the roller coaster. I've only seen it 5,000 times! But he was on the roller coaster in an emotionally weird place.. I love watching that

Q: Do you like your character?
A: Again, I'm learning about him along with everyone else. I think after further meetings and some brainstorming, hopefully we'll come up with something that would be the direct opposite of what you'd expect. But there are no boundaries to the story, we don't want to make it about Nick's hangovers! It's about forensics, about getting the bad guy, and about taking care of business. We know that too.

Q: Love scenes with the hooker?
A: LOL! I laugh about it, but again, I think about playing the opposite, if we could try to get more creative about who Nick is, it could be more interesting than that, I think we could go even farther on it... It's fun though, don't get me wrong! But the days of picking underwear are over, so the Savannah days are over!

Q: What expectations do you have, George, for your character to develop over the coming series?
A: Again, we want to take some risks, play against the obvious, and make it a brother in law about forensics. Make sure it's about doing good for others, not just the personal side. The show has boundaries right now we're trying to widen them not break them.

Q: When did you start acting?
A: Hmm. I guess I was walking at about 2-1/2, I've been [a] big ham forever! I got into more perspectigve when I moved out here. But I;ve been making a living at it for about 5 years, you know, where your not asking, Do you want fries with that?

Q: If you weren't an actor, what would you be doing?
A:: Hopefully, maybe working in some comic book capacity, I was a comic book freak as a kid, it might be cool to work at DC Comics. Or maybe design and build sets, something fun that you could make a living at and enjoy.

Q: What actor or event most influenced you to choose acting as your career?
A: LOL! I used to think that there was a good hard and fast answer for that, but I'm just a fan of good acting, but I'm just a fan of good acting, I can remember so many snippets of movies, from Weird Science to the Godfather, just people's performances, that rocked me into becoming an actor. I guess I was a fan first.

Q: Superman envy?
A: No, that's already owned by Shaq, and I'm still having a hard time getting Laker tickets!

Q: Besides Savannah and CSI, what shows have you been on?
A: I've done a few television movies. The Spring, with Kyle McLachlan, The Ultimate Lie with Kristin Davis, Crowned and Dangerous. And Gravevine, a series for CBS, we shot down in Miami. They aired about six episodes.

Q: How about dating? Are you busy Friday night?
A: LOL! Let's put it this way, if it gets hit to me sometimes I'll catch it, but I don't really want to diving for anything right now, you know what I mean?

Q: What do you enjoy doing on your time off?
A: Exercise. Travel. I've been trying to pick up painting but it's hard. It looks easy, like surfing, but surfing is hard too. I have a Lab, it's fun to hang out and hike with the dog, people come up to him, and pet him, it's fun.

Q: How does he feel about being on a top-rated show?
A: I don't know, everyone is really down to earth, I'm not freaked out, I'm so happy and pleased that I'll be working on something that's fun to do and that people enjoy watching for awhile.

Q: Are there any quirks of Nick's that are yours or are from your direct input?
A: Sometimes there are some sayings that my dad or friends would say growing up, euphemisms from Texas, that are fun to add if they like. There are a lot of times that if a detail in a scene or a beat, feels unnatural, they'll allow me to explore another direction to go until we're all comfortable with what we are doing. So I add things, so does everybody, we get it from Billy. Billy is the king of adding things to scenes.

Q: I saw you on E! skydiving and you rocked. Was that fun?
A: It was fun a definite adrenaline rush, but I think it's a second fiddle to jumping solo, that's where you really have to step it up, that's where the fear comes in, when you don't have a professional strapped to your back. So if you are going to do it, do it more than once, tandem then solo, and they you are a sky diver. Solo is where it's at.

Q: We hated to see your CSI love interest go! Why is Nick so hazardous to be in love with?
A: I think in the end you may find him being a little bit tormented with the job, infringes into his life, in the end, just makes it difficult to share personal things. Not unlike the rest of the cast.

Q: Jorja told us the characters' backstory is being slowly developed, with hints here and there. What kind of backstory do you envision for Nick?
A: TBD.

Q: Do you find yourself confused with the scientific part of the show ever?
A: Not really. If there is a big word or something I don't understand, I just find what the word is, apply what it is, and then really run with that.

Q: I just wanted to say that we love you here in Mexico!
A: I love Mexico!

Q: Where did you get your dog?
A: I got him in California from a breeder.

Q: Are there plans for a CSI convention? Maybe with some hands-on panels?
A: Not that I know of.

Q: Do you think you will ever leave tv for the big screen?
A: I'm just trying to let everything lie and grow right now, I'm not going to pressure myself to do anything that it's right for the time.

Q: Are George and Gary good pals off-screen?
A: Oh yeah.

Q: Did you have to audition more than once for the role on CSI?
A: Twice. It's like you are driving down the highway minding your own business, and you look in the rearview mirror, and you see police lights flashing, and you get that ball in your stomach, and you know you've got to be cool and do your thing.

Q: Did you think you got it at first?
A: Yeah. It was just right.

Q: Do you ever talk with real CSIs?
A: Yes.

Q: Who is your favorite person to work with on CSI?
A: Marg! Marg is awesome. I love her, I love being around her.

Q: Do you get scared sometimes on the set seeing dead bodies?
A: No, you have too much else to worry about.

Q: Do you get a blooper reel as part of your contract? *grin*
A: Not part of the contract, but we got a blooper reel for the wrap party, and it's priceless....

Q: Who is your hero?
A: I think that falls along the same line as the acting question... Many forms, sizes and colors, I think there are heroes in sports, in life... It would be cliche to say my dad, my grandad. I think I'm a fan of people who were brave, my aunt, my grandmother, those are my heroes.

Q: What is it like working with William Petersen?
A: Have you seen the roller coaster scene?!? He's a great guy, a pleasure.

Q: I want to know how everyone gets along with each other.
A: Very well. We all enjoy being around one another, and it's not pushed either.

Q: What's the deal with all that flirting between Sara and Nick???
A: She's a cutie, what do you want from me?!?

Q: What do you think about the internet, and are you on it?
A: It seems like sitting in front of a computer screen when I don't have time to be outside and exercise, so I'm in tune with the internet, but I think it's awesome.

Q: Has there been any episode that you did not like filming?
A: I just don't like it when we have to go so fast. Any episode that has scenes that I remember having to go fast, maybe we were behind... It tends to put a bit more pressure on you and sometimes I think maybe those scenes could have been better. But those are the only times, really.

Q: IF you could work with any actor, past or present, who would it be?
A: Hmm. LOL! John Wayne came to mind!

Q: Where are you chatting from?
A: Venice Beach. It cleared up together.

Q: What's your favorite food?
A: Nationality? I'm a steak guy. With A-1, A-1 just does me up!

Q: Are you more attracted to play a character that is the protagonist or the antagonist?
A: Both. It's a big canvas, I want to paint all over it.

Q: The type of things you act out is weird knowing some of these things actually happened to people.
A: Yes.

Q: What Zodiac sign are you?
A: Pisces.

Q: My favorite episode in CSI was "Boom," you were the bomb.
A: LOL! It's lighting tricks!

Q: DO you have any amusing stories from the set you'd like to share?
A: Yes, there was the one time that Marg and I were in the Tahoe, lights on and flashing, going to a crime scene. We had to stop and say something to Grissom on the way, fill him in on where we were going. And I was supposed to back out and I forgot to put the car in reverse, so I turned around and so did Marg, and I really acted like I was going in reverse, really selling it, and we went forward and we knocked over al couple of stands! (That have lights and flags on them). Marg is fun to make laugh!

Q: Did you ever work a late shift in any job you ever had?
A: Yup! I was the graveyard shift in a plastics plant in Texas. It was like being a vampire.

Q: When do you film most: day or night? You guys are the Grave Yard Shift.
A: Half and half. It depends on what we need, what day and time we are scheduled to be at one location. We are the graveyard shift so you have to have nights, and you do have to see us outside at night. Sometimes that you can get long.

Q: Have you had any notable experiences with fans?
A: Yeah, we were eon South Beach doing Grapevine, and we were doing some publicity photos and there was a girl that started going George, George, really friendly like I knew her and I thought I did, so I told them let her through, I let her thru security, and realized I didn't know her, so she had to leave. It was ok. It was weird to have someone call your name like you're their pan for ten years.

Q: What was the worst job you ever had?
A: Long story. I was a job of punishment from my father, that's a story for another time.

Q: Who is your favorite character?
A: Hmm. I like Paul Guilfoyle, plays Br, because Paul is so funny and so fun outside of being Br, that it's awesome. Paul's funny.

Q: What kind of music do you like? I love Guns N Roses?
A: I'm a mood ring.

Q: What's in the CD player right now?
A: There is some U2, some Godsmack, some Pearl Jam, the new Depeche Mode cut...

Q: OF all the projects you have worked on, which would you call your favorite?
A: This one.

Q: Would like to know where they get the ideas for their stories?
A: That's a writer thing, they go away in a big room for days and months on end and churn it out. Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies.

Q: What pions to you have outside of acting?
A: They are not specific. LOL! From cheetah to gazelle, from the hunter to the prey.

Q: Does anything on the show ever make you sick or grossed out?
A: Sure. People that have been abused ually is wack, that is not a subject to joke about, and even when you are acting and it's not "real," you are filming a subject that is real, and that's when we are on common ground, we know when not to play around with what is real in society, out of respect.

Q: Who is the biggest prankster on the set, and what's the worst they've ever done?
A: We are not really into pranks. No Vasoline on doorknobs, glueing doors shut, and that's good. We give each other a hard time, but no pranks.

Q: How do you feel about female fans that obviously like the guys on the show more than the 'content'?
A: LOL! That's not my business.

Q: Have you done anything else like skydiving - or is the craziest thing you've ever done?
A: To be honest with you, I get a little fed up with actors who act crazy to make themselves more interesting. It's no more than anybody else who has something they have the guts to go out and try.

Q: Did you go out to any real labs or crime scenes or morgues to research your part?
A: Not necessarily. I've seen a dead body, I've seen some pretty gruesome fist fights, I've been a hunter since I was a child, though I don't anymore, I've gutted wild game. It's never really bothered me that much. It's more of the people left behind that bothers you.

Q: Do you consider CSI to be somewhat inspirational to the viewers who have not yet made up their minds on what they want to do? I mean, do you think watching CSI could make them want to do that?
A: It's just TV, man.

Q: Were you really forced to pick up 'scat' in "Justice is Served" with Gary?
A: LOL! No, that was fake, but I pick up enough of my own dog's to know exactly waht it's like. And believe me, a lot worse than that!

Q: What was your favorite subject in school?
A: Art cl, drawing, painting, clay, stuff like that.

Q: Do you still do that?
A: No, but i'd like to.

Q: What is your biggest fear?
A: Ping alone.

Q: What kind of car do you drive?
A: LOL! A silver one, platinum maybe.

Q: Do you have any tattoos or body piercings? What do you think about them on women you date?
A: No, and to each his own.

Q: Is it difficult to remember your lines when they're full of scientific lingo?
A: Rehearsal.

Q: What is your fantasty character to play?
A: I think I'll give it up, the fantasy is over, I wanted to play Spiderman, Peter Parker. He's a very difficult character to duplicate, I used to draw him and stuff. Besides 007 or Billy the Kid, Peter Parker is one of the oens I'll have to say.

Q: HOw long does it take to film an episode?
A: Anywhere from 9 to 12 days.

Q: What are some things that you get to do now that you are such a popular celebrity?
A: My maid comes twice a week.

Q: Do you play any sports when you aren't working?
A: Yes.

Q: What's your dog's name? I thought I heard you call him "Bud" on Access Hollywood. He looks like a real Daddy's boy!
A: He has many different slang terms for what I call him, but Maverick.

Q: I could see you being Peter (Parker).
A: Definitely! I can draw him too.

Q: IT could still happen!
A: I guess your star has to shine pretty bright to get a part like that.

Q: Do you write poetry? YOu seem to have a knack for the rhythm of words.
A: Huh! Wow. Quit flirting with me!

Q: What's your favorite way to wake up?
A: The way I want. WHen I want to, my body just naturally wakes up without an alarm.

Q: In the episode "Who Are You?" you had an amazing scene. You choked me up! I was worried she'd fire the gun adn Nick would be a goner!
A: Hey, it's happened to me before. In Savannah, they killed my character off in the first episode.

Q: Is there any special place you'd like to travel?
A: South America, and I'm going in July. Why? The women! No, I'm kidding, I want to travel, that's what makes life really fun in the end.

Q: Do you guys get tips from real cops?
A: Yes.

Q: Any tips on next season?
A: Possibly some car chases and some gun play.

Q: Where do you see yourself in ten years?
A: Flip-flops.

George Eads likes to play a super hero

He plays a character whose line of work often helps bring felons to justice - but now George Eads (Nick Stokes) would like to be a superhero as well as a super crime-solver. Eads discussed his recent work voicing 'Captain Atom' on the animated Justice League Unlimited series and his desire to play a live-action superhero. But he was especially excited to portray his childhood hero Evel Knievel in a recent telemovie of the same name.

"'Evel Knievel' was a TNT original movie that aired last summer. I'll be doing the narration for the DVD in a couple of weeks," said Eads. "My research was very extensive. He's pretty hard on himself. He's got health problems now. I talked to his son Robbie, and he really appreciated the way I played him. He'll appreciate it too." Playing real-life superhero Knievel isn't the only time he'd like to be perceived as a man of steel – Eads also welcomes the possibility of playing a fictional live-action superhero too, adding that he was "itching to". "I would like to do an action movie," said Eads. "In between seasons, I can do that. That's one of the things I really want to do."

Eads noted he would love to have voiced Superman in the aforementioned Justice League Unlimited animation, and indeed has auditioned for the new animated Batman series. "I'm an artist," said Eads,"I love doing voice acting like that." But where does this particular artist draw his inspiration from? Eads credits encouraging parents, as well as inspiration from and admiration for actors such as Steve McQueen, Paul Newman and Robert Redford. But more recently, he feels he's learned much from his fellow CSI cast members, particularly William Petersen (Gil Grissom) and Marg Helgenberger (Catherine Willows).

When I watch [William Petersen's] scenes, it feels so conversational," he said. "I forget the cameras are there. He just does things I file in my memory bank." It's far from the only thing he's learned whilst on set though – the constant technobabble has given him a head for technical language and even an understanding of the concepts behind it. "Once I actually know what it is, I can act the scene better," said Eads. "It takes five to 10 minutes with the technical instructor. It also expands my vocabulary."

George Eads and TV crime drama ''CSI'' make the 100th mark this season

Any human being who makes it to three digits deserves a mention on morning television at the very least, preferably from a portly weatherman's lips. I'm talking about TV series -- specifically, "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." Currently the highest rated show of the season, attracting nearly 30 million viewers last week, the father of CBS's blockbuster franchise officially makes it to the big 1-0-0 tonight at 9 on KIRO/7.

"CSI" joins other programs celebrating anniversaries this month, including UPN's underrated comedy "Girlfriends," which saw its odometer click over to 100 on Nov. 8, crossing a threshold few African American casts could dream of nearing. "Everybody Loves Raymond" aired its 200th Monday, an event that coincides with the sitcom's final season. Think of all the comedies that flamed out around these shows, which still have a few doses of funny left in them. That's worth recognizing.

However, a hundred episodes of "CSI" is no cause for ice sculptures and parades. Even if it's been the top drama for three seasons. Even if it's the first crime drama in TV history to be No. 1. Unless one of the core cast members leaves and executive producers Anthony Zuiker and Jerry Bruckheimer screw up the structure -- horrendously, and on multiple occasions -- "CSI" has a decent shot at making it to 200. And beyond. "CSI's" toughest competition, NBC's "Law & Order," made the 300 mark in May 2003. Talk to us when you near that, Jer and Tony.

OK, we'll admit a certain awe at how thoroughly "CSI" saturated television has become, in a rather short amount of time. Grissom and the gang have only been on the job since 2000, and their tales have already spawned two spinoffs in "CSI: Miami" and the first serious competition for "L&O" on Wednesday nights, "CSI: NY."

Innovative, successful blueprints are rare in TV land, and "CSI" happens to have one everyone wants to duplicate. Actors have to be climbing over one another for roles as random as, say, victim No. 3. A number of series borrow "CSI's" storytelling devices, including CBS's "Cold Case" and NBC's "Medical Investigation," both known to get happy with the flashbacks, and Fox's "House," fond of close encounters with organs and blood cells.

"CSI" also remains ever renewable by sidelining the characters' personal lives, especially in recent seasons, to spotlight the crimes every week. This also means the actors are somewhat expendable, as George Eads (who plays Nick Stokes) and Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle) found out last summer when they angled for a pay raise and were fired, then rehired after a bit of groveling.

Perhaps the ultimate sign of pop cultural permeation is that "CSI" has a line of toys for children, which is too weird for words. Formulate your own opinions about whether the "CSI" influence has made television better or worse; the surest thing about the crime drama is that it is dependable entertainment, week after week. Episodes with false starts are few and, even then, the stories usually manage to get back on course and chug excitingly toward each murder's gruesome unraveling. The show is the Japanese economy auto of broadcast television.

Looks as if it's celebrating in signature sweeps style too, with a murder investigation that takes Grissom (William Petersen), Catherine (Marg Helgenberger), Warrick (Gary Dourdan) and the rest into territory that middle America may consider a little freaky-deaky. Tonight's case file, titled "Ch-Ch-Changes," begins with the investigation into the horrible stabbing of a transgender woman. With no review tape to go on, why don't we let the press release do the talking? "This leads the team into the fringe world of changes and transgenders in order to catch a killer."

That also means "CSI" addicts should expect twisted goodness. Time and again the writers have displayed a knack for handling, shall we say, intriguing aspects of Las Vegas that live up to the city's motto. What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, but when happenings such as plushie parties, spouse swaps and vampiric nosh-fests end extra nastily, it's enough to make viewers jump for joy.