James Brass is a fictional character portrayed by
Paul Guilfoyle
Paul Vincent Guilfoyle () (born April 28, 1949) is an American television and film actor. He was a regular cast member of the CBS crime drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', on which he played Captain Jim Brass from 2000 to 2014. He return ...
on the
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
crime drama ''
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', also referred to as ''CSI'' and ''CSI: Las Vegas'', is an American procedural forensics crime drama television series that ran on CBS from October 6, 2000, to September 27, 2015, spanning 15 seasons. This wa ...
'' and its sequel ''
CSI: Vegas''. He made his first screen appearance in the show's
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
, broadcast on October 6, 2000. He was credited in 317 episodes. Guilfoyle's departure was announced in March 2014 and his character left on May 7, 2014. He returned for the series finale, ''
Immortality
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality.
Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...
'', and appeared in two episodes of ''CSI: Vegas''.
Appearances
The character appeared in every episode during his run, with the exception of "Felonious Monk" from
season two Season 2 may refer to:
* ''Season 2'' (Infinite album)
* ''2econd Season
''2econd Season'' is the second and most recent album by Atlanta-based rapper Unk.
Release
It was released on November 4, 2008.
Guest Performers
The album features gu ...
, "Gum Drops" and "The Unusual Suspect" from
season six
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pola ...
, "Leaving Las Vegas" from
season seven, "Blood Moon", "All That Cremains" and "Cello and Goodbye" from
season eleven and "Bittersweet", "Seeing Red", "Malice in Wonderland" and "Dune and Gloom" from
season twelve, "Wild Flowers" and "Dead Air" from
season thirteen, "Last Supper", "Killer Moves", "Consumed" from
season fourteen. He appeared in 303 episodes. He appeared in two episodes of the first season of the sequel ''
CSI: Vegas''.
Departure
On March 24, 2014 it was announced that Jim would be leaving ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' by the end of season 14.
Guilfoyle was written out of the show after the producers decided to end his character's storyline.
The actor found out that he would not be returning for the fifteenth season the week before the announcement.
Executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Don McGill stated "In a show about forensics, fans always looked forward to the handcuffs coming out, and Capt. Brass putting his spin on the crime of the week, just as Paul Guilfoyle put his indelible stamp on the character and the show. He will be missed."
Jim left the team on May 7, 2014 but returned for the series finale in season 15.
Background
Brass enlisted in the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
fresh out of high school and did two tours of duty in the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. He graduated from
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan un ...
with a degree in history. After the war, he joined the
Newark Police. Brass spent 20 years working his way up to homicide detective in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.[Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...]
. While working in Vice, he worked hard to clean up his department, earning the enmity of many of his former colleagues (and the nickname "Squeaky", as in "squeaky clean"). Brass, under stress, sometimes drank and would cover it up by popping cough drops to hide the smell of alcohol on his breath (episode 415, "Early Rollout"). While his wife Nancy was having an affair with Vice cop Mike O'Toole, Brass was busy with his own affair with another member of the vice squad, Annie Kramer, who later moved to Los Angeles and was promoted to captain. Brass claims later that it was Nancy's affair that ruined their marriage, rather than the other way around, and that she eventually just wanted a way out (episode 520, "Hollywood Brass"). Brass transferred out of New Jersey in the 1990s and came to Las Vegas.
Career
Early on, Brass and other officers new to the force were courted by Undersheriff McKeen in regards to taking bribes, the entire group having been invited to McKeen's for a barbecue. Brass made it clear he was not for sale and said he was not invited to any more gatherings after that (episode "For Warrick"). However, he was very much a player and a partier, describing work as "an interruption to his fun". He had a fling with former officer Ann-Marie Tolsom, his name later turning up on a list of those who had had physical relations with her when she was believed killed by her ex-husband. (She turned out to still be alive after her ex was killed in prison and it was revealed she had framed him and faked her death; episode "The List".) Brass eventually left his wilder side behind, and eventually began running the CSI department, more as an administrator than as an investigator. Showing as an example of how much he trusts the team, Brass has stated that he would want
Gil Grissom
Gilbert Arthur Grissom (born August 17, 1956), Ph.D. is a fictional character portrayed by William Petersen on the CBS crime drama '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' and its sequel, '' CSI: Vegas''. Grissom is a forensic entomologist and for t ...
's CSI team to investigate his murder; he gave Grissom
power of attorney
A power of attorney (POA) or letter of attorney is a written authorization to represent or act on another's behalf in private affairs (which may be financial or regarding health and welfare), business, or some other legal matter. The person auth ...
rights should anything happen to him, which proved useful when Grissom chose to go ahead with his risky but life-saving surgery when he was shot.
Brass used to have Grissom's job as the supervisor of the CSI team. After young CSI Holly Gribbs was murdered on her first day in the field, he lost his position to Grissom. Brass was then given the position as a homicide detective, usually serving as the legal muscle for the CSI team and the one who does most of the arresting and interrogating of suspects. Brass is shown to favor heavy-caliber weaponry including a Heckler and Koch USP .45 handgun and a Remington 870 shotgun.
In the two-part episode "
A Bullet Runs Through It", Brass tries to counsel Detective
Sofia Curtis
Sofia Curtis is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama, ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', portrayed by British actress Louise Lombard.
Background
Sofia was introduced in the season five episode " Formalities". It is later explained in ...
, who believes she may have accidentally killed another officer in a chaotic shoot-out with a gang of drug dealers. He later is stunned and guilt-ridden to realize that he was actually the one that killed the officer. Later at the officer's funeral, his widow approached, and when Brass tried to explain how sorry he was, she told him that she knew it was not his fault.
While Brass could never be accused of being a "soft cop", he has a reputation for adhering to the rules and witty sarcasm when interviewing suspects. In the episode "Who and What", after the FBI's
Jack Malone
Special Agent John "Jack" Michael Malone is a character in the CBS crime drama ''Without a Trace'', portrayed by Anthony LaPaglia. He was the lead agent of the New York City FBI missing persons unit. His departmental title is '' Supervisory Specia ...
slams a suspect's head on the table, Brass rushes in and pulls him off, saying "If you want to
rendition him to
Gitmo
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base ( es, Base Naval de la Bahía de Guantánamo), officially known as Naval Station Guantanamo Bay or NSGB, (also called GTMO, pronounced Gitmo as jargon by members of the U.S. military) is a United States military bas ...
, be my guest. But in this house, we play by the rules." In the episode "You Kill Me", after David Hodges creates a fictional story in which Brass uses his night stick on a suspect, fellow lab tech
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
*Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
comments "Captain Brass isn't the type of cop that smacks suspects around."
At the end of season 8, in "For Gedda", Brass tells CSI
Warrick Brown
Warrick Brown (born 1971) is a fictional character in the CBS crime drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', portrayed by Gary Dourdan. Warrick appeared in all but five episodes until his death in the first episode of season nine, with the exce ...
"I hope you remember how lucky you are", after Warrick is cleared of a murder charge. Warrick is murdered at the end of the episode. In the season 9 premiere, "For Warrick", Brass is shown to be stricken with guilt over these words.
Relationships with colleagues
Brass has a good working relationship with other members of the team. Protective of his colleagues, he is usually the one to draw his gun and does not like it when the CSIs try to take dangerous matters, like arresting armed suspects, into their own hands. He also gets on Grissom's case for not drawing his firearm, even in appropriate situations.
He is close friends with former night shift supervisor Gil Grissom. During Season 6, when he was shot, he gave Grissom the power of attorney. When Grissom left, he developed a friendship with
Ray Langston
Dr. Raymond Langston is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', portrayed by Laurence Fishburne. He joined the show in season 9, after the departure of Gil Grissom, played by William Petersen. His last na ...
. He had some disagreements with Langston over dealing with serial killer Nate Haskell in Season 10 ("Meat Jekyll"). In the last episode of Season 11, he tried to protect him by concealing evidence that would indicate Langston had crossed the line from self-defense to murder when Langston killed Haskell.
Early in the series, Brass is tough on Warrick, and there is obvious tension between them in several episodes, especially when there was an officer-involved shooting, with Brass believing Warrick to be reckless, and Warrick feeling Brass to be holding him back, but they eventually bury the hatchet, and become good friends and coworkers. When Warrick is murdered, Brass is visibly upset, especially after his ill-timed statement to Warrick immediately before his murder about how lucky he was.
Regarding Sara, he is somewhat sympathetic to her, and it is implied he is aware of her personal life in which she witnessed her mother murder her father. He does, however, have to occasionally chastise her when she becomes overzealous and runs into a scene before the officers have a chance to secure it. He also sees shades of himself in her when he notices her popping cough drops at a scene, presumably to hide the smell of alcohol on her breath.
Brass has an excellent working relationship with Nick Stokes. Brass treats him much like a nephew, and save for Grissom himself, his relationship with Nick is the friendliest among the CSI's. When Nick is abducted and buried alive, Brass pulls out all the stops to ensure Nick is safely found.
Concerning Greg Sanders, Brass sometimes likes to poke fun at Sanders at the latter's expense, often in a light-hearted manner, like saying something was stuck to Grissom's shoe when they walked into a scene together. He doesn't have much interaction with him early in the series, but once Sanders crosses from lab tech to CSI, they begin working more cases together, and they have a mutual respect.
Personal life
Brass has an estranged daughter, Ellie Rebecca Brass, who is not biologically his (unbeknownst to her). As he explains it to Warrick Brown in the episode "
Ellie
Ellie, or Elly, is a given name, usually feminine. The name stands on its own or can be a shortened form of any of the numerous female names beginning with the syllable El-, in particular Eleanor or Elizabeth and Elvira. It can also be a short fo ...
": "Call it the mailman's. Ellie doesn't know." In fact, Ellie's biological father is former New Jersey Vice cop Mike O'Toole, whom Brass discovered to be dirty. Ellie works as a prostitute in Los Angeles, to the deep disappointment of her father. Despite her rebellious behavior, Brass still loves her deeply, and keeps a picture of her as a child on his desk in his office. When he discovers that she is doing drugs, he keeps after her until she cleans up, but their relationship remains difficult and strained. Brass is shot by William Cutler, a wanted suspect in a triple homicide. When he is in the hospital in critical condition, in the season six finale "Way to Go", Ellie seems more concerned with the pension than her father's likelihood of survival—which is probably why Brass gave his power of attorney to colleague and friend Gil Grissom, who saved Brass's life by having him undergo surgery to remove the bullet. At the end of that episode, Brass is surrounded by his other family: the CSI night shift team, who watched over him through his ordeal. At the end of the seventh season premiere, "Built To Kill, Part 1", Brass is seen in a tattoo parlor, having the date of his shooting (May 11, 2006) tattooed just below the bullet scar.
In the Season 13 finale "Skin in the Game", Ellie is apparently kidnapped by a serial killer re-enacting deaths from ''
Dante's Inferno
''Inferno'' (; Italian for "Hell") is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem ''Divine Comedy''. It is followed by ''Purgatorio'' and '' Paradiso''. The ''Inferno'' describes Dante's journey through Hell, guid ...
''. CSI
Morgan Brody
Morgan Brody is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', portrayed by Elisabeth Harnois. The character made her series debut during the season eleven episode "Cello and Goodbye", and departed the franchis ...
goes undercover but is herself kidnapped by the same killer. Brass is emotionally distraught and calls Ellie's mother, who flies to Las Vegas and badgers her ex-husband to find Ellie. When Morgan frees herself and she and Ellie are escaping the killer, Ellie shoots Morgan, nearly killing her—revealing herself to be the mastermind behind the killings. Ellie then murders her own mother and attempts to murder Brass, all due to Ellie's acknowledged "daddy issues". Brass, when realizing that Ellie is the killer, walks heartbroken right up to the gun she is pointing at him, but Ellie does not pull the trigger; Brass takes the gun from her and Ellie is arrested.
References
External links
Jim Brass Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brass, Jim
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation characters
CSI: Vegas
Fictional characters from New Jersey
Television characters introduced in 2000
Fictional Las Vegas Police Department detectives
Fictional police captains
Fictional United States Marine Corps personnel
Fictional Vietnam War veterans