Brian Dietzen Movies
A graduate of Colorado's Niwot High School, actor Brian Dietzen gravitated to drama at eight years old, when he caught the acting bug from an elementary school play; in time, he extended his stage activities into high-school productions, and attended the University of Colorado at Boulder as a theater major in that institution's B.F.A. program. Under the mentorship of Sean Kelley, Dietzen formally trained in theatrical mainstays -- from Waiting for Godot to Equus; so successful were his efforts in these productions that it prompted him to join the Colorado Shakespeare Festival after graduation, and then to make the big leap to Los Angeles.Dietzen scored his first major coup in L.A. by signing on for a regular role in the short-lived WB series My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star, and then landed a small part in the American Idol spin-off movie From Justin to Kelly (2003). The actor is best known, however, for his recurring series role as Jimmy Palmer, assistant lab technician to Donald "Ducky" Mallard (David McCallum), on the popular CBS procedural thriller NCIS. On the side, he remained extremely active in stage work. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
With the inauguration of its second season, this popular "procedural" series streamlines its title, forsaking the cumbersome Navy NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service for the more familiar NCIS. Joining series regulars Mark Harmon (Leroy Jethro Gibbs), Shana Alexander (Kate Todd), Michael Weatherly (Tony DiNozzo), Pauley Perrette (Abby Sciuto) and David McCallum ("Ducky" Mallard) is former guest actor Sean Murray as MIT-educated lab tech Tim McGee, who is invited to join the NCI team by head man Gibbs himself. Amidst such story elements as kidnappings, serial killers, serial rapists, crop circles, mob hits, transsexuals, disembodied eyeballs and bikini contests, this season permits the viewer to learn just a tiny bit more about the clouded past lives of Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard; we also meet for the first time Ducky's 96-year-old mother, played by Nina Foch (actually 80 years old at the time, and only nine years older than her "son" David McCallum!) And given the world climate, it isn't surprising that the Season Two episodes would make numerous pointed references to the Iraq War and the general unrest in the Middle East. Episodes of note include "Call of Silence", with Charles Durning in the Emmy-nominated role of a highly decorated marine who confesses to committing murder in the heat of battle--60 years earlier; "Doppelganger", which per its title amusingly featutres a team of Virginia law-enforcement officers who are virtual clones of the familier NCI-ers; and "SWAK", wherein team member Tony is among the victims of a bio-terrorist attack. The devastating season finale "Twilight" marks the return of the team's most formidable adversary, Hamad/Mossad double agent and terrorist Ari (Rudolf Martin), who among other acts of villainy coldbloodedly murders one of NCIS' most popular leading characters! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, (more)
Navy NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service was the somewhat redundant official title of this popular "procedural" series during its first season on the air. Mark Harmon tops the cast as the rule-bending, intensely private Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the head of an elite NCI team specializing in solving baffling crimes related to US Navy personnel. Gibbs' cohorts during this season include tough, outspoken Caitlin"Kate" Todd (Shana Alexander), former Baltimore homicide detective (and flagrant womanizer) Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly), caffeine-addicted, goth-girl technogeek Abby Sciuto (Pauley Perrette); and all-knowing, long-winded chief lab technician Donald "Ducky" Mallard (David McCallum). Though the two-part pilot episode was filmed for the military-legal series JAG, it was not shown until several weeks after NCIs proper premiered with its debut episode "Yankee White" (in the pilot, Robyn Lively is seen as Viv Blackadder, the character that eventually morphed into Abby Sciuto). Its plot involving a mysterious death during a flight of Air Force One, "Yankee White" introduces several recurring characters: Alan Dale as NCIs director Tom Morrow, Joe Spano as FBI agent Fornell and Pancho Demmings as Ducky's assistant Gerald Jackson. Another frequently seen character, Special Agent Paula Cassidy, first shows up in "Minimum Security", while Gerald Jackson's ultimate replacement Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen makes his bow in "Split Decision". Finally, "Sub Rosa" marks the initial appearance of MIT-educated lab tech Tim McGee (Sean Murray), who would join the cast as a regular in Season Two. The series' second episode, "Hung Out to Dry", is something of a crossover, with Patrick Labyorteaux appearing in his JAG characterization of Lt. Bud Roberts. "My Other Left Foot" is a reunion of sorts for onetime St. Elsewhere regulars Mark Harmon and Bonnie Bartlett. And "Bete Noire" introduces the series' most vicious antagonist, Ari Haswari (Rudolf Martin)--Hamad/Mossad double agent, terrorist, master of disguise, and ultimate assassin of one of the show's best-loved characters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, (more)
From the producer and writer of Spice World and the director of She's All That comes this musical comedy inspired by and featuring the stars of Fox's hit reality show American Idol. Starring the winner and runner-up of the show's first season, Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini, as slightly fictionalized versions of themselves, From Justin to Kelly attempts to recreate the atmosphere of the fun-loving beach musicals of the 1960s. When Kelly (Clarkson) and Justin (Guarini) embark on a vacation in search of some fun in the sun with their respective groups of friends, the two meet and fall for each other at first sight. Unfortunately, a series of comedic mishaps and hijinks gets in the way of them getting together. Several song-and-dance numbers ensue. In addition to Clarkson and Guarini, the film stars Greg Siff, Brian Dietzen, and Katherine Bailess. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kelly Clarkson, Justin Guarini, (more)
