IN STEP WITH MARG HELGENBERGER
Parade Magazine
May 20, 2007
By James Brady
The cast and crew of that reliable CBS hit âCSIâ had just wrapped their seventh successful season, and I was talking with the smart, funny and sexy lead actress, Marg Helgenberger.
My character has become more confident this year,â she told me, âmore relaxed.â Margâs Catherine Willows took on a leadership role recently, when original co-star Bill Petersen took leave to do a play and Live Schreiber came in pro tem.
This week, Marg is headed to Chicago for a date at the Museum of Science and Industry. âThe whole âCSIâ cast is going,â she said. âTheyâre putting on displays of forensic science and stuff from our show. Weâre all so excited about it.â
On her recent hiatus, Marg worked with Val Kilmer on âColumbus Day,â a crime drama she called a âcool, indie movie.â (Thereâs no release date yet.) She also has a new film due out June 1. Called âMr. Brooks,â it stars Kevin Costner. I asked her about it.
âKevin plays a well-respected Oregon businessman with an innocent wife â me,â she explained, âBut heâs leading a completely double life, perhaps as a master criminal.â Marg found irony in this. âFor 10 months of the year [on âCSIâ], Iâm so hip to even the hint of suspicious behavior,â the actress said, âwhile in âMr. Brooksâ Iâm innocent and loving.â
Also in June, Helgenberger will be participating in a major breast-cancer research fund-raiser in L.A., teaming up with singers and actresses. âIâm paired with a blues singer,â she said. Didnât Margâs mother have breast cancer? âYes, and sheâs a 26-year survivor now,â she said proudly. âIâd do anything for breast cancer awareness.â
Since Iâd interviewed Marg for PARADE six years ago when âCSIâ was brand-new, I asked if Iâd be seeing her in another six.
âOh, letâs do it much sooner than that,â she replied. Sheâs got a deal.
Personal: Born November 16, 1958, in Fremont, Neb. Married to Alan Rosenberg since 1989. One son: Hugh, 16.
Why You Know Her: Before âCSI,â she won an Emmy for her role on âChina Beach.â On âER,â she was one of George Clooneyâs love interests. In films, she had terrific roles in âSpeciesâ and âErin Brockovich.â
What You Donât Know: Marg is known for throwing great parties. She loves the Steely Dan song âBabylon Sistersâ for the lyrics âDrive west on Sunset to the sea,â which she and her husband did on their first date.
Bradyâs Bits: Marg (sounded with a hard âgâ) and her longtime husband, actor Alan Rosenberg, live in Santa Monica. This spring, theyâve been looking at colleges with their son, Hugh. One of my daughters went to Georgetown, so I threw in a plug for that one. Marg herself had attended Northwestern, where she was discovered by a scout and given a role on the soap âRyanâs Hope.â Sheâs been on TV ever since. In 2000, she played Patsy Ramsey on a miniseries about JonBenet. What was Margâs take last year, when that hoaxer claimed to have been at the death scene? âIt just smelled fishy,â she recalled. âI donât know what I believe, but Iâm much more forgiving of Patsy.â
A scan of the article, along with some additional photos from the Blake Little photoshoot, can be found here