CSI New York Star Hill Harper Would Have Been Successful in Any Field

When I recently did some research on CSI: New York actor, Hill Harper for a feature article on CBS' African-American actors, I was amazed to find out that Hill has carved out quite an academic career for himself in addition to his theatrical accomplishments as an actor.

Harper, I quickly discovered, was much more than your typical actor and a person who could one day make big news in another arena should he choose to pursue it. Here is everything I learned about Hill Harper.

Harper, who portrays Dr. Sheldon Hawkes on CSI: NY. was born Frank Hill Harper on May 17, 1966 in Iowa City, Iowa.
Prior to landing his role on CSI: NY, Harper had numerous guest starring roles on numerous television shows. He has appeared on recurring episodes of Showtime's Soul Food and guest starred on HBO's The Sopranos. He also starred in the CBS mini-series Mama Flora's Family and the UPN Network comedy/drama Live Shot. Some of Harper's other guest appearances include: ER, NYPD Blue, Murder One, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Married....With Children.

Harper has also co-starred on the CBS series, The Handler, alongside Emmy Award nominee Joe Pantoliano in a role that earned him a 2004 Golden Satellite Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. Harper has also been recognized by the NAACP Image Awards with a nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the CBS series, City of Angels.

Harper also received critical acclaim for his performance in the independent film, The Visit, directed by Jordan Walker-Pearlman and will re-team with Walker-Pearlman in the upcoming independent feature, Constellation, which chronicles the lives and loves of a family in the deep South.

Harper's recent film roles include the lead in the independent film, Love, Sex and Eating the Bones, which was accepted into the Toronto International, Palm Springs, and Pan African film festivals. The intriguing film won "Best Canadian First Feature Film" in the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival and both "Best Feature" and "Audience Favorite" in the 2004 Pan African Film Festival.

Harper's other screen credits include: Loving Jezebel, The Nephew (with Pierce Brosnan), The Skulls (with Joshua Jackson), In Too Deep (with Omar Epps, L.L. Cool J and Nia Long), Beloved, Hav' Plenty, He Got Game (with Denzel Washington), and Get on the Bus. Other films include Zooman (with Louis Gossett Jr., Charles S. Dutton and CCH Pounder), Full Court Press (with Ellen Burstyn and Taye Diggs) and One Red Rose, which he also co-wrote, for Showtime. This February, Harper will star in the HBO movie, Lackawanna Blues, which is based on the critically acclaimed stage play by Ruben Santiago-Hudson.

Again, it is away from the screen where I was amazed with some of Harper's accomplishments.

Harper, a former classmate of U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), graduated magna cum laude from Brown University with a Bachelor of Arts degree and graduated with a J.D. (cum laude) from Harvard Law School, as well as with a Masters in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government. Harper is also a full-time member of Boston's Black Folk's Theater Company, one of the nation's oldest and most respected African-American traveling theater troupes.

Here is a list of Harper's career filmography.

The Shanghai Hotel (2006) (post-production) .... Carlos
"CSI: NY" .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes (57 episodes, 2004-2006)
- And Here's to You, Mrs. Azrael (2006) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
- Consequences (2006) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
- Murder Sings the Blues (2006) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
- Open and Shut (2006) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
- Oedipus Hex (2006) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
(52 more)
30 Days (2006/I) .... Donnell
The Breed (2006) .... Noah
Premium (2006) .... Ed
Max and Josh (2006) .... Max
Whitepaddy (2006) .... Marshall Evans
"The 4400" .... Edwin Mayuya (1 episode, 2005)
- Rebirth (2005) TV Episode .... Edwin Mayuya
Constellation (2005) .... Errol Hickman
Lackawanna Blues (2005) (TV) .... Ruben, Jr. (Adult)
My Purple Fur Coat (2004) .... Wendell
"CSI: Miami" .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes (1 episode, 2004)
- MIA/NYC Nonstop (2004) TV Episode .... Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
America Brown (2004) .... John Cross
"Soul Food" .... Kelvin Chadway, Kenny's Brother / ... (2 episodes, 2004)
- Angelitos Negros (2004) TV Episode .... Kevin Chadway
- The Son Also Rises (2004) TV Episode .... Kelvin Chadway, Kenny's Brother
"The Sopranos" .... Stokley Davenport M.D. (1 episode, 2004)
- Irregular Around the Margins (2004) TV Episode .... Stokley Davenport M.D.
Andre Royo's Big Scene (2004) .... The Star
"The Handler" (2003) TV Series .... Darnell (unknown episodes)
Love, Sex and Eating the Bones (2003) .... Michael Joseph
"Holla" (2002) TV Series .... Guest
"The Twilight Zone" .... John Woodrell (1 episode, 2002)
- Shades of Guilt (2002) TV Episode .... John Woodrell
The Badge (2002) .... Gizmo
Rockboy (2002) .... Taylor Barnes
"The Court" (2002) TV Series .... Christopher Bell (unknown episodes)
Higher Ed (2001) .... Craig
The Visit (2000/I) .... Alex Waters
"City of Angels" (2000) TV Series .... Dr. Wesley Williams (unknown episodes)
The Skulls (2000) .... Will Beckford
... aka Clan des Skulls, Le (Canada: French title)
Box Marley (2000)
In Too Deep (1999) .... Breezy T.
Loving Jezebel (1999) .... Theodorous
... aka Chasing Beauties (USA)
Slaves of Hollywood (1999) .... Fisher Lovelace
Mama Flora's Family (1998) (TV) .... Don
Beloved (1998/I) .... Halle
The Nephew (1998) .... Chad Egan-Washington
Park Day (1998) .... Steve Johnson
He Got Game (1998) .... Coleman 'Booger' Sykes
"Cosby" .... Prseton (1 episode, 1998)
- Men Are from Mars Women Are from Astoria (1998) TV Episode .... Prseton
"ER" .... Mr. Jackson (1 episode, 1997)
- Obstruction of Justice (1997) TV Episode .... Mr. Jackson
Hav Plenty (1997) .... Michael Simmons
Steel (1997) .... Slats
Hoover Park (1997)
"Dangerous Minds" .... Darryl (1 episode, 1996)
- Family Ties (1996) TV Episode .... Darryl
Get on the Bus (1996) .... Xavier
"NYPD Blue" .... Bo-Bo Thomas (1 episode, 1996)
- The Backboard Jungle (1996) TV Episode .... Bo-Bo Thomas
"Murder One" .... Smooth G (1 episode, 1995)
- Chapter Seven (1995) TV Episode .... Smooth G
"Live Shot" (1995) TV Series .... Tommy Greer (unknown episodes)
Zooman (1995) (TV) .... Victor
One Red Rose (1995)
Drifting School (1995)
"The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" .... Dana (1 episode, 1994)
- Will Steps Out (1994) TV Episode .... Dana
Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings (1994) .... Peter
... aka Pumpkinhead 2: The Demon Returns (Australia: video title)
... aka Pumpkinhead II (USA: short title)
... aka The Revenge of Pumpkinhead: Blood Wings (UK: video title)
"Walker, Texas Ranger" .... B.J. Mays (1 episode, 1994)
- Badge of Honor (1994) TV Episode .... B.J. Mays
"M.A.N.T.I.S." (1 episode, 1994)
- Tango Blue (1994) TV Episode
"Married with Children" .... Aaron (5 episodes, 1993-1994)
- The Legend of Ironhead Haynes (1994) TV Episode .... Aaron
- Field of Screams (1994) TV Episode .... Aaron
- Honey, I Blew Up Myself (1994) TV Episode .... Aaron
- A Little Off the Top (1993) TV Episode .... Aaron
- Scared Single (1993) TV Episode .... Aaron
"Renegade" .... Clarence 'Dex' Dexter (1 episode, 1994)
- South of 98 (1994) TV Episode .... Clarence 'Dex' Dexter
"Life Goes On" .... Nurse #2 (1 episode, 1993)
- Incident on Main (1993) TV Episode .... Nurse #2
Confessions of a Dog (1993) .... Phil Wilson