(CBS 8) - I haven't been on the set of "CSI: NY" for more than five minutes, and they're already hauling out the bodies.
For Hill Harper, who plays Dr. Sheldon Hawkes, it's business as usual.
"The fundamentals of the shows are very similar. There's always a dead body and we have to figure out who did it and use science to do it. That's the framework," Harper said.
"CSY: NY" chronicles the adventures of a team of forensic scientists who use their skills and wits to unravel the circumstances behind unusual crimes and suspicious deaths.
The highly-rated drama series premiered in 2004 and features a talented ensemble, including Eddie Cahill as Det. Don Flack. Detective Stella Bonasera is played by well-known actress Melina Kanakaredes, who is on the mend from doing her own stunt work.
"A car flipping was part of a dream sequence, but nonetheless I'm hanging upside down in a harness and had a bit of claustrophobia, so that was real exciting," Kanakaredes said.
Melina credits her success to hard work, luck and good Greek genes.
"My grandparents came to this country and it's an amazing place to be, and we were able to do so much, and our family progressed and somehow I made it here," she said.
Carmine Giovinazzo wanted to be a professional baseball player until he was sidelined by injuries. But playing a detective on "CSI: NY" is not a stretch for a guy whose sister is a real-life cop.
"I've been around these kind of people that pretty much go after the bad guy," Giovinazzo said.
Playing a brilliant lab technician is a bit of a stretch for Irish-born A.J. Buckley, who portrays Adam Ross.
"I am so dyslexic, and I failed science, like, miserably. So the fact that I'm playing a gifted scientist that has answers for a lot of things is hysterical. I look at my dialogue and I'm like, what? Who says this?" Buckley said.
Anna Belknap, who plays Det. Lindsey Moore, has a San Diego connection.
"I had an awesome time working at the Old Globe Theatre, doing 'Pericles'," she said.
But make no mistake about it, the Mac daddy of this prime time drama is Gary Sinise's character, Det. Mac Taylor.
"He's got a level of integrity. He knows how to operate things. He sets the tone for everybody and likes everybody to follow that," Sinise said.
