Celebrity crush: Pauley Perrette

This one's sort of a request; I'm not a regular NCIS viewer, but I've always enjoyed this actress' comedic skills there as a quirky Goth, and of course there's the whole Cote de Pablo thing.

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Name: Pauley Perrette (images | YouTube channel | Twitter)

Hometown: New Orleans, La., according to her Wikipedia profile.

Best Known For: Pauley is best known for her work on shows whose titles are acronyms: She's been with NCIS since the beginning, indeed even earlier than that, appearing in the JAG episodes that served as a backdoor pilot for the series. She's guest-starred on NCIS: Los Angeles as well, playing the same character. And before that, she appeared on an episode of CSI (but not as the same character).

That's kept her busy for the last almost 10 years, though her résumé extends back to an ABC Afternoon Special in 1994 and includes a number of indie films (including Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous and My First Mister with Leelee Sobieski and Albert Brooks), the big-studio horror film The Ring, and an appearance in a Metallica video.

Beyond that, she's a published writer, though her Wikipedia entry is sparse on details, and has served in a variety of behind-the-scenes roles (directing, production, voice work) as well.

Humble Beginnings: As I said: An ABC Afternoon Special starts her list of screen credits. She's appeared on Dawson's Creek and 24, Tea Leoni's sitcom The Naked Truth and Kim Delaney's legal drama Philly, Stephen Bochco's legal drama Murder One and The Drew Carey Show, and even the Jennifer Love Hewitt-fronted Party of Five spinoff The Time of Your Life.

Not the Courteney Cox Factor: Pauley's a singer as well as an actress, though her work so far has turned up on TV (NCIS) or film (Legally Blonde) soundtracks.

Why Ye Olde Podcaster Likes Her: She brings the funny on a consistent basis on NCIS but is also -- from what I've seen -- the heart and soul of the investigation team in many ways. And she's able to pull off the Goth look as an adult woman -- one past her 20s -- without looking utterly ridiculous.

Film and TV-movie credits: The Girl from Mars (post-production) (Amazon | iTunes) * Satan Hates You (Amazon | iTunes) * The Singularity Is Near (2010 documentary) (Amazon | iTunes) * To Comfort You (2009 short) (Amazon | iTunes) * Potheads: The Movie (Amazon | iTunes) * A Moment of Grace (2004 short) (Amazon | iTunes) * Cut and Run (2004 short) (Amazon | iTunes) * Ash Tuesday (Amazon | iTunes) * Hungry Hearts (2002) (Amazon | iTunes) * The Ring (Amazon | iTunes) * Red Skies (2002 TV-movie) (Amazon | iTunes) * My First Mister (Amazon | iTunes) * Almost Famous (Amazon | iTunes) * Malicious Intent (Amazon | iTunes) * Hoofboy (1998 short) (Amazon | iTunes) * Hand on the Pump (1998 short) (Amazon | iTunes) * The Price of Kissing (Amazon | iTunes)

TV and Web Series Credits: NCIS, season 9 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 8 (Amazon | iTunes) * FCU: Fact Checkers Unit (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 7 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS: Los Angeles, season 1 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 6 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 5 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 4 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 3 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 2 (Amazon | iTunes) * NCIS, season 1 (Amazon | iTunes) * JAG, season 8 (Amazon | iTunes) * CSI, season 3: "Lady Heather's Box" (Amazon | iTunes) * Haunted: "Fidelity" (Amazon | iTunes) * 24, season 1 (Amazon | iTunes) * Special Unit 2, season 2 (Amazon | iTunes) * Dawson's Creek, season 5 (Amazon | iTunes) * Philly: "Light My Fire" (Amazon | iTunes) * Dead Last: "Death Is in the Air" (Amazon | iTunes) * Time of Your Life (Amazon | iTunes) * Veronica's Closet, season 2: "Veronica's Little Ruse" (Amazon | iTunes) * Jesse, season 1 (Amazon | iTunes) * The Drew Carey Show, season 4 (Amazon | iTunes) * The Naked Truth, season 3: "The Seer and the Sucker" (Amazon | iTunes) * That's Life (Amazon | iTunes) * Frasier, season 4 (Amazon | iTunes) * Early Edition, season 1: "Mob Wife" (Amazon | iTunes) * Murder One, season 2 (Amazon | iTunes) * Moloney: Pilot (Amazon | iTunes) * ABC Afternoon Specials, season 23: "Magical Make-Over" (Amazon | iTunes)

Music Videos: "The Unnamed Feeling" by Metallica (iTunes)

Written Work: Pills, Chills, Thrills and Heartache: Adventures in the First Person (short story "Cheers...") (Amazon)

Voice Work: Brother Bear (Amazon | iTunes) * Batman Beyond, season 1: "Golem" (Amazon | iTunes) * Blade Runner (1997 video game)

Music: "Fear" (with Stop Making Friends), NCIS soundtrack (Amazon | iTunes) * "Can't Get Me Down" (with Lo-Ball), Legally Blonde soundtrack (Amazon | iTunes) * "Fire in Your Eyes" (with B. Taylor) (Amazon | iTunes)

Directing and Production Credits: Citizen Lane (2010 documentary) (director, executive producer, narrator) (Amazon | iTunes) * The American Shame (2001) (associate producer) (Amazon | iTunes)