Al Robbins
Encyclopedia
Dr. Albert "Al" Robbins M.D. is a fictional
medical doctor
in the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
, portrayed by actor Robert David Hall
. Al has appeared in every episode since "Who Are You?", with the exception of "Still Life" from season six
.
, birth
and death
) and it came as no surprise when he graduated with a Masters Degree in Physiology
from Johns Hopkins University
.
At a young age, Al was involved in an accident, where he was hit head-on by a drunk driver. He lost both of his legs in the accident, but walks with the use of prosthetic limbs and a crutch. Al's accident runs parallel to a similar accident that his actor had at aged 18.
Al took his first job as a coroner
in Arlington, Virginia, where he remained for several years before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada
, with his wife and three children; he has since remained there as the Chief Medical Examiner of the graveyard shift at LVPD CSI.
Robbins' first appearance was in the Season One episode "Who Are You?" He became a series regular from Season Three onwards.
of the Las Vegas
Police Department, working in close conjunction with Dr. Gil Grissom
and his nightshift team of CSIs. He is Grissom's intellectual equal – the two often carry out academically acquired banter – and, like Grissom, Dr. Robbins seems neither nonplussed nor disturbed by the actions and habits in the various subcultures and miscarriages of humanity.
Since Grissom's departure, Robbins has been shown to be developing a similar sort of friendship with new CSI Raymond Langston
. He offers his "fellow sawbones" (both men are surgeons) office space in the morgue when he arrives at the lab, and the twosome are occasionally seen singing blues
or exchanging "medical banter" about their hospital experiences while examining bodies and conducting investigations.
Due to his age, he usually sends his assistant David Phillips
to examine the body on site though he occasionally goes himself.
. His mother attributed his career choice to "spending so many days next to a dead body." He is married with at least three children; according to the episode "Overload", the youngest child was born in 1987. He has a Siamese cat which had kittens in season 5; in "Cats in the Cradle" he stated he is more of a dog person, but he contradicted this in the season six episode "Dog Eat Dog", stating he preferred cats while doing an autopsy on a woman who had her throat ripped out by a pet dog. He is also terrified of rat
s, and suits up in a hazmat suit
before hunting for an escaped rat in the mortuary in the season seven episode "Lab Rats".
Robbins has a fondness for coffee, specifically macchiatos ("Table Stakes") and plays guitar in a band he has formed with the day shift coroner. He also keeps an album of autopsy
photos of celebrities who have died in Las Vegas and wound up on his table, including Tupac Shakur
and The Who
bassist John Entwistle
. He walks with a limp and uses crutches because of his prosthetic legs. It is not clear what happened to him, although it is probably due to the accident with a drunk driver which resulted in the amputation of both his legs.
In the Season 6 episode "Dog Eat Dog", Robbins brought in a vegan
pie he had baked for his co-workers, although he has never stated he is vegetarian
, like co-worker Sara Sidle
. He told Warrick the pie was "low fat, low sugar, low carb." Warrick replied around a mouthful of pie that it was also "low taste".
Hints of him retiring have been circulating, including an episode where he utters, "I'm getting too old for this."
In the season 6 episode, "Bang-Bang", he mentions that his wife's name is, like actor Hall's, Judy, and that they occasionally attend marriage counseling and take separate vacations once a year when things get rough. In "The Theory of Everything", he mentions that he has bradycardia
and has a pacemaker
.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
medical doctor
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
in the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
, portrayed by actor Robert David Hall
Robert David Hall
Robert David Hall is an American actor, best known for his role as coroner Dr. Albert Robbins M.D. on the television show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.-Biography:...
. Al has appeared in every episode since "Who Are You?", with the exception of "Still Life" from season six
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (season 6)
The sixth season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005 and ended May 18, 2006.-Notable cast members:-Episodes:-External links:* at TVShowsOnDVD.com....
.
Early life and Background
Albert "Al" Robbins was raised single handedly by his mother, who was also a registered nurse. Consequently, Al spent most of his childhood growing up in hospital environments. From a very early age, he was able to understand the cycle of life (healingHealing
Physiological healing is the restoration of damaged living tissue, organs and biological system to normal function. It is the process by which the cells in the body regenerate and repair to reduce the size of a damaged or necrotic area....
, birth
Birth
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
and death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
) and it came as no surprise when he graduated with a Masters Degree in Physiology
Physiology
Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
from Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
.
At a young age, Al was involved in an accident, where he was hit head-on by a drunk driver. He lost both of his legs in the accident, but walks with the use of prosthetic limbs and a crutch. Al's accident runs parallel to a similar accident that his actor had at aged 18.
Al took his first job as a coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
in Arlington, Virginia, where he remained for several years before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, with his wife and three children; he has since remained there as the Chief Medical Examiner of the graveyard shift at LVPD CSI.
Robbins' first appearance was in the Season One episode "Who Are You?" He became a series regular from Season Three onwards.
Career with LVPD
Dr. Albert Robbins (known around the lab as "Doc") is the Chief Medical Examiner (coroner)Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
of the Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
Police Department, working in close conjunction with Dr. Gil Grissom
Gil Grissom
Dr. Gilbert "Gil" Grissom, is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by William Petersen. Grissom was a forensic entomologist and the night-shift supervisor of the Clark County, Nevada CSI team, investigating crimes in and around the city of Las Vegas...
and his nightshift team of CSIs. He is Grissom's intellectual equal – the two often carry out academically acquired banter – and, like Grissom, Dr. Robbins seems neither nonplussed nor disturbed by the actions and habits in the various subcultures and miscarriages of humanity.
Since Grissom's departure, Robbins has been shown to be developing a similar sort of friendship with new CSI Raymond Langston
Raymond Langston
Raymond "Ray" Langston, M.D. is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by Laurence Fishburne. He joined the show in the ninth season, after the departure of Gil Grissom, played by William Petersen...
. He offers his "fellow sawbones" (both men are surgeons) office space in the morgue when he arrives at the lab, and the twosome are occasionally seen singing blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
or exchanging "medical banter" about their hospital experiences while examining bodies and conducting investigations.
Due to his age, he usually sends his assistant David Phillips
David Phillips (CSI)
David Gregory Phillips is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by David Berman, who also serves as head researcher for the series....
to examine the body on site though he occasionally goes himself.
Relationship With Colleagues
Robbins has a good working relationship with his colleagues. He acted as a mentor to Phillips, especially in Season 3 when the Phillips did his first exhumation. In the season nine premiere, "For Warrick", an obviously distraught Robbins tells the team that he is going to have the day shift coroner do the postmortem on Warrick.Personal Life
Little is known of Robbins's personal life. He was one of a pair of twins, though the other was stillbornStillbirth
A stillbirth occurs when a fetus has died in the uterus. The Australian definition specifies that fetal death is termed a stillbirth after 20 weeks gestation or the fetus weighs more than . Once the fetus has died the mother still has contractions and remains undelivered. The term is often used in...
. His mother attributed his career choice to "spending so many days next to a dead body." He is married with at least three children; according to the episode "Overload", the youngest child was born in 1987. He has a Siamese cat which had kittens in season 5; in "Cats in the Cradle" he stated he is more of a dog person, but he contradicted this in the season six episode "Dog Eat Dog", stating he preferred cats while doing an autopsy on a woman who had her throat ripped out by a pet dog. He is also terrified of rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s, and suits up in a hazmat suit
Hazmat suit
A hazmat suit is a garment worn as protection from hazardous materials or substances. A hazmat suit is generally combined with breathing apparatus for protection and may be used by firefighters, emergency personnel responding to toxic spills, researchers, specialists cleaning up contaminated...
before hunting for an escaped rat in the mortuary in the season seven episode "Lab Rats".
Robbins has a fondness for coffee, specifically macchiatos ("Table Stakes") and plays guitar in a band he has formed with the day shift coroner. He also keeps an album of autopsy
Autopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
photos of celebrities who have died in Las Vegas and wound up on his table, including Tupac Shakur
Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur , known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Shakur has sold over 75 million albums worldwide as of 2007, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world...
and The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
bassist John Entwistle
John Entwistle
John Alec Entwistle was an English bass guitarist, songwriter, singer, horn player, and film and record producer who was best known as the bass player for the rock band The Who. His aggressive lead sound influenced many rock bass players...
. He walks with a limp and uses crutches because of his prosthetic legs. It is not clear what happened to him, although it is probably due to the accident with a drunk driver which resulted in the amputation of both his legs.
In the Season 6 episode "Dog Eat Dog", Robbins brought in a vegan
Veganism
Veganism is the practice of eliminating the use of animal products. Ethical vegans reject the commodity status of animals and the use of animal products for any purpose, while dietary vegans or strict vegetarians eliminate them from their diet only...
pie he had baked for his co-workers, although he has never stated he is vegetarian
Vegetarianism
Vegetarianism encompasses the practice of following plant-based diets , with or without the inclusion of dairy products or eggs, and with the exclusion of meat...
, like co-worker Sara Sidle
Sara Sidle
Sara Sidle is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by actress Jorja Fox. Sidle is a forensic scientist and one of the core characters of the show, which revolves around a crime scene investigation team from Clark County, Nevada that investigates...
. He told Warrick the pie was "low fat, low sugar, low carb." Warrick replied around a mouthful of pie that it was also "low taste".
Hints of him retiring have been circulating, including an episode where he utters, "I'm getting too old for this."
In the season 6 episode, "Bang-Bang", he mentions that his wife's name is, like actor Hall's, Judy, and that they occasionally attend marriage counseling and take separate vacations once a year when things get rough. In "The Theory of Everything", he mentions that he has bradycardia
Bradycardia
Bradycardia , in the context of adult medicine, is the resting heart rate of under 60 beats per minute, though it is seldom symptomatic until the rate drops below 50 beat/min. It may cause cardiac arrest in some patients, because those with bradycardia may not be pumping enough oxygen to their heart...
and has a pacemaker
Pacemaker
An artificial pacemaker is a medical device that uses electrical impulses to regulate the beating of the heart.Pacemaker may also refer to:-Medicine:...
.