Carol Mendelsohn (born 1951) is an American

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acce ...

showrunner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...

, and

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

, known for her work on the

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

'' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''.

Education

Mendelsohn grew up in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where her father was an attorney. She attended the

Latin School of Chicago Latin School of Chicago is a private elementary, middle, and high school located in the Gold Coast neighborhood on the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The school was founded in 1888 by Mabel Slade Vickery. Latin School i ...

. Also she went to

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...

, but later transferred and in 1973 graduated from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. She then went to the

George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, a Private university, private research university in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest law school in Washington, D. ...

and practiced at the

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, office of the prominent Los Angeles–based firm Wyman, Bautzer, Rothman, & Kuchel. She also worked for the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street crash of 1929. Its primary purpose is to enforce laws against market m ...

Film and television career

Realizing that she did not want to be a lawyer, she enrolled in an

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...

class. She moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and started writing for the movie industry. Her early work included contributions to ''

Hardcastle and McCormick ''Hardcastle and McCormick'' is an American action crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 18, 1983, through May 5, 1986. The series stars Brian Keith as Judge Milton C. Hardcastle and Daniel Hugh Kelly as ex-con and r ...

'', ''

Stingray Stingrays are a group of sea Batoidea, rays, a type of cartilaginous fish. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae (deepwate ...

'' and '' Wiseguy''. As producer for Cannell Studios, she worked on ''

The Trials of Rosie O'Neill ''The Trials of Rosie O'Neill'' is an American drama television series which aired on CBS from September 17, 1990 to May 30, 1992. The show stars Sharon Gless as Fiona Rose "Rosie" O'Neill, a lawyer working in the public defender's office for ...

'' and ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime-time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex in West Hollywood, ...

''. In 2000, Mendelsohn joined the production of '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' and became its

show runner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...

and

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

. In the fall of 2003, new long-term contracts made Mendelsohn and

Ann Donahue Ann Donahue is a prominent television writer. She along with Carol Mendelsohn and Anthony E. Zuiker created the successful ''CSI'' franchise which includes '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', '' CSI: Miami'', '' CSI: NY'', and '' CSI: Cyber'' ...

"the two highest-paid female writers in television drama." In June 2014, it was announced that after 14 years Mendelsohn would leave ''CSI''. She was also co-creator and executive producer of '' CSI: Miami'', '' CSI: NY'' and '' CSI: Cyber''. In 2008, she wrote the episode "

Fish in a Drawer "Fish in a Drawer" is the seventeenth episode of the fifth season of the American sitcom ''Two and a Half Men'' and the 113th episode overall. The episode was written by Evan Dunsky, Sarah Goldfinger, Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar, the w ...

" for ''

Two and a Half Men Two and a Half Men is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn that aired on CBS for 12 seasons from September 22, 2003, to February 19, 2015. The series originally starred Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper, a hedonis ...

''. It is reported that she signed a deal with Universal in 2018. In 2022, she signed a first-look deal with

Fox Entertainment Fox Entertainment is an American entertainment company owned by Fox Corporation known for television production and distribution. The company was formed in 2019 after The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of 21st Century Fox, with offices in ...

Awards and nominations

As part of the ''CSI'' team, she was nominated for the

Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility Th ...

, the

Producers Guild of America Award Producer(s), The Producer(s), or co-producer(s) may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *Producer, a stakeholder of economic production * Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes ...

(twice), the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

(three times) and the

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

References

External links

*
"Cornell alumni makes 'CSI' television's most-watched show"
article on the Cornell University website
In the Company of Women
article on the Writers Guild of America website {{DEFAULTSORT:Mendelsohn, Carol 1951 births American soap opera writers Television producers from Illinois American women television producers Cornell University alumni Latin School of Chicago alumni Living people Screenwriters from Chicago Television writers from Illinois American women television writers American showrunners George Washington University Law School alumni American women soap opera writers Screenwriters from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American women writers