Gary Dourdan (born Gary Robert Durdin: December 11, 1966) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Warrick Brown on the television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and for portraying Shazza Zulu on the television series A Different World.\n', '

Dourdan was born Gary Robert Durdin in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Sandy, a teacher and fashion designer, and Robert Durdin, an entrepreneur and agent for jazz musicians. Dourdan is the fourth of five children. When he was six, his 21-year-old brother Darryl died after falling from a balcony in Haiti while "doing research on the family lineage". The case remains unsolved. In his youth he moved with his family to Willingboro, New Jersey. During that time, his interests included acting, music, and martial arts. Later, Dourdan moved to New York City and worked as a doorman at a rehearsal studio, where he met some of Manhattan\'s promising young artists.\n', '

Dourdan played in several bands in New York City in the early 1990s and acted in regional theatre around the tristate area. He began acting in music videos, including playing Janet Jackson\'s love interest in the video for her 1993 hit "Again", and had a cameo appearance in the music video "Move the Crowd" by Eric B. & Rakim. He received his first break when Debbie Allen cast him as Shazza Zulu on A Different World, based on a tape of him in an avant-garde play. In 1996, Dourdan appeared in the Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman episode "Never On Sunday", wherein he played Ziggy, an assistant to Baron Sunday. In 1997, Dourdan played the character Christie, the first mate, crack shot, and second in command of the spaceship Betty, in the film Alien: Resurrection. He also appeared in the films Playing God and Thursday, and on television starred in the Dick Wolf production Swift Justice and played a recurring role on the Showtime series Soul Food. Dourdan joined hip-hop artist DMC (of Run–D.M.C.) onstage at the Live 8 concert in Barrie, Ontario, Canada, and sang alongside Macy Gray at the 2005 Emmy Awards.\n', 'He is an alternative musician and a record producer.\n', '

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