Welcome to BlackTie Affair. This is a website dedicated to the relationship between the characters Catherine and Gil of the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. There are two ship names that are widely used to refer to this relationship: Grillows and PureJoy. Grillows is simply a combination of Gil's and Catherine's last names, Grissom and Willows, while PureJoy has not only a connection to both of their names but also a deeper meaning.

Why PureJoy
The name came from the etymology of the names Catherine and Gil. Catherine in Greek means pure, and Gil in Greek means joy. Catherine and Gil are long-time friends, the strong bond between them has been on CSI since it ever started. Through the years, they have always been there for one another such as when Catherine was threatened by her ex-husband Eddie and when Gil decided to have his ear surgery. The chemistry and the sparks between them have been obvious and undeniable, and they are one of the essential factors that made CSI. PureJoy fans think great friendships make great relationships, PureJoy is a perfect example.

Why we ship them
Catherine and Gil show a perfect relationship, a relationship of love, friendship, understanding and undeniable physical attraction. The whole package —physical, emotional and mental— is the connection shared between Gil Grissom and Catherine Willows, two seemingly opposites who complement each other beautifully like yin and yang as they show us what a true adult relationship can be.

If you like it...
Come on and join us. We have a cool forum featuring PureJoy and other CSI-related stuff. Everyone is welcome to share their love for this ship in this PureJoy haven on the internet.


Text by coolcatz and Erica, picture courtesy of the William Petersen Appreciation Page.

Gilbert (Gil) Grissom was born on August 17, 1956 to his mother (an art gallery owner) and father (a botany teacher). He is an only child who grew up in Marina Del Ray, California, and when he was eight, his mother lost her hearing from otosclerosis. Gil's father died when Gil was nine. One day his father came home from school, lay down on the couch and when Gil's mother tried to waken him, she found she couldn’t. Gil told Catherine about his father's death in the Season 6 episode Still Life.

Gil showed his interest in forensics when he was a child. He used to pick up dead bodies of birds at the beach. He has a doctorate and became the youngest coroner in the history of L.A. at the age of 22. Eight years later, he was recruited to run the Field Services Office in Las Vegas. Later, he recruited Catherine Willows to work at the Las Vegas Crime Lab. At some points, Gil also worked in Minneapolis and gave lectures in San Francisco.

When Gil was in college, he used to play poker to finance his first body farm. During his first year as a criminalist, he would attend boxing matches to observe blood spatter. His specialty is entomology, but he seems to have knowledge about almost every subject possible. His office is always filled with specimens, and his colleagues are all used to it. Two of the things Gil likes to do when he is not working are riding roller coasters and playing cross-word puzzles. Isaac Asimov is one of his favorite writers, and for music, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd are two of his favorites. He also listens to classic music. Other things he likes include fried calamari and Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels.

The three things Gil cannot stand the most are guys who hit on their wives, sexual assault on children, and the "scum that deal death to kids". His personal belief is: If you want to learn about forensics, master everything else first.


Text by Anne and Erica.

Catherine Willows was born on the 26^th of March, 1963. Her mother's name is Lily Flynn and she was once a chorus girl for one of the casino/hotels that Sam Braun owned. Sam Braun was always a father figure to Catherine. She had suspected that Sam was her real father, but hadn't been sure until it was confirmed in the Season 3 episode Inside the Box. Catherine and Sam had a love/hate relationship and eventually made up in Season 6. Sam died in the Season 7 episode, Built to Kill, Part Two.

Catherine has a sister called Nancy, and two half-brothers – Tony Braun (murdered in Season 2, Episode Burked) and Walt Braun (jailed for Tony's murder). She also has a daughter, Lindsey (who has aged dramatically through the years), with her ex-husband Eddie, who was murdered in Season 3 (Lady Heather's Box). It is implied on the show that Eddie abused her and that she is a former smoker (she uses Nicorette orange) and a reformed cocaine addict.

Catherine used to work as an exotic dancer at a strip club called the French Palace to pay her college tuition. She took night school at West Las Vegas University, where she attained a Bachelor of Science and her specialty is blood spatter analysis. She was recruited by Gil Grissom and started her career as an assistant technician and worked her way up to a CSI-3 in ten years. Her best friend back in her dancing days, Stephanie Watson, also an exotic dancer, was murdered. The murder was investigated by Jimmy Tadero who was having an affair with Stephanie and who helped Catherine get her start as a CSI. In the Season 3 episode Felonius Monk, Catherine found out that Jimmy had planted evidence in Stephanie's case and had to put him behind the bar.

The most famous Catherine line, which is also her personal philosophy is Never doubt, never look back. She told Gil that was how she lived her life in the Season 1 Finale The Strip Strangler.


Text by Anne and Erica.