David Caruso finally gets it. His sullen behavior, and quick exit from NYPD Blue four episodes into the second season in 1994, wasn't the brightest career move.

        “I don't think I could have helped but grow up quite a bit,” the actor says.

        Mr. Caruso returns to TV this fall with a golden opportunity. He's the star of CBS' CSI: Miami, a spinoff from TV's No. 1 drama, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

        At 10 p.m. Monday, following CBS' comedy block, he could have a Top 10 show instantly for the Sept. 23 premiere. That didn't happen with his short-lived Michael Hayes drama five years ago, which struggled for ratings at 9 p.m. Tuesday against Frasier and Home Improvement.

        “While we all understand that I mishandled the NYPD Blue situation quite handily, I've had a number of opportunities — along with Michael Hayes and now CSI — to grow up and realize what has been provided for me,” he says.

        Mr. Caruso's feature film career never blossomed after bolting from NYPD Blue. While former partner Dennis Franz won four Emmys for NYPD Blue, Mr. Caruso flopped with films like Jade, Kiss of Death, Proof of Life and Session 9.

        “I've had nine years to think about it,” says the actor, who had recently moved to Miami when CSI producers were searching for a spinoff star.

        “I know there were a number of names being considered, and I just kind of fell into place,” he says. “It was just a timing thing.”

        On CSI: Miami he plays Miami-Dade County criminal investigator Horatio Caine, a character not unlike his NYPD Blue Det. John Kelly. Unlike the Las Vegas CSI lab rats, Miami's crime scene investigators are police officers.

        “In Florida, all the CSIs start as police officers and they add science. In Las Vegas, it's the other way around. Most of them are private-sector people,” he says.

        Mr. Caruso, 46, sees a big difference between Kelly and Caine, one not apparent in the CSI: Miami pilot broadcast May 9 on CSI.

        “The Kelly character on NYPD Blue is a heart-on-his-sleeve guy. You knew what he was thinking. Horatio Caine allows you to earn his trust, before he shares it with you,” he explains.

        Like him or not, anyone who saw the CSI: Miami pilot knows that Mr. Caruso is a powerful presence on the small screen. That's why producers have added Kim Delaney, another NYPD Blue veteran (after Mr. Caruso left), to the cast. She plays Officer Megan Donner, a DNA expert whose trust in science leads to conflicts with Caine.

        Producers say they liked the powerful chemistry between Mr. Caruso and CSI's Marg Helgenberger in the pilot. What they don't say is that Emily Procter, the polite Southern belle (Ainsley Hayes from The West Wing) who plays ballistics expert Calleigh Duquesne, was no match for Mr. Caruso.

        Ann Donahue, the 1973 Loveland High School graduate who is an executive producer on both CSI shows, pointed to Mr. Caruso and Ms. Delaney at a press conference with TV critics last month and said: “These actors are amazing! And they smolder.”

        They will continue smoldering, one of many differences from the original CSI formula. While the Las Vegas characters are introverted science geeks, the Miami officers are extroverts who go out to dinner and enjoy the South Beach night life.

        “Everything is a secret with the (Las Vegas) casinos, and it's the opposite with CSI: Miami,” says Ms. Donahue, who has written for Picket Fences, Murder One, 21 Jump Street, China Beach and High Incident.

        Adds creator Anthony Zuiker, the former Mirage Hotel tram driver: “In Las Vegas, you go to escape and not be seen. And in Miami, you go to be seen. We're going to work on those metaphors.”

        Most of the CSI action happens at night. CSI: Miami takes place in Florida sunlight, starting with a passenger jet crash into the Everglades in the fall premiere.

        You could say the difference between the two CSI shows is night and day. You could also say that about the star.

        E-mail jkiesewetter@enquirer.com. Past columns at Enquirer.com/columns/kiese

Restaurant's opening touched by tragedy
Menu favors seafood, vegetables
Prices, tips European-style
Imported furnishings, local artists decorate restaurant
KIESEWETTER: Caruso is back on scene
Today's chat: West Nile virus
Get to it
'Signs' best of fading films
Fitness equipment steps into decor limelight
New mom needs to build endurance slowly
Fit Bits
Hall & Oates play nostalgia card
Vandross, others touch crowd's soul