Actor Pickens stays under radar on drama

HOLLYWOOD — Whether on screen or off, it's always seemed stormy at ABC's "Grey's Anatomy." But amid the many tempests around one of prime-time's most popular soap operas, James Pickens Jr., the deep-voiced actor who plays Dr. Richard Webber, has been a center of calm.

Even in the rash of "Grey's" controversies that have included reports of discontent on set, the firing of co-star Isaiah Washington and later dismissal of an actress in a same-sex couple plot line, the Cleveland-born Pickens, 54, has stayed under the radar. "A lot of folks in show business like drama, but that's never been my MO," said Pickens. "I just enjoy going to work."

There's more to life than work for the actor, a deeply religious man who founded the James Pickens Jr. Foundation to promote the revitalization of communities through the arts and humanities.

He's producing three performances of the musical "Gospel! Gospel! Gospel!" this weekend at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre. Among the performers joining him are Loretta Devine, who plays his wife on "Grey's," and Rocky Carroll (''NCIS").

From the launch of "Grey's Anatomy" in 2005, the chief, as his character is known, quickly came to be seen as the flawed but steady hand that guided the medical interns. Executive producer Betsy Beers said she and series creator Shonda Rhimes knew Pickens was their man.

"He's strong and in charge, but he's also very funny," said Beers.

The role was a perfect fit. Although he'd done comedy (he played Dan's best friend in "Roseanne"), his specialty has been a gravitas that has served him well in dramas such as "Six Feet Under," "The X-Files," "NYPD Blue" and "The Practice."