In the spotlight: Rocky Carroll wins new fans in CBS-TV drama `The Agency'

Jet, Dec 17, 2001

Rocky Carroll believes that versatility is the name of the game for an actor.

The talented actor has played all kinds of characters on TV, Broadway and the silver screen.

"Portraying different characters is what being an actor is all about," he says. "You have to say to yourself, `I can do anything.' My goal is to breathe life into each character and make them real."

He first won TV fame with his co-starring role as the musician Joe on the former series "Roc." The show starred Charles S. Dutton and Ella Joyce.

He is currently winning rave reviews for his role on the CBS-TV drama "The Agency," in which he stars as the special assistant to the head of the CIA. The series, which airs on Thursday evenings, details the inner workings of the CIA.

Carroll also won acclaim for his role as the surgeon on the former TV drama "Chicago Hope."

On the silver screen, Carroll was last seen playing opposite Tim Meadows in the comedy The Ladies Man. His other movie credits include Crimson Tide and Born on the Fourth of July.

A native of Cincinnati, Carroll returned to his hometown earlier this year to direct and star in August Wilson's The Piano Lesson.

Carroll's professional career actually began with The Piano Lesson, in a role he created at the Yale Repertory Theater. He later won a Tony Award nomination in 1990 for his role in the play's Broadway production.

He describes his love of acting: "It's a calling, a passion. A lot of people make the mistake of slipping into it to see if something happens. But overnight success takes years of hard work, luck and God-given talent."