Phillip P. Keene

It's a rare breed of actor that can stake the entirety of his career on playing a single character; Phillip P. Keene fit that bill. At age 38, Keene kicked off his screen career on an early episode of "The Closer" (TNT 2005-2012), playing the supporting role of surveillance expert Buzz Watson. Over the next decade, Keene transformed Buzz into a formidable component of the crime drama program, as well as of its spinoff series "Major Crimes" (TNT 2012-). Phillip P. Keene was born in Los Angeles, California. Studying history and art history at University of California, Los Angeles, Keene's earliest occupational pursuits did not, in fact, belong to the realm of performance. Following college, Keene showcased a special interest in aviation; he obtained his pilot license and worked as a flight attendant for Pan American World Airways until the company's dissolution in 1991. Years later, Keene pursued a career on the screen, debuting with a minor role in the Scott Bakula-starring drama "Role of a Lifetime" (2002), and then on an episode of the short-lived legal drama "The D.A." (ABC 2004). The following year, Keene landed the part that would stick with him, the character Buzz Watson, a surveillance expert for the Los Angeles Police Department, on the crime series "The Closer" (TNT 2005-2012). Although Keene began his tenure on the show as a supporting player, he graduated quickly to a co-starring position among the members of the series' central ensemble. Outside of "The Closer," Keene starred in the short film "The Truth Is Underrated" (2008), helmed by the series' makeup artist and occasional director Stacey K. Black. Following the cancelation of the long-running program, Keene and several "The Closer" stars brought their characters to a spinoff series, "Major Crimes" (TNT 2012-). Shortly after the premiere thereof, he nabbed a role in the crime feature "I Am Death" (2013). Also in 2013, Keene married writer and producer James Duff, creator of "The Closer" and "Major Crimes."