Mark Harmon Provides Interesting Career Update, Along With A Unique NCIS Link: ‘I Never Retired’

The NCIS alum left the CBS show in 2021 and is currently working on a new project that will be released this month.

Mark Harmon may not be returning to NCIS anytime soon, but the actor is keeping busy even when he isn’t acting.

Though he left the hit CBS procedural two years ago after nearly 20 years as Leroy Jethro Gibbs, he is not a retiree.

Mark, 72, has remained on NCIS as an executive producer while also experimenting with other positions since leaving the show. What’s next for him? Author!

Fans of the actor will be able to experience his writerly side when his first historical nonfiction book, Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, a Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor, is released in November.

In an interview with People, he stated, “I left the show, I didn’t retire,” and reflected on his next passion project, noting, “I’ve always thought you can learn from history… Things have a habit of repeating themselves.”

Mark’s new book delves into the true story of Douglas Wada, a Japanese American born in Hawaii who became a spy for the United States Navy, as well as his rivalry with Japanese spy Takeo Yoshikawa. “He was a very specific guy in a very specific time,” Mark remarked of his protagonist.

Furthermore, despite his absence from acting, his new endeavor has ties to NCIS. “This is the first story (leading) to the birth of what became (the real) NCIS,” Mark said of the Naval Cr1minal Investigative Service, adding that “these agents are truly a different breed.”

I hope there’s a story here that you’re not aware of. They were performing essential work, and no one knew about it.”

He also enlisted the help of NCIS technical advisor Leon Carroll Jr., who spent 20 years as an actual NCIS special agent, as a co-writer.

“I was always asking him about the right way to do something or the way he would do something,” Mark explained. There was never one questioning on this show that I didn’t discuss with him. So when this notion struck me, I wanted it to be true. I vowed I wouldn’t touch it unless he was present.”

Furthermore, while he no longer plays Gibbs on NCIS, he attributes his interest in naval spy history to the character.

“I was trying to research it, and there was just not much information about this agency,” he explained, adding that it was basically about asking questions and meeting people, and it grew from there.

And, while he insists he is far from retiring, his newfound emphasis has provided much-needed relief from the hectic workload that NCIS demanded. He shared an update on his life after the show, saying, “I’ve got time to do whatever I want.” I can organize a meal with the boys and a vacation. I’m so fortunate that I never wake up thinking that.”

Mark resides in California with his 36-year wife, actress Pam Dawber. Sean, 35, and Ty Christian, 31, are the couple’s two sons.

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