James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
James Burrows, the 11-time Emmy-winning director who co-created “Cheers” and helped turn such long-running sitcoms as “Taxi,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace” and “The Big Bang Theory” into fan favorites, died Friday. He was 85.
“We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James ‘Jimmy’ Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family,” his family said Friday in a statement to People. “For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.”
A master of the multi-camera sitcom, Burrows started his career shooting episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1974 and “The Bob Newhart Show” in 1975. He soon joined the quality-oriented production company MTM, which counted James L. Brooks, Steven Bochco and Gary David Goldberg among its alumni.
“They were smart enough to know that it’s better to have a director who can talk to actors rather than a director who can move cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times. “You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras.”
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved with his family to New York, where he attended the High School of Music & Art. He graduated from Oberlin College and completed a graduate program at the Yale School of Drama. He worked for years as a stage manager with his father, a playwright and director, assisting on shows such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” starring Moore and Richard Chamberlain.
He solidified his name in television with “Cheers,” co-creating the lively Boston tavern “where everybody knows your name” with Glen and Les Charles. Over its 11 seasons on the air, Burrows directed 237 of its 275 episodes, emerging as a behind-the-scenes comedy legend.
“You bring ‘em in, you sit ‘em down and they talk. That’s all ‘Cheers’ was,” Burrows told The Times. “The word is more important than the goofiness. It was all about the words — which is how I was trained, how my father was trained, how anybody who reads books is trained. It’s the word.”
His father, Abe Burrows, was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, screenwriter and director who performed in radio comedies and co-wrote the books for the Broadway musicals “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The younger Burrows said growing up on radio comedies helped him hone his ear for humor.
“I know what’s funny, and I probably know the best way to deliver the joke. Whether it’s walking out of a room, facing that way, facing this way,” Burrows told The Times in 2010. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad? Working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over,” Burrows said. “He created this wonderful camaraderie, which I always try to do. I love to do ensemble shows because that’s where you get the camaraderie.”
Burrows, often considered a fatherly manager, tried to bridge the gap between actors and writers and notably took the stars of “Friends” on a trip to Las Vegas before directing 15 episodes of the blockbuster comedy. He also threw a party for the “Mike & Molly” cast to build rapport because he believed when everyone liked each other, it showed on-screen.
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
“I’m the guy that wants you to walk the comic plank for me,” he said. “Take it as far out as you want to take it and I’ll bring it back. Sometimes I’ll take it further. But trust me.”
With his slate of hits — he’s credited for directing several shows in NBC’s primetime “Must See TV” lineup of the 1990s — Burrows amassed sizable wealth and, from an early age, was in constant demand by those seeking his magic touch for their show. However, he also saw his fair share of flops: Henry Winkler’s “Cafe Americain” with Valerie Bertinelli and a slew of promising pilots that never got off the ground. He also felt that ABC’s “The Associates” and “The Class” on CBS were canceled too soon.
From 1998 to 2006, Burrows helmed every episode of “Will & Grace,” the Emmy-nominated sitcom about a woman and her gay best friend that aired on NBC for eight seasons during its original run. To Burrows, it was the funniest show he ever worked on. He was also behind the camera for the comedy’s 2017 revival, which brought the envelope-pushing antics of Will, Grace, Jack and Karen back for three more seasons.
“It was a fairy tale literally and figuratively,” he said in a 2016 Hypable interview. “It was not of the real world in a strange kind of way. These were exaggerated characters. Although they were grounded with Will and Grace, there was this exaggeration that made the stuff you could do and get away with on that show so extraordinary.”
He won his 11th Emmy Award serving as an executive producer on 2019’s all-star re-staging of “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: ‘All in the Family’ and ‘Good Times.’” A year earlier, he was nominated for directing the “‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” TV special.
James Burrows behind the scenes.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
Throughout his career, Burrows had a penchant for directing pilots because it meant “you’re better than an episodic director” and could create something new in the writer-driven medium of television. He was also drawn to “the more uptown, the more urbane, the more sophisticated” comedies. He tried doing cinema once — 1981’s “Partners” with Ryan O’Neal and John Hurt — and said the result confirmed his belief that he was built for television.
“I’m not a cinematic guy. I’m a theater guy. For what I do, I need a live audience,” he told the Television Academy in 2016.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “3rd Rock From the Sun”; the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers”; the Rev. Jim (Christopher Lloyd) taking his driving test in “Taxi”; Ross (David Schwimmer) being attacked by a cat in “Friends”; and Will, Grace, Jack and Karen getting in the shower together on “Will & Grace.”
Late into his career, Burrows continued to work in the multi-camera sitcom format, which is shot in a studio, usually before a live audience. In 2013, he was honored by the Television Academy, and, in 2016, he celebrated directing his 1,000th episode of television programming, crossing the milestone with an episode of “Crowded.” NBC marked the feat with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and coming off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
He was nominated for dozens of Emmy Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards over his long career.
“Our Guild has lost a legend,” Directors Guild of America President Christopher Nolan said in a statement Friday. “With more than 40 years directing more than 1,000 episodes of the most critically acclaimed and audience-beloved sitcoms of all time, James Burrows was the modern master of the sophisticated comedy and a beloved member of the DGA.”
He is survived by his second wife, hair stylist Debbie Easton; four daughters; and seven grandchildren.
