James Burrows Explained

James Burrows
Birth Date:30 December 1940
Birth Place:Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation:Television director
Notable Works:Cheers
Will & Grace
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Taxi
Parents:Abe Burrows
Years Active:1965–present
Children:4
3 Sisters Entertainment
Type:Joint venture
Industry:Television production
Founded:1995
Founder:James Burrows and NBC Productions
Divisions:3 Princesses and a P

James Edward Burrows (born December 30, 1940),[1] sometimes known as Jim "Jimmy" Burrows,[2] is an American television director. Burrows has received numerous accolades including 11 Primetime Emmy Awards and five Directors Guild of America Awards. He was honored with the Directors Guild of America Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015 and NBC special Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows in 2016.

Burrows started his career with The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1974.[3] Burrows has directed over 50 television pilots and co-created the television series Cheers (1982–1993). He has also formed 3 Sisters Entertainment, a joint venture with NBC. He is known for directing numerous episodes of comedy shows such as The Bob Newhart Show, Taxi, Frasier, Friends, Will & Grace, 3rd Rock from the Sun, and The Big Bang Theory.

He executive produced the Emmy Award-winning ABC specials Live in Front of a Studio Audience including Norman Lear's "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" in 2019, "All in the Family" and "Good Times" in 2019, and "The Facts of Life" and "Diff'rent Strokes" in 2021. He directed episodes for the revivals of the NBC sitcom Will & Grace (2017–2020), and the Paramount+ Frasier.

Early life and education

Burrows was born to a Jewish family[4] [5] in Los Angeles, California, the son of Ruth (Levinson) and Abe Burrows, a well-known composer, director and writer.[6] James has one sister, Laurie Burrows Grad.[7] When James was still a young child, his family moved to New York where James attended New York’s High School of Music & Art.[8] [9] Burrows is a graduate of Oberlin College and the graduate program of the Yale School of Drama.

Career

1967–1973: Early career

After Yale, Burrows returned to California where he became employed as a dialogue coach on O.K. Crackerby!, a television series starring Burl Ives and created by Burrows' father, Abe.[10] Burrows then took a job as an assistant stage manager for the 1967 play Holly Golightly, an adaptation of the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's.[11] The production was unsuccessful, but the job served as Burrows' introduction to its star, Mary Tyler Moore. Early on, Burrows also worked for the road company of Cactus Flower and the Broadway production of Forty Carats.[12] He also went to direct the short lived Broadway play The Castro Complex. Burrows continued working in theater as a stage manager and transitioned into directing plays.[13] Burrows directed traveling plays and a production at a Jacksonville, Florida dinner theater.[14]

1974–1981: Television director

While working in theater, Burrows wrote Moore and her then husband Grant Tinker seeking a job at their production company, MTM Enterprises. In 1974, Tinker hired Burrows as a director for MTM Enterprises where he directed episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Bob Newhart Show. Tinker asked director Jay Sandrich, known for his work directing The Mary Tyler Moore Show and later The Cosby Show and The Golden Girls, to serve as a mentor to Burrows.[15]

Burrows is best known for his comic timing, complex blocking for actors, and incorporating more sophisticated lighting in television studio shoots. He is also credited as being one of the first sitcom directors to increase the typical multi-camera television shoot from three to four cameras. During this time Burrows directed for numerous shows such as Phyllis, Rhoda, Laverne & Shirley, Busting Loose, The Ted Knight Show, The Associates, and On Our Own.

1982–1997: Cheers, Frasier, and Friends

Burrows co-created Cheers with brothers Glen and Les Charles. The Charles brothers were also former employees of MTM Enterprises and served as producers on the series Taxi where Burrows worked as in-house director for 76 episodes.[16] Burrows and the Charles brothers wanted to create a show where they could have more control. Cheers premiered on NBC on September 30, 1982. Although Cheers initially struggled in the ratings, the series became a hit, running 275 episodes over eleven seasons. Burrows directed all but 35 of those 275 episodes. During his time on Cheers Burrows also directed episodes for shows such as the NBC sitcoms The Hogan Family, Dear John, and Night Court.

Burrows then gained acclaim for directing the NBC sitcom Frasier. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for the pilot, The Good Son in 1993. Burrows directed in total 32 episodes from 1993 to 1997. The series was a spinoff of Cheers focusing on the character of Dr. Frasier Crane portrayed by Kelsey Grammer. The series also starred David Hyde Pierce, John Mahoney, Peri Gilpin, and Jane Leeves. It received critical acclaim for its writing, directing and performances. It won five Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series. In 1998, Burrows directed a Chicago-based production of the 1939 comedy The Man Who Came to Dinner starring John Mahoney.

Burrows also directed 15 episodes of another NBC sitcom Friends starring Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc, and Lisa Kudrow. The series follows six friends living in New York City. He received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for the 1994 episode The One with the Blackout from Season 1. During this time he also received Emmy nominations for directing the pilot episodes of both the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun starring John Lithgow, Kristen Johnson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Jane Curtin, and the ABC sitcom Dharma & Greg starring Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson. He also directed episodes of the NBC sitcoms Wings, NewsRadio, Caroline in the City, and the CBS sitcoms Pearl and George and Leo.

1998–2009: Established director

From 1998 to 2006 Burrows directed every single episode of the NBC sitcom Will & Grace starring Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Megan Mullally, and Sean Hayes. Burrows received twelve Primetime Emmy Award nominations for the series winning for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2000. He was nominated for directing the episodes, "Pilot" (1998), "Homo for the Holidays" (2000), "Lows in the Mid-Eighties" (2001), "A Chorus Lie" (2002), "24" (2003), and "It's a Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad World" (2005). Burrows directed every episode of Will & Grace during its initial eight-year run.[17]

In 2006 he directed the pilot of the Chuck Lorre created CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory starring Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar, Sara Gilbert, and Mayim Bialik. In 2003 he directed the pilot of another Chuck Lorre created CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men starring Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer. During this time he also directed episodes of shows such as the CBS sitcoms The Class, Courting Alex, and Gary Unmarried,, the Fox sitcom Back to You, and the ABC sitcom Hank.

2010–present: Revivals and recognition

Burrows directed high profile sitcoms during the 2010s including the CBS sitcoms Mike & Molly (2010–2016) starring Billy Gardell, and Melissa McCarthy, and The Millers (2013-2015) starring Will Arnett, Margo Martindale, Beau Bridges. Burrows reunited with Matt LeBlanc with Man with a Plan (2016–2020). He also directed the sitcom B Positive (2020–2022) starring Annaleigh Ashford. Burrows directed episodes of numerous television series including the ABC sitcoms Romantically Challenged, Better with You, the CBS sitcoms $#*! My Dad Says, 2 Broke Girls, Partners, Friends with Better Lives, Superior Donuts, and The Neighborhood, the NBC sitcoms Sean Saves the World, Crowded, and the Netflix comedy series Disjointed.

By 2012 Burrows had directed over 50 pilots for television series.[18] Burrows has directed over 1,000 episodes of television, a milestone he achieved in November 2015 with the NBC sitcom Crowded.[19] To celebrate Burrows' achievement, NBC aired a special tribute on February 21, 2016, titled Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows featuring cast reunions from many of the series Burrows has directed such as Cheers, Taxi, Friends, Frasier, The Big Bang Theory, Will & Grace and Mike & Molly.[20] In January 2020, Andy Fisher and Burrows won the Directors Guild of America Award for Variety/Talk/News/Sports – Specials for Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's All in the Family and The Jeffersons.[21]

In 2016, Burrows directed his 1,000th TV episode, on NBC's Crowded.[22] Burrows took part in two revivals, Will & Grace (2017–2020) with the original cast reunited. He received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for the episode, "We Love Lucy". In 2023 he directed the first two episodes of the revival of Frasier on Paramount+.

In front of the camera

Burrows has had cameo appearances in several of the shows for which he has directed. In the first season of Friends, Burrows appeared in the episode "The One with the Butt" as the director of the film in which the character Joey Tribbiani is cast as Al Pacino's "butt double".[23] He also appears as a television director named Jimmy in the 2005 HBO series The Comeback.[24] Burrows played himself on the series. An episode of Scrubs, "My Life in Four Cameras", had a character named Charles James in honor of Cheers creators Burrows and Glen and Les Charles. It was previously asserted in Sitcoms: the 101 Greatest TV Comedies of All Time (2007) that Burrows served as the silhouette of the customer who knocks on the door in the final scene of Cheers,[25] but Burrows himself refuted this claim on episode 9 of the NewsRadio-themed podcast Dispatches from Fort Awesome, revealing that the actual "Man Who Knocks" was agent Bob Broder.[26]

Personal life

Burrows is married to celebrity hairstylist Debbie Easton; the couple lives in Manhattan.[27] Burrows was previously married to Linda Solomon.[28] [29] He has three daughters and one stepdaughter.

Filmography

Acting

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1974RhodaAgentEpisode: "The Lady in Red"
1975PhyllisTelephone ManEpisode: "Up for Grabs"
1977The Bob Newhart ShowMaintenance ManEpisode: "Halls of Hartley"
1989CheersMan Standing in the Bar
1994FriendsDirector
2005, 2014The ComebackHimself
2020Will & GraceHimselfEpisode: “Filthy Phil, Part II”

As a director

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1978More Than FriendsDirectorComedy film[30]
1982PartnersGay-themed buddy comedy film[31]

Television

YearTitleNotesRefs.
1974–76The Mary Tyler Moore Show4 episodes
1975Paul Sand in Friends and LoversEpisode: "From Russia with Lust"
Fay2 episodes
1975–76Phyllis19 episodes
1975–77The Bob Newhart Show11 episodes
1976–77The Tony Randall Show4 episodes
Laverne & Shirley8 episodes
1977BumpersShort comedy television film[32]
Roosevelt and Truman[33]
Calling Doctor Storm, M. D.[34]
Busting Loose5 episodes
Lou GrantEpisode: "Christmas"
We've Got Each Other2 episodes
The Betty White ShowEpisode: "John's Mother"
1977–78Rhoda4 episodes
1978The Plant FamilyShort comedy television film[35]
The Betty White ShowEpisode: "Play Misty for John"
Free Country2 episodes
1978–82Taxi75 episodes
1979ButterfliesShort comedy television film[36]
A New Kind of FamilyEpisode: "I Do"
1979–80The Associates4 episodes
1980The Stockard Channing Show2 episodes
Good Time HarryEpisode: "The Wally Smith Story"
1981Every Stray Dog and KidShort television film[37]
Best of the West3 episodes
1982–93Cheers
1982Goodbye Doesn't Mean ForeverTelevision film[38]
1984Night CourtEpisode: "All You Need Is Love"
At Your ServiceTelevision film[39]
1985Big Shots in AmericaTelevision film[40]
1986ValerieEpisode: "Old Enough"
All Is Forgiven2 episodes
1987The TortellisShort-lived comedy; Executive Producer
Episode: "Pilot"
CBS Summer PlayhouseEpisode: "In the Lion's Den"[41]
1988Channel 99Television film[42]
Dear John2 episodes
1989Out on the EdgeTelevision film; Production manager[43]
1990Walt Disney's Wonderful World of ColorEpisode: "Disneyland's 35th Anniversary Celebration"
The Marshall Chronicles2 episodes
WingsEpisode: "Legacy"
The Earth Day SpecialCheers segment
Down Home2 episodes
The Fanelli BoysEpisode: "Pilot"
1991RocEpisode: "Pilot"
Pacific StationEpisode: "Pilot"
Flesh 'n' BloodEpisode: "Blood Is Thicker Than Arlo"
1992Flying BlindEpisode: "Pilot"
1993Café Americain3 episodes
1993–97Frasier32 episodes
1994MontyEpisode: "Here Comes the Son"
The Boys Are BackEpisode: "Pilot"
Madman of the People2 episodes
1994–98Friends15 episodes
1995The Preston EpisodesEpisode: "Pilot"
Hudson StreetEpisode: "Pilot"
1995–96Partners10 episodes
NewsRadio7 episodes
1996The NerdTelevision film[44]
3rd Rock from the Sun2 episodes
PearlEpisode: "Pilot"
1996–97Men Behaving Badly7 episodes
1997Chicago SonsEpisode: "Pilot"
1998The Secret Lives of Men"Pilot"
1998–2006,
2017–20
Will & GraceDirector; also executive producer
2001TikivilleTelevision film
Last DanceTelevision film
2003–06Two and a Half Men1 Episode "Pilot"
2006Courting Alex
2006–07The Class
2007The Big Bang Theory2 episodes: "The Pilot" & the Unaired Pilot
2007–08Back to You
2008–10Gary Unmarried
2010Better with You
$h*! My Dad Says1 Episode "Pilot"
2010–11Romantically ChallengedShort-lived comedy
2010–16Mike & Molly48 Episodes (Season 1-3,6) Also Executive Producer
2011Up All Night
2011–162 Broke Girls
2012–13Partners
2013Sean Saves the World
2013–15The Millers16 episodes
2014Friends with Better Lives1 episode
2016Crowded9 episodes
2016–17Man with a Plan9 episodes; also executive producer
2017Superior Donuts8 episodes
Disjointed2 episodes
2018The Neighborhood1 Episode: "Pilot"
2019Live in Front of a Studio Audience:
Norman Lear's "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons"
Segment director; Television special [45]
Live in Front of a Studio Audience:
"All in the Family" and "Good Times"
Executive producer; Television special [46]
2020B Positive3 episodes
Raised by WolvesExecutive producer
2021Live in Front of a Studio Audience:
"The Facts of Life" and "Diff'rent Strokes"
Executive producer; Television special[47]
2023Frasier2 episodes

Awards and nominations

See main article: List of awards and nominations received by James Burrows. Over the course of his career, Burrows has been nominated for fifteen Directors Guild of America awards, and for an Emmy Award every year between 1980 and 2005, excluding 1997.[48] Burrows has won eleven Emmy Awards and five Directors Guild of America Awards.[49] The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences celebrated Burrows' forty-year career by hosting a panel in his honor on October 7, 2013.

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: MILESTONES: December 30 birthdays for LeBron James, Eliza Dushku, Sandy Koufax . 30 December 2020 .
  2. Web site: Of course Matthew Perry can't go to the Friends reunion. RadioTimes. 2016-01-15.
  3. Stated in interview on Inside the Actors Studio
  4. http://www.interfaithfamily.com/arts_and_entertainment/popular_culture/Interfaith_Celebrities_Jennifer_Grey_Dances_Again_Stuff_His_Dad_Says.shtml.upl Interfaith Family: "Somebody Put Baby in a Dance Competition"
  5. http://www.jewishjournal.com/arts/article/the_heroes_of_jewish_comedy_20030704 Jewish Journal: "The Heroes of Jewish Comedy" by Tom Teicholz
  6. http://www.filmreference.com/film/71/James-Burrows.html James Burrows Biography (1940-)
  7. News: Rosemberg. Jasmin. Stars Sing Broadway Tunes for Alzheimer's at Sardi's Benefit. 16 September 2015. Variety. 19 March 2015. Rosemberg, Stars Sing Broadway.
  8. News: James Burrows - Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award in Television Direction. 16 September 2015. Directors Guild of America. 23 December 2013. DGA, Inaugural Lifetime Acheivement.
  9. Web site: Notable Alumni. Alumni & Friends of LaGuardia High School. 16 September 2015. LaGuardia Alumni.
  10. News: The Deadline Team. James Burrows & Robert Butler To Receive DGA Lifetime Achievement Award For Television. 17 July 2015. Deadline. 4 December 2014. Deadline DGA acheivement.
  11. News: Rosenberg. Howard. The Jimmy Show. 2 August 2015. Directors Guild of America. Summer 2007. Rosenberg, Jimmy Show.
  12. News: Du Brow. Rick. He Pilots the Pilots : How to succeed in television without really trying? Call James Burrows. He's the sitcom director with the golden touch. (Say "Cheers."). 16 January 2016. Los Angeles Times. 19 March 1995.
  13. Web site: Lembeck. Michael. Visual History with James Burrows. Directors Guild of America. 2 October 2015. Lembeck, Visual History.
  14. News: Weber. Bruce. ARTS IN AMERICA; A Winding Path of Laughter From Stage to TV and Back. 2 October 2015. New York Times. 28 April 1998. Weber, Winding Path.
  15. Book: Littlefield. Warren. Top of the Rock, Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV. 2012. Doubleday. New York, NY. 978-0-385-53374-4. 21–22. 1st. Littlefield, Top of the Rock. registration.
  16. News: Raftery. Brian. The Best TV Show That's Ever Been. 2 August 2015. GQ. 2012. Raftery, Best TV Show.
  17. News: Tepper. Allegra. Director James Burrows Feted by TV Academy. 17 July 2015. Variety. 8 October 2013. Variety.
  18. News: Ulaby. Neda. Making A Comedy Pilot? You Might Want To Call James Burrows. 17 July 2015. NPR. 4 September 2012. NPR.
  19. News: Andreeva. Nellie. Veteran Sitcom Director James Burrows Hits 1,000 TV Episodes Mark. 10 January 2016. Deadline. 17 November 2015. Andreeva, 1000 episode.
  20. News: Eng. Joyce. NBC Plans Friends Reunion and Hairspray Musical, Defends Donald Trump Appearances. 13 January 2016. TV Guide. 13 January 2016.
  21. Web site: '1917' Director Takes Home Top Prize At DGA Awards . January 26, 2020 . www.patch.com . . February 4, 2020 .
  22. Brian. Lowry. James Burrows Marks Directing Milestone as Sitcoms Lose 'Must See' Label. Variety. February 16, 2016. April 7, 2017.
  23. Friends. Entertainment Weekly. 10 October 2015. EW, Friends. 7 October 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151007225427/http://www.ew.com/article/2001/09/15/friends-5. dead.
  24. News: Martel. Ned. Time to Pause the Laugh Track. 17 July 2015. New York Times. 29 September 2005. NYT Pause the Laugh Track.
  25. Book: Bloom. Ken. Blastnik. Frank. Sitcoms: the 101 Greatest TV Comedies of All Time. 2007. Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, Inc.. New York, NY. 978-1-57912-752-7. 63. Bloom 101 Greatest Sitcoms.
  26. Dispatches From Fort Awesome: A NewsRadio Podcast. stolendress.com. StolenDress Entertainment. Jason Klamm and Allen Rueckert. 30 August 2016. 47:25. 31 August 2016.
  27. Web site: James Burrows, Go-To '90s Sitcom Director, Buys Handsome Greenwich Village Apartment for $4.2M. Doge. Annie. 5 March 2015. 6sqft.com.
  28. Web site: James Burrows. Celebrity Images. 10 January 2016.
  29. Web site: Burrows, James 1940- (Jim Burrows, Jimmy Burrows). Encyclopedia.com. 10 January 2016.
  30. Web site: More Than Friends. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  31. Web site: Partners. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  32. Web site: Bumpers. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  33. Web site: Roosevelt and Truman. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  34. Web site: Calling Doctor Storm, M. D.. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  35. Web site: The Plant Family. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  36. Web site: Butterflies. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  37. Web site: Every Stray Dog and Kid. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  38. Web site: Goodbye Doesn't Mean Forever. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  39. Web site: At Your Service. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  40. Web site: Big Shots in America. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  41. Web site: In the Lion's Den. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  42. Web site: Channel 99. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  43. Web site: Out on the Edge. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  44. Web site: The Nerd. Turner Classic Movies. April 22, 2016.
  45. Web site: How do All in the Family and The Jeffersons translate to 2019? Surprisingly well.. Vox. 26 May 2019. January 13, 2024.
  46. Web site: 'Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's 'All in the Family' and 'Good Times. IndieWire. 19 December 2019. January 13, 2024.
  47. Web site: 'Facts Of Life' & 'Diff'rent Strokes' Next Up For ABC's 'Live In Front Of A Studio Audience'; First Stars, Premiere Date Set. Deadline Hollywood. 19 November 2021. January 13, 2024.
  48. News: Tepper. Allegra. Director James Burrows Feted by TV Academy. 17 July 2015. Variety. 8 October 2013. Variety.
  49. Web site: James Burrows on Emmys.com.