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James Burrows, legendary director of Cheers and Friends, dies aged 85
James Burrows, legendary director of some of America's most-loved sitcoms, has died aged 85.
Best-known as co-creator of the sitcom Cheers, Burrows directed more than 1,000 episodes of other TV comedy classics including Friends, Big Bang Theory, and Will and Grace.
Attorney Tom Hoberman confirmed Burrows' death "with great sadness" to CBS News, the BBC's US partner.
In a career spanning more than 50 years, Burrows won 11 Emmy Awards and five Directors Guild of America Awards.
In a statement shared with US outlet People, his family said: "We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James 'Jimmy' Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family.
"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."
Born in Los Angeles in 1940, Burrows spent much of his childhood in New York.
As a young adult, he attended the graduate programme of the Yale School of Drama, where he got his first experience of directing.
After several years behind the camera, he co-created the sitcom Cheers alongside the brothers Glen and Les Charles. The show quickly became a 1980s TV hit in both the US and UK.
The Directors Guild of America, which awarded Burrows with a lifetime achievement award in television direction in 2015, described him as "an incredibly generous colleague" who shared his "wisdom, and warm humor with his fellow Guild members and all he worked with".
He was also nominated 48 times for a Primetime Emmy across his decades-long Hollywood career.
Actor Eric McCormack, who played Will in Will and Grace, shared a tribute on social media, saying Burrows left "an incredible legacy".
"The 800 lb gorilla of television comedy for fifty years, he was beloved by everyone, and has left not a mark but a footprint," he wrote.
Actress Beth Behrs, who worked with Burrows on the show 2 Broke Girls, shared some memories on social media: "Dear Jimmy, I'll never forget @katdenningsss and I becoming absolutely convinced you hated us during rehearsals for the pilot of 2 Broke Girls. We marched up to your podium like two fourth-graders called into the principal's office and asked you point-blank. I'll never forget the belly laugh. 'Oh girls, of course not.'"
Lisa Kudrow - best-known as Phoebe from Friends - wrote on Instagram: "Thank you Jimmy. I mean, for everything…"
Burrows directed Kudrow in Friends and played version of himself alongside the actress in the HBO comedy The Comeback.
A spokesperson for NBC, which aired many of Burrows' shows, said he was "the man behind the curtain", whose loss to the television and comedy world would be "immeasurable".
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Comedy director 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, has died, his family confirmed to People. 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 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. You can’t really learn how to make something funny, but you can learn to move the cameras,” Burrows said in a 1995 interview with The Times.
Burrows was born in Los Angeles and later moved to New York with his family 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 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 that 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 said in a 2010 interview with The Times. “I just have a sense of that.”
Another skill he learned from his dad was working on his feet.
“He’d run the scenes over and over. 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 cast 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 onscreen.
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 “Monty,” “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 fairytale 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.
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 “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 said in a 2016 interview with the Television Academy.
Among his favorite TV moments were the pilots for “Frasier” and “Third Rock From the Sun,” the long-awaited kiss between Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane (Shelley Long) and Woody’s (Woody Harrelson) wedding on “Cheers,” 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 milestone with “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute” special. According to critics, the show — billed by several outlets as the elusive “Friends” reunion and came off as a living eulogy to Burrows — fell short and did not do the legendary director justice.
In all, Burrows was nominated for 45 Emmy Awards and 17 Directors Guild of America Awards.
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James Burrows, a titan of television comedy who co-created “Cheers” and directed every episode of “Will & Grace,” has died, his attorney told NBC News.
He was 85.
Burrows died peacefully on Friday while surrounded by loved ones, his family said in a statement.
“Burrows will be remembered for something even greater: his kindness, generosity, and unwavering belief in the people around him,” the statement said.
“He possessed a rare ability to make everyone better and was known for remembering every person he met by name, making colleagues at every level feel seen, valued, and appreciated.”
“Burrows understood that great comedy was never simply about laughter. It was about humanity, connection, and truth,” the statement read. “That understanding became the foundation of a career that forever changed television.”
In 1982, Burrows co-created one of the most iconic and popular sitcoms to ever broadcast. “Cheers” took place almost entirely inside a Boston bar with a cast of zany regulars played by Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Kelsey Grammer and Woody Harrelson — among many more.
The show aired for over a decade and and scored huge ratings on NBC’s Thursday night “Must See TV.” The show racked up 28 Emmy awards out of 117 nominations.
Its final episode in 1993 was the second most-watched series finale in television history, second only to “M*A*S*H.”
Among his most notable accomplishments was directing every episode of “Will & Grace” during the show’s initial run from 1998 to 2006.
Set in New York, the sitcom follows the antics of two best friends — Will Trumana, a gay lawyer played by Eric McCormack, and Debra Messing’s Grace Adler, a straight interior designer. It was the first time a gay character was featured in a starring role and helped to change the course of TV history.
“I think ‘Will & Grace’ did more to educate the American public more than almost anything anybody has done so far. People fear that which is different. Now they’re beginning to understand,” then-Vice President Joe Biden said in 2012 on “Meet the Press.”
McCormack, who is not gay in real life, paid tribute to the late director after hearing news of his passing.
“We lost a giant today, a mentor to me and a dear friend,” McCormack wrote in an Instagram post. “The 800 lb gorilla of television comedy for fifty years, he was beloved by everyone, and has left not a mark but a footprint. An incredible legacy. Jimmy, thank you for everything you gave us. I love you. And I send so much love to Debbie and your whole beautiful family.”
Burrows’ formidable career spanned entire generations of television viewers, during which he worked on many of the most memorable sitcoms from the 1970s through the 2000s, including “Friends,” “Frasier,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Taxi” and “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” where he got his start in 1974.
Most recently, he appeared as a fictionalized version of himself alongside “Friends” alum Lisa Kudrow in the “The Comeback” on HBO.
His numerous accolades include 11 Primetime Emmys and five Directors Guild of America awards.
“Few individuals have had a greater impact on television comedy than James Burrows,” Journey Gunderson, National Comedy Center executive director, said in a statement. “His work helped define television’s most beloved comedies, and his legacy is woven into the history of comedy itself.”
In 2016, the cast of “Friends” reunited in New York to celebrate Burrows’ directing his 1,000th episode, a milestone he reached in November 2015 while working on the NBC sitcom “Crowded.”
“We would do anything for Jim Burrows because he really gave us the opportunity of a lifetime, and probably the best 10 years of our acting careers that we will forever remember,” Aniston said at the time.
“I think he taught us everything we know about comedy timing, support, collaboration,” she added. “He’s our papa.”
Burrows is credited with nurturing chemistry and camaraderie among the young cast of “Friends” when the show first started. He famously took the then-unknown stars on a group trip to Las Vegas and encouraged them to let loose before becoming household names.
“This is your last shot at anonymity,” he told Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, David Shwimmer and Matt LeBlanc.
Burrows was born in Los Angeles into a creative family that had already cemented its hold on the entertainment industry. His father, writer and composer Abe Burrows, co-wrote “Guys and Dolls” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” People reported.
He attended the High School of Music & Art in New York after his family relocated to the East Coast and graduated from Oberlin College before receiving a master’s degree from Yale School of Drama.
Burrows is survived by his wife, Debbie, his four daughters, and his seven grandchildren.
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