James Burrows, the director whose fingerprints are on a staggering share of America's most famous sitcoms, died Friday. He was 85. Burrows' family confirmed his death to People, providing no details except that he died surrounded by his family. The 11-time Emmy winner co-created Cheers, directed most of its 278 episodes, and went on to steer every installment of Will & Grace across both its original run and revival, per the Hollywood Reporter. Over a four-decade career, Burrows became television's go-to half-hour director, racking up more than 50 pilots, including Friends, Frasier, The Big Bang Theory, Taxi, Two and a Half Men, and Third Rock From the Sun.
The son of Guys and Dolls writer Abe Burrows, he started out in theater before transitioning to TV for The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1974. Burrows ultimately directed more than 1,000 episodes of television. Known for endlessly reworking a joke until it landed, he said his approach hinged on collaboration and getting casts to genuinely connect offscreen. He collected more than 40 Emmy nominations, four Directors Guild of America Awards, and the guild's Lifetime Achievement honor. Burrows most recently returned to Frasier to direct episodes of the 2023 reboot.
"He is without a doubt the person any actor wants calling the shots when the cameras are rolling," Cheers and Frasier star Kelsey Grammer once said, per the New York Times. Burrows wrote in his 2022 memoir, Directed by James Burrows: "When I direct a television show, I try to reach that sweet spot where the best script meets the best performance and the best chemistry between performers. Hitting that exact moment, where these factors land in combination, results in the sweetest and most enduring laugh."
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
