The undisputed king of contemporary TV comedy directors, Burrows is so admired by the industry that his skills and instincts are in constant demand for the launching of new sitcoms. He co-created, executive produced and directed nearly every episode of "Cheers" (NBC, 1982-93), a beloved series already hailed as a classic. Prior to that triumph, Burrows was a principal director on the equally esteemed ensemble comedy "Taxi" (ABC, 1978-82). A TV director's creative input is strongest at the beginning of a series; by collaborating on the pilot, a director can help establish both the characters and the visual style. In a 1995 interview in the Los Angeles Times, Burrows noted, "Pilots are things you want to do because if somebody selects you for a pilot ... you're better than an episodic director. You're now creating something. You don't ... have these pre-existing characters. And it's such a writer-driven medium that with these pre-existing characters, most shows are almost director-proof." Burrows' resume includes pilots, premieres and/or key episodes for such hits as "Cheers", "Taxi", "Dear John," "Wings", "Roc", "Frasier", "Friends", "NewsRadio", "Veronica's Closet," "3rd Rock From the Sun," "Dharma & Greg," "Will & Grace" (for which he directed the entire series run and served as an executive producer) and "Two and Half Men." He has, of course, also directed his share of failed pilots and short-lived sitcoms ("Fay", "Szysznyk", "Best of the West", "The Tortellis", "Monty," "Men Behaving Badly," "Jesse," "Stark Raving Mad" and "Good Morning Miami" among them).
Burrows honed his craft helming some of the best remembered sitcoms of the 1970s, including "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Bob Newhart Show", as an employee for MTM Television. The fledgling director's colleagues included future TV writer/producers James L Brooks ("Taxi", "The Simpsons"), Steven Bochco ("Hill Street Blues", "NYPD Blue), Gary David Goldberg ("Family Ties", "Brooklyn Bridge") and Hugh Wilson ("WKRP in Cincinnati", "Frank's Place").
Burrows is the son of Abe Burrows, the celebrated playwright-director who wrote the book for "Guys and Dolls", co-wrote the book and directed the original Broadway production of "How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" and had a hand in many memorable stage productions of the 50s as a script doctor. James Burrows worked for his father as a stage manager for some five years. His first job was assistant stage manager on "Holly Golightly", the unsuccessful Broadway production based on Truman Capote's "Breakfast at Tiffany's", starring Mary Tyler Moore and Richard Chamberlain. He went on to direct off-Broadway dinner theater before shifting to TV in the 70s. He credits his stage experience for providing him with the most critical attribute for a good director, being able to communicate with actors and create a sense of camaraderie on the set despite the considerable egos involved. The theater also provided him with at least one valuable contact; Burrows and Moore would work together again during 1974-75, the fifth season of her classic sitcom and the beginning of his brilliant TV career.
Burrows' involvement with "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Bob Newhart Show" began well after the characters were established. Nonetheless, he helmed episodes that further explored these presumably set personae to reveal new depths, contradictions and weaknesses. On the former, Burrows seemed particularly adept with situations dealing with Mary's boss/father-figure Lou Grant (Ed Asner). On "The Bob Newhart Show", Burrows' episodes tended to stress interpersonal tensions, especially marital and familial. Burrows also helmed various MTM spinoffs and vehicles for MTM veterans, including "Rhoda", "Phyllis", "Lou Grant", "The Betty White Show", "The Ted Knight Show" and "Valerie".
Burrows came into his own as a full-time director on "Taxi", where he specialized in eliciting what TV critic Vince Waldron described as "a wholly satisfying blend of comedy and pathos" from a talented ensemble. He proved his mettle as a creator-producer with "Cheers" (alongside brothers Glen and Les Charles), which he proudly describes as "radio brought to TV." Well-written dialogue in service of clearly delineated characters was emphasized over physical comedy. Burrows has said ". . . 'Cheers' was: You bring 'em in, you sit 'em down and they talk. That's all 'Cheers' was. 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." When the writing and acting is up to par, Burrows has repeatedly proven that he can create magical rhythms and classic TV comedy. Over the course of his career Burrows would continually form key alliances with some of TV's top writing and producing talents, often prior to their key successed, including Chuck Lorre ("Dharma & Greg," "Two and Half Men"), Fred Barron ("Dave's World," "Caroline in the City") and the teams of Kevin Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane ("Friends," "Veronica's Closet") and Max Mutchnick and David Kohan ("Will & Grace").
By 1996, Burrows had only directed one feature, the poorly received "Partners" (1982). The film, starring Ryan O'Neal and John Hurt and written by Francis Verber (who also scripted "La Cage aux Folles" 1978), was a lame parody of William Friedkin's execrable "Cruising" (1980) with O'Neal pretending to be gay to ferret out the killer of a male model. Burrows wisely returned to his stronghold, helming TV sitcoms.
Over the span of his career Burrows could be glimpsed before the camera on the occasional episode of one of his regular series, and in 2005 he became a full-fledged actor, playing "himself" as influential television director "Jimmy" Burrows on HBO's often painfully funny behind-the-scenes-of-a-sitcom "The Comeback," created by actress Lisa Kudrow and "Sex and the City" producer Michael Patrick King.