James Burrows has directed 1,000 episodes of television, including some of the top shows of the past 40 years. No. 1 was a 1974 episode of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," a job he got through a letter to the star, with whom he'd worked on a 1960s Broadway flop. Burrows was praised for his handling of the cast, which led to jobs on other MTM-produced shows. He also directed three more episodes of "Mary Tyler Moore."
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Burrows directed 11 episodes of the MTM-produced "Bob Newhart Show," including one of the all-time classics, "Over the River and Through the Woods," in which Bob, Jerry, Howard and Mr. Carlin get drunk on Thanksgiving and order some Chinese food.
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The knockabout "Laverne & Shirley" was a broader style of comedy than the MTM-produced shows on Burrows' resume. The director helmed eight episodes of the popular 1970s series.
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Burrows oversaw 75 of the 114 episodes of "Taxi," about the travails of a Manhattan cab company. Among them: "Reverend Jim: A Space Odyssey," in which the Rev. Jim took his driving test; and "Jim the Psychic," in which the drug-addled cabbie's predictions keep coming true.
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Burrows was one of the producers of the long-running "Cheers," about the regulars at a Boston bar. The series ended up with 271 episodes in its 11 seasons; Burrows did 237 of them.
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"NewsRadio," whose characters worked at a struggling New York radio station, had Burrows behind the camera for seven episodes.
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Though the "Friends" part of Burrows' resume has gotten lots of attention, he actually didn't direct that many episodes -- just 15 of the show's 236 over 10 seasons. (He did more with "Caroline in the City.") Still, he has fond memories and hopes that the show doesn't get rebooted -- and producers David Crane and Marta Kauffman agree.
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The witty and farcical "Frasier" ran for 11 seasons and 263 episodes, and Burrows directed 32 of them -- including "The Innkeepers," a classic in which Frasier and Niles buy a restaurant, only to have everything fall apart on opening night.
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"Caroline in the City" benefited from good time slots its first two seasons -- first following "Seinfeld" and then coming after "Frasier" -- and ran for four years overall. Burrows directed 21 of its 97 episodes.
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Of all the series Burrows directed, he's most fond of "Will & Grace." The show, about two best friends and the wacky group of characters that surround them, ran eight seasons and 194 episodes -- and Burrows directed every single one. "It made me laugh every day of the week," he said.
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"The Millers" ran only two seasons and 34 episodes, but the show was well reviewed and featured a solid cast, led by Will Arnett and Margo Martindale. Burrows directed all but two episodes.
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"Mike & Molly" will end after this season, its sixth, has aired. Burrows, who was a producer of the show for two seasons, has directed 48 episodes and, according to the Internet Movie Database, is directing the finale as well.
