The veteran director-producer remembers the actor who died at 71 as being ‘funny and gorgeous’ and naturally ‘bawdy.’
Kirstie Alley was a godsend to “Cheers” when she joined the storied NBC sitcom in 1987, famed director- producer James Burrows recalled Monday as he paid tribute to the comedic star.
“She was funny and she was gorgeous. You don’t find those two things together too often,” Burrows told Variety of Alley, who died Dec. 5 at the age of 71 after a battle with cancer. Off camera, she was naturally “bawdy” in a way that endeared her to the comedy community, Burrows recalled.
Alley signed on to “Cheers” at the midpoint of its 11-season run on NBC, from 1982-1993, as the show sought to make the tricky turn from the years of romance between the Sam Malone and Diane Chambers characters played by Ted Danson and Shelley Long. Long’s exit from the show after Season 5 prompted the shakeup that brought in Alley. “She revitalized the show,” Burrows said.
The new hire made a strong impression on her colleagues when Alley showed up on the first day of filming dressed up just like Shelley Long’s Diane Chambers character.
“That set the tone for her on the show,” Burrows remembered.
On camera, Alley’s strength was her unpredictability.
