Maryedith Burrell
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Maryedith Burrell (born Maryedith Ann Theresa Smith)is an American actress, comedian, film and television producer, writer and documentarian best known for starring roles on the television series '' Fridays'', '' Throb'', Ron Howard's '' Parenthood'', and '' The Jackie Thomas Show'' as well as recurring roles in the television series ''
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'' and ''
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''.


Early life

Burrell is a native of Gilroy, California, the daughter of Gilroy's city historian, Howard Smith, and his wife, Pat. After attending Santa Catalina School on scholarship, Burrell headed to
UC Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of California system. Located in Monterey Bay ...
, working and studying simultaneously with
American Conservatory Theater The American Conservatory Theater (ACT) is a nonprofit theater company in San Francisco, California, United States, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. It also has an attached acting school. History The American ...
and The San Francisco Mime Troupe. While attending college, Burrell workshopped with The
Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...
and director
Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...
, as well as Teatro Campensino with Louis Valdez. After two terms at UCSC, she transferred to
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
and as a student in its Theatre Arts Program received the
Hugh O'Brian Hugh O'Brian (born Hugh Charles Krampe; April 19, 1925 – September 5, 2016) was an American actor and humanitarian, best known for his starring roles in the American Broadcasting Company, ABC Western (genre), Western television series ' ...
acting award. The acting award judges included Academy Award winner
Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, he was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in comedy-drama films. He received num ...
, who became an early mentor. She graduated from UCLA in 1972. Roles on television shows such as ''
Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
'', '' M*A*S*H'' and '' Remington Steele'' soon followed.


Early acting and writing

After attending college, Burrell worked as a publicist for the new Westwood Playhouse. While there she met actors
Jason Robards Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he gained a reputation as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill. Robards received numerous accola ...
,
Shelley Winters Shelley Winters (born Shirley Schrift; August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was an American film actress whose career spanned seven decades. She won Academy Awards for ''The Diary of Anne Frank (1959 film), The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and ' ...
, and
Lee Grant Lee Grant (born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal; October 31, during the mid-1920s) is an American actress, documentarian, and director. In a career spanning over seven decades, she won an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Directors Guil ...
who encouraged her to pursue an acting career. She soon began performing with the Los Angeles-based improv troupe The Groundlings. She went on to work with
The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise. It is the oldest improvisational theater troupe to be continuously based in Chicago, with training programs and live theaters in Toronto and New York. Since its debut in 1959, it has b ...
, The Comedy Store Players, Sills And Company, Off The Wall, and The War Babies. At The War Babies, Ann Marcus, producer of Norman Lear's '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'', invited Burrell to write for ''
The Life and Times of Eddie Roberts ''The Life and Times of Eddie Roberts'' (a.k.a. ''L.A.T.E.R.'') is an American syndicated television sitcom about a college professor and his family. It was intended to be a spoof of soap operas in the same style as ''Soap Soap is a salt ...
''. This kicked off a number of writing jobs.


''Fridays''

In 1979, the producers of '' Fridays'' saw Burrell in an HBO presentation of The War Babies at The Roxy Theatre and tapped her for the new
American Broadcasting Company The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast Television broadcaster, television and radio Radio network, network that serves as the flagship property of the Disney Entertainment division ...
late-night comedy show. She became a member of the ensemble, which included
Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He is known for his dry wit, portrayals of awkward social situations, and brutally honest takes on everyday life. He has received two Prim ...
,
Michael Richards Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor and former stand-up comedian. He achieved global recognition for starring as Cosmo Kramer on the NBC television sitcom ''Seinfeld'' from 1989 to 1998. He began his career as a ...
, and Melanie Chartoff. Her characterizations of the deadly serious Friday Focus Reporter and Battle Boy's chain-smoking mother were standouts.


Post ''Fridays''

Shelley Duvall Shelley Alexis Duvall (July 7, 1949 – July 11, 2024) was an American actress and producer. She is known for her distinctive screen presence, her portrayals of eccentric characters, and her later productions in children's programming. Her acco ...
hired Burrell to write at least three episodes for her new series, ''
Faerie Tale Theatre ''Faerie Tale Theatre'' (also known as ''Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre'') is an American award-winning live-action fairytale fantasy drama anthology television series created and presented by actress Shelley Duvall. The series originally ...
''. The award-winning show was unique at the time for its cross-pollination of star talent from stage, television, and film. Burrell worked with directors
Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola ( ; born April 7, 1939) is an American filmmaker. He is considered one of the leading figures of the New Hollywood and one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. List of awards and nominations received by Francis Ford Coppo ...
, Michael Lindsay-Hogg,
Peter Medak Péter Medák (born 23 December 1937) is a Hungarians in the United Kingdom, Hungarian-British film and television director. Early life Born in Budapest, Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary, he was the son of Elisabeth (née Diamounstein) and Gyula Med ...
, and
Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...
as well as actors Susan Sarandon,
Lee Remick Lee Ann Remick (; December 14, 1935 – July 2, 1991) was an American actress and singer. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for the film ''Days of Wine and Roses (film), Days of Wine and Roses'' (1962) and was nominated fo ...
,
Carrie Fisher Carrie Frances Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016) was an American actress and writer. She played Princess Leia in the Star Wars original trilogy, original ''Star Wars'' films (1977–1983) and reprised the role in'' Star Wars: The F ...
,
Klaus Kinski Klaus Kinski (, born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski 18 October 1926 – 23 November 1991) was a German actor. Equally renowned for his intense performance style and notorious for his volatile personality, he appeared in over 130 film roles in a ...
, and Burgess Meredith. Burrell wrote an adaptation of '' The Little Match Girl'' for broadcast on NBC in December 1987, starring William Daniels. This launched a career writing films and mini-series for every major television network in America as well as several in Europe. Credits include: '' Mr. St. Nick'', '' The Great Mom Swap'', ''UFO Cafe'', ''Mabel and the Bootleg King'', ''The Last Vampire'', ''Janus Highway'', and ''Dominion'' for TNT. Burrell pursued dual careers as a performer and screenwriter. After ''Fridays'', Burrell went on to star in the television series ''Throb'', Ron Howard's ''Parenthood'', ''The Jackie Thomas Show'', and appeared in recurring roles on ''Seinfeld'' and ''Home Improvement''. She guest-starred on television shows including ''
Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...
'', '' Chicago Hope'' and ''
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''. Burrell acted in several television films, including ''White Hot: The Mysterious Death of Thelma Todd'' with
Loni Anderson Loni Anderson (born August 5, 1945) is an American actress. She played receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on the CBS sitcom ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' (1978–1982), which earned her three Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Award nominations. Early life ...
and ''Those She Left Behind'' with
Gary Cole Gary Michael Cole (born September 20, 1956) is an American actor. He began his professional acting career on stage at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. His breakout role was playing Jack 'Nighthawk' Killian in the NBC series '' M ...
. She also acted in feature films including ''Samantha'' with Martha Plimpton, '' Ready To Rumble'' with
Oliver Platt Oliver Platt (born January 12, 1960) is an American actor known for his work on stage and screen. He has been nominated for five Primetime Emmys, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and one Tony Award. Following his acting deb ...
, and '' Kiss Me Goodbye'' with
Sally Field Sally Margaret Field (born November 6, 1946) is an American actress. She has performed in movies, Broadway theater, television, and made records of popular music. Known for her extensive work on screen and stage, she has received many accola ...
and
Jeff Bridges Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He is known for his Leading actor, leading man roles in film and television. In a career spanning over seven decades, he has received List of awards and nominations received by ...
. As a documentarian, she has produced for
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
,
Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...
, and
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, among other networks. In 2018, Burrell worked as creative consultant on an independent film, ''Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins'', about author and activist Molly Ivins. An overall deal with
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
led Burrell to work as a script doctor for both feature films and television, which she continues to do. Her feature work includes ''Dominion'' for Paramount, ''The Dating Project'' for Universal, and ''Emily Post'' for Sony. In 2014 Burrell performed a one-woman show, ''#OUCH'', which was based on her year-long recovery from orthopedic injuries that occurred when she played fetch with her dog in a park.


Filmography (actress)


Filmography (writer)


Publishing and teaching

Burrell moved to
Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...
, earned a Master of Liberal Arts degree at the University of North Carolina Asheville, and lectures in schools, seminars, and film festivals around the country. She is an adjunct professor at
Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU ...
. As an author and journalist, Burrell has contributed to ''Rolling Stone'', ''The Los Angeles Times'', ''The San Francisco Chronicle'', ''The Great Smokies Review'', and other publications. Her essay, ''An Affair to Forget,'' is included in the anthology ''What Was I Thinking? 58 Bad Boyfriend Stories''(St. Martin's Press).


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burrell, Maryedith American television actresses Screenwriters from California Actresses from California Living people American sketch comedians Comedians from California American women comedians Year of birth missing (living people) University of California, Los Angeles alumni University of North Carolina at Asheville alumni People from Gilroy, California