Jay Sandrich | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jay Henry Sandrich (1932-02-24)February 24, 1932 Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Died | September 22, 2021(2021-09-22) (aged 89) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Occupation | Television director |
| Years active | 1956–2003 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent | Mark Sandrich |
| Relatives | Ruth Harriet Louise (aunt) |
Jay Henry Sandrich (February 24, 1932 – September 22, 2021) was an American television director who primarily worked on sitcoms. In 2020, he was inducted into theTelevision Hall of Fame.[1]
Jay Sandrich was born in Los Angeles, the son of film directorMark Sandrich.[2] The younger Sandrich attended theUniversity of California, Los Angeles, graduating with a B.A. in 1953.[3]
Preferring to work in television rather than feature film production (which would keep him apart from his young family), Sandrich began his television work in the mid-1950s as a second assistant director withDesilu Productions as an assistant director onI Love Lucy,December Bride, andOur Miss Brooks.[4][5] As Sandrich later noted,
Sandrich directed and/or produced episodes ofThe Bill Dana Show;The Bill Cosby Show;Get Smart;The Odd Couple;Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers;Loves Me, Loves Me Not;Soap; two-thirds of the episodes ofThe Mary Tyler Moore Show in early seasons and recurring including the series finale; he also directed 100 episodes including the entire first two seasons and the series finale ofThe Cosby Show.[3] He also directed the seriespilot episodes ofThe Bob Newhart Show,WKRP in Cincinnati,Benson,Empty Nest andThe Golden Girls. His last work as a director on television was an episode ofTwo and a Half Men in 2003.
In 1965, Sandrich put in his only stint as a producer, serving as associate producer for the first season of the NBC-TV comedyGet Smart, which co-starredDon Adams andBarbara Feldon. He enjoyed the experience but vowed to stick to directing in future. He told Andy Meisler ofChannels magazine, "I really didn't like producing. I liked being on the stage. I found that, as a producer, I'd stay up until four in the morning worrying about everything. As a director, I slept at night."
Sandrich described the responsibilities of a television director as finding good writers and actors, then creating "an atmosphere in which the actors can do their best work. The director is one step closer to the performers and therefore more able to shape the script to the actors' needs and to come up with small bits of stage business."[6]
James Burrows, a director mentored by Sandrich onThe Mary Tyler Moore Show, recalls,
I watched Jay battle tooth and nail with [writer-producer]Jim Brooks over what they both wanted for the show. It was often a loud yet healthy and constructive exchange. It emboldened me because I learned about how a passionate exchange could get you to a great episode. Writers want you to do the script, but sometimes what works in thewriters' room doesn’t work on the stage. Jay would say, "I'll do it your way, but I'm not sure it's the right way. Let me show you what we can do." That empowers the actors to feel like a larger part of the creative process.[7]
The Cosby Show executive producerTom Werner told Meisler, "Although we're really all here to serviceBill Cosby's vision, the show is stronger because Jay challenges Bill and pushes him when appropriate." Sandrich was proud of the program's pioneering portrayal of an upper-class Black family and its civilized view of parent-child relations.
The only feature film Sandrich directed wasSeems Like Old Times (1980), written byNeil Simon.
Sandrich also directed for Theatre Aspen, inAspen, Colorado,Rounding Third (2008),Chapter Two (2009), andSame Time, Next Year (2010).
Sandrich died from complications of dementia at his home in Los Angeles on September 22, 2021, at age 89.[8][9]
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