David Angell

David Angell
Born	David Lawrence Angell April 10, 1946(1946-04-10) West Barrington, Rhode Island, USA
Died	September 11, 2001 (aged 55) New York City, New York, USA
Spouse(s)	Lynn Edwards (1971-2001)

David Lawrence Angell (April 10, 1946 – September 11, 2001) was an American producer of sitcoms. Angell won multiple Emmy Awards as the creator and executive producer, along with Peter Casey and David Lee, of the comedy series Frasier. He and his wife, Lynn, died in the attacks of 9/11 as passengers on American Airlines Flight 11.^[1][2]

Biography

Angell was born in West Barrington, Rhode Island, and he received a bachelor's degree in English Literature from Providence College. He entered the army upon graduation and served at the Pentagon until 1972. He then moved to Boston and worked as a methods analyst at an engineering company and later at an insurance firm in Rhode Island.

His brother, Kenneth Anthony Angell, is the former Roman Catholic bishop of Burlington, Vermont.

Career

Angell moved to Los Angeles in 1977. His first script was sold to the producers of the Annie Flynn series. Five years later, he sold his second script to Archie Bunker's Place. In 1983, he joined Cheers as a staff writer. In 1985, Angell joined forces with Peter Casey and David Lee as Cheers supervising producers/writers. The trio received 37 Emmy Award nominations and won 24 Emmy Awards, including the above-mentioned for Frasier, as well as an Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy for Cheers, in 1989, which Angell, Casey, Lee and the series' other producers shared, and Outstanding Writing/Comedy Emmy for Cheers, which Angell received in 1984. After working together as producers on Cheers, Angell, Casey and Lee formed Grub Street Productions. In 1990, they created and executive-produced the comedy series Wings.

On the Frasier series finale, the characters Daphne and Niles had a son, named David in dedication to Angell. In delivering his eulogy, David Lee credited Angell with coining the word "boinking" as a euphemism for sex on Cheers. He cited this as an example of one of the comedic contributions he made. Kelsey Grammer and Ted Danson also spoke at the funeral. Also, in 2006, a film based on the attacks on the WTC, World Trade Center, was released by Paramount Pictures - whose television division had produced Cheers, Frasier, and Wings.

The American Screenwriters' Association gives out an annual David Angell Humanitarian Award, in honor of Angell. The award is given to an individual in the entertainment industry who contributes to global well-being through donations of time, expertise or other support to improve the human condition.^[3]

References

1. ^ "Angell, Olson among industry victims". The Hollywood Reporter. 2001-09-12. 
2. ^ "US terrorism victims". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/pictures/image/0,8543,-10404256105,00.html. Retrieved 2009-08-06. 
3. ^ David Angell Humanitarian Award

External links

• David Angell at the Internet Movie Database