# David Angell
**David Angell** (David Lawrence Angell; born 1946; died September 11, 2001) was an American television writer and producer who co-created the sitcoms *[Wings](https://www.edgepedia.org/wings-1990-tv-series)* and *Frasier* with his writing partners Peter Casey and [David Lee](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-lee), after working as a writer and producer on *Cheers*. Some sources, including his 9/11 memorial card and his Writers Guild award citation, give his birth year as 1947; others, including IMDb and [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide), give 1946.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 1946 (some sources say 1947), West Barrington, Rhode Island; September 11, 2001, aboard American Airlines Flight 11[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0029628/) • [2](https://collection.911memorial.org/Detail/objects/121847/rel/1) |
| Signature partnerships | Joined *Cheers* as a staff writer in 1983; supervising producer with Peter Casey and David Lee from 1985; the three formed Grub Street Productions[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) |
| Created series | *Wings* (NBC, 1990–1997) and *Frasier* (NBC, 1993–2004), both with Casey and Lee[4](https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item?item=T%3A50182&p=45&q=brian) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media) |
| Emmy record | 14 nominations and 8 Emmys, including Outstanding Comedy Series for *Cheers* (1986) and for *Frasier* (1994–1999), plus the 1994 comedy writing award[6](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/david-angell) |
| Education and early career | Providence College, English literature; U.S. Army service at the Pentagon; methods analyst in engineering and insurance before moving to Los Angeles in 1977[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media) |
| Posthumous honors | Valentine Davies Award from the Writers Guild of America, west (2002); Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame (2003); David Angell Humanitarian Award given annually by the American Screenwriters Association[7](https://awards.wga.org/awards/awards-recipients/honorary-service-awards/valentines-davies-award/david-angell) • [3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) |
## Early life and path to writing
Angell was born in West Barrington, Rhode Island, the youngest of three children of Mae Cooney Angell and Henry Angell. He attended [Providence College](https://www.edgepedia.org/providence-college), a Roman Catholic university in [Rhode Island](https://www.edgepedia.org/rhode-island), and graduated with a degree in [English literature](https://www.edgepedia.org/english-literature). After graduation he enlisted in the U.S. Army and served at the Pentagon, then worked as a methods analyst at an engineering company and as a technical writer at an insurance firm in Rhode Island.[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media)
In 1977 he and his wife Lynn moved to Los Angeles so he could pursue television writing. Success did not come quickly. According to his Guardian obituary, he sold a first script to the producers of the series *Annie Flynn*, then spent five years doing temporary jobs before selling another script, this time to the hit show *Archie Bunker's Place*.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media)
## Cheers and the partnership with Casey and Lee
Angell joined the staff of the NBC comedy *Cheers*, set in a Boston bar, in 1983 as a staff writer and story editor, and became a producer by the show's fourth season.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media) • [7](https://awards.wga.org/awards/awards-recipients/honorary-service-awards/valentines-davies-award/david-angell) Peter Casey and David Lee, who had written together for *The Jeffersons* since teaming up in 1975, joined *Cheers* in 1985, where the three joined forces; they eventually became the show's supervising producers and executive producers.[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-15-tv-2113-story.html) • [9](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-10-22-ca-59830-story.html)
After working together as producers on *Cheers*, the three formed their own company, Grub Street Productions.[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) A detail from the show itself reflects the partnership: the call letters of the radio station on *Frasier*, KACL 780 AM, were drawn from the first letter of each producer's surname, Angell, Casey, and Lee.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0029628/)
## Wings and Frasier
**Wings.** In 1990 the trio left *Cheers* to create their own comedy, *Wings*, set at a small airport in [Nantucket](https://www.edgepedia.org/nantucket) and starring Timothy Daly and [Steven Weber](https://www.edgepedia.org/steven-weber) as brothers running a fledgling airline; it premiered on NBC on April 19, 1990.[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-15-tv-2113-story.html) • [4](https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item?item=T%3A50182&p=45&q=brian) The Guardian obituary describes it as like *Cheers* in pilots' leather jackets, and notes it ran until 1997 and brought good ratings to NBC, the network Angell always worked for.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media)
**Frasier.** The producers of *Cheers* then approached Angell, Casey, and Lee to write a spin-off about the psychiatrist [Frasier Crane](https://www.edgepedia.org/frasier-crane), played by [Kelsey Grammer](https://www.edgepedia.org/kelsey-grammer). *Frasier* was first broadcast in 1993, moved the character back to his hometown of Seattle, and ran for 11 seasons, ending in 2004.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media) • [10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/david_angell) Angell is credited as co-creator and executive producer on 265 episodes of the show.[11](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/49048/david-angell)
The trio also made two shorter-lived series: *The Pursuit of Happiness* (1995), a NBC show they sold that had been created by their *Wings* protégé Dave Hackel, and *Encore! Encore!* (1998), a [Nathan Lane](https://www.edgepedia.org/nathan-lane) vehicle about an opera singer who loses his voice. According to the Guardian obituary, *Encore! Encore!* was not a winner, and Grub Street Productions disbanded in 1999 after Lee moved on; Angell and Casey then began working on film projects.[9](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-10-22-ca-59830-story.html) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media)
## Awards
The Television Academy database lists 14 Emmy nominations and 8 Emmys for Angell. His wins include Outstanding Comedy Series for *Cheers* in 1986, and for *Frasier* in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998, plus Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing in a Comedy Series for *Frasier* in 1994; his nominations extend through 2001.[6](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/david-angell) • [17](https://www.televisionacademy.com/awards/nominees-winners/1999/outstanding-comedy-series) With his partners, Angell accumulated 37 Emmy nominations and 24 Emmy awards.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media) • [3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) TV Guide also records a Producers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television for *Frasier* in 1996.[12](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/david-angell/bio/3030553769/)
In 2002 the [Writers Guild of America](https://www.edgepedia.org/writers-guild-of-america), west gave Angell its Valentine Davies Award posthumously at its March 2, 2002 ceremony. The citation notes that he was nominated for 13 [Emmy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/emmy-awards) as a writer and producer, winning eight for *Cheers* and *Frasier*.[7](https://awards.wga.org/awards/awards-recipients/honorary-service-awards/valentines-davies-award/david-angell) He was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 2003.[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/)
## Philanthropy
Angell and his wife Lynn were active contributors to Hillsides in Pasadena, a nonprofit center serving children who are victims of abuse; they developed the center's library, and Lynn ran its library program.[7](https://awards.wga.org/awards/awards-recipients/honorary-service-awards/valentines-davies-award/david-angell) • [2](https://collection.911memorial.org/Detail/objects/121847/rel/1) Providence College records that the Angells established a scholarship fund there in 1993, received an Honorary Doctorate for David in 1994, and created the Angell Foundation in 1996, which later made a $2.8 million gift comprising the largest component of its $3.25 million commitment to the college's Our Moment campaign.[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/) • [13](https://news.providence.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/120/2023/05/PC-FALL-2017-MAGAZINE.pdf) The American Screenwriters Association awards an annual David Angell Humanitarian Award to an entertainment-industry individual who contributes to global well-being through donations of time, expertise, or other support.[3](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/)
## September 11, 2001
The Angells spent summers in Massachusetts, where they were building a house in Chatham on [Cape Cod](https://www.edgepedia.org/cape-cod). On September 11, 2001, they boarded [American Airlines Flight 11](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-airlines-flight-11) at Boston, bound for Los Angeles, where David was to attend the Emmy Awards ceremony. The plane was hijacked after departure and crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center; all aboard were killed.[2](https://collection.911memorial.org/Detail/objects/121847/rel/1) • [14](https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/story?id=102498&page=1)
The two-part *Frasier* episode that aired shortly after the attacks, "Don Juan in Hell" on September 25, 2001, ended with a memorial card reading "In loving memory of our friends Lynn and David Angell".[15](https://dailybruin.com/2001/09/11/america-loses-tv-producer-davi) The Angell Foundation, created by the couple in 1996, continues its work and marked the 25th anniversary of the attacks in 2026 by honoring its founders.[13](https://news.providence.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/120/2023/05/PC-FALL-2017-MAGAZINE.pdf) • [16](https://angellfoundation.org/honoring-the-25th-anniversary-of-9-11-2/)
## References
1. [David Angell, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0029628/)
2. [Memorial Card C.2015.288.866, National September 11 Memorial & Museum Collection](https://collection.911memorial.org/Detail/objects/121847/rel/1)
3. [David L. Angell, Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame](https://riheritagehalloffame.com/david-angell/)
4. [Wings: Legacy (Series Premiere), The Paley Center for Media](https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item?item=T%3A50182&p=45&q=brian)
5. [David Angell obituary, The Guardian (September 13, 2001)](https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/sep/14/guardianobituaries.media)
6. [David Angell, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/david-angell)
7. [David Angell to be Awarded WGAw's Valentine Davies Award Posthumously, Writers Guild of America](https://awards.wga.org/awards/awards-recipients/honorary-service-awards/valentines-davies-award/david-angell)
8. [How a Sitcom Gets Off the Ground, Los Angeles Times (April 15, 1990)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-15-tv-2113-story.html)
9. [Post-'Frasier' Cheers, Los Angeles Times (October 22, 1995)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-10-22-ca-59830-story.html)
10. [David Angell TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/david_angell)
11. [David Angell, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/49048/david-angell)
12. [David Angell Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/david-angell/bio/3030553769/)
13. [Providence College Magazine, Fall 2017](https://news.providence.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/120/2023/05/PC-FALL-2017-MAGAZINE.pdf)
14. ['Frasier' Producer Among Hijack Victims, ABC News (September 12, 2001)](https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/story?id=102498&page=1)
15. [America loses TV producer David Angell in terrorist attack, Daily Bruin (September 11, 2001)](https://dailybruin.com/2001/09/11/america-loses-tv-producer-davi)
16. [Honoring the 25th Anniversary of 9/11, Angell Foundation](https://angellfoundation.org/honoring-the-25th-anniversary-of-9-11-2/)
17. [Outstanding Comedy Series 1999 - Nominees & Winners Emmy Awards](https://www.televisionacademy.com/awards/nominees-winners/1999/outstanding-comedy-series)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screenwriters and television writers › Television writers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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