Gary Halvorson
Biography
Filmography
Biography
As one of the most prolific television directors of the 1990s and 2000s, Gary Halvorson worked on several popular sitcoms of the era. Among his more notable credits, Halvorson helmed a staggering 55 episodes of the era-defining hit "Friends" (NBC 1994-2004) and 60 episodes of "Everybody Loves Raymond" (CBS 1996-2005). Never the one to limit himself, Halvorson also sat in the director's chair for the children's movie "The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland" (1999) as well as the made-for-TV-movies "Peter Pan" (2000) and "Everything But the Girl" (2001).
Although his career in show business would have him ending up behind the camera, Gary Halvorson grew up wanting to be a performer. Music was his initial passion, and Halvorson even trained as a classical pianist at New York's prestigious Juilliard School. By the early 1980s, however, he found himself increasingly drawn to the director's chair, and before long began directing the made-for-TV-movies "Jules Feiffer's Hold Me" (1981), "The Country Girl" (1982), and "Kids Incorporated" (1984). By the latter half of the decade, Halvorson was well into a stable career as a television director. However, his lifelong love of music always kept him close to it. For this reason Halvorson helmed a number of concert specials throughout his career, including "Diana Ross: Red Hot Rhythm and Blues" (1987) and "The Glenn Miller Band Reunion" (1989), as well several live simulcasts of performances at the New York Metropolitan Opera.
By the mid-'90s Halvorson started directing TV sitcoms as well, including several episodes of "Roseanne" (ABC 1988-1997) and "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" (ABC 1996-2000, The WB, 2000-03), before he was asked to direct an episode of NBC's massively popular New York-centric comedy, "Friends." Halvorson would go on to direct 55 episodes of the show over the next several years, making him one of the most consistent helmers throughout its 10-season run. Sitcoms proved to be a good fit for Halvorson and over the next two decades he directed episodes of some of the TV's most popular comedies, including "Two and a Half Men" (CBS 2003-15), "Everybody Loves Raymond," and "Rules of Engagement" (CBS 2007-2013).
Filmography
Director (Feature Film)
Director (Special)
Producer (Special)
Post Production (Special)
Director (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
