Janice Burgess, 'Backyardigans' Creator, Dead at 72
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Janice Burgess, creator of Nick Jr. animated series, The Backyardians, is dead at 72.
On Tuesday, March 5, her longtime friend, Brown Johnson, confirmed the news to The New York Times. Burgess reportedly died in hospice care on Saturday, March 2, following a battle with breast cancer.
The Backyardigans won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Special Class Animated Program in 2008; the series ran from 2004 to 2013 for four seasons.
During her career, Burgess also served as a writer for other Nickelodeon series, Bubble Guppies and Little Bill—the latter of which also earned her an Emmy. Additionally, she worked as a production manager for Blue's Clues, Allegra's Window and Gullah, Gullah Island.
Fracaswell Hyman, another of Burgess' friends, penned a touching tribute via Instagram in the wake of her death.
"I met Janice Burgess early in my career when I was head writer on GULLAH GULLAH ISLAND and she was assigned to be our Executive in Charge of Production," Hyman shared alongside a photo of her friend sitting at a beach. "This is the person the network sends to the set to make sure the money is not going to waste. Janice swept in with her acid-tongued wit, flowing Hermes scarves and omnipresent cigarettes. Instead of an overseer, she became a friend."
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"She recognized my magic before I did and made sure I was in the room and under consideration for many of the shows that came my way," Hyman continued, noting that Burgess' "script/story critiques were astute, clear and constructive."
She concluded: "Janice, Maria Perez-Brown and I developed shows together, gossiped together and oh, how we laughed! I will miss my dear friend. RIP. Oh, how we laughed…"
