American actor Jere Burns was born on October 15, 1954 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He discovered his interest in acting late in life, while he was finishing college. After graduating with a degree in literature from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, he landed a spot in the New York Shakespeare Festival as Don Juan. He continued to work in stage, earning roles in Broadway productions like Hairspray and After the Night and the Music. He has also studied at Tisch School of the Arts and New York University.
Jere Burns made his official television debut when he appeared on the ABC Afterschool Special, Mom’s on Strike, released in 1984. Most of the roles that followed next involved him portraying antagonistic characters. On Hill Street Blues, he landed the recurring role of pathological rapist James Fitzsimmons, and he also played a body collector on Max Headroom. In 1988, he was cast in his breakthrough role, as Kirk Morris in Dear John, a remake of the hit British sitcom. This garnered instant recognition for Burns, and he was soon cast in even more projects. In 1991, he got the part of the villainous Cade Dalton in the NBC miniseries The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw. He later appeared in the film Greedy, on the series Bob, and on 1996’s Something So Right. He also played father to Lindsay Lohan’s character in the made-for-TV movie Life-Size in 2000. Burns continued his career with a role in Good Morning Miami, as the nervous and neurotic Frank Alfonse. His other work include parts in The Mommies, Just Shoot Me!, Touched by an Angel, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter. Burns rose to fame for his portrayal of Michael in the television series Help Me, Help You, which aired in 2006. After working on series like Kim Possible and Boston Legal, he joined the cast of the CW series Surviving Suburbia as Dr. Jim. His credits also include the film Otis and What’s Up, Scarlet?, as well as an appearance in the series Psych.