EP10: Tommy Burke: Film, Parkinson's and Writing

Tommy Burke was one of the most well-known and liked people behind the scenes in Chicago PD, Skin, CSI Miami, and the pilot for Desperate Housewives. Tommy talked to me about his battle with Parkinson's, his experience in film and putting that all on paper.

Tom Meets Interesting People is the podcast where I will interview anyone from nuclear engineers to voice actors.

We will discuss the guest's work, their processes, what they are passionate about and what makes them get up in the morning.

Each episode will end with my adaptation of the Proust Questionnaire popular by Bernard Pivot and the late great James Lipton (my hero.)

This episode is also up on youtube. I have been experimenting with the video format, do check it out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36eOQ66y_VQ

Check out our social media:

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More about Tommy

A graduate of Boston College, Tommy Burke started out in television as a Production Assistant in the eighties, while working other odd jobs—from bar bouncer, golf caddy to factory assemblyman—to sustain the meager TV industry income. His height and physical build came in handy, scoring him a gig loading grip trucks for Powerhouse Films, which further exposed him to commercials and films in and around the New England area. He soon became the ‘go to’ guy of Production Assistants in Boston, working every motion picture produced around Massachusetts at that time, including Mermaids and *The Kennedys of Massachusetts*.

After a move to Los Angeles in 1990, Burke quickly moved up the production ranks, working as First Assistant Director on an independent film with Johnny Depp. Nicknamed “the Irish Bull” by his west coast colleagues, Burke went on to secure Assistant Director credits on productions including the film Close to Home*, Jerry Bruckheimer’s acclaimed TV series *Skin*, *CSI Miami*, and the pilot for *Desperate Housewives*, and many others. He spent the last five years of his film career on location in Chicago, working as First Assistant Director on Dick Wolf’s long-running series, *Chicago PD from 2014-2019.

In 2003, Burke was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. He kept right on working. Three years of doctor visits, nine operations and midnight chemotherapy infusions were all included in part of his rigorous, 14-hour shoot-day routine. To no surprise given his well-known tenacity, Burke conquered the disease into remission mostly by himself. The experience empowered him to take inventory of his life, specifically his trade, leading him to approach his career from an alternative perspective that was better aligned with his personal values. In a plot twist deserving of any big-budget production, 2019 brought with it another bump in the road; this time, it was Parkinson’s Disease at age 56. Again forced to take stock of his life, Tommy Burke hung up his AD walkie and returned to the west coast to enlist all of his drive, determination, spirit, stubbornness, and good humor in the second battle of his life.

Tommy Burke is best known in the industry for his talent, perseverance, and respectful collaboration with colleagues on all levels. And his one-liners.

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