The events of September 11, 2001, had a huge impact on people. Jane Leeves, who starred in Frasier, recalled how the heartbreaking news left them stunned. Much later, the cast learned that David Angell, the co-creator and executive producer of Frasier, was among the victims.

The entire cast, including Jane Leeves, was heartbroken. The actress recalled facing the tough question upon returning to the Frasier production. She remembered wondering how they would bring comedy and laughter back to the screen amid such a difficult time.

Jane Leeves recently appeared on Dinner’s On Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson. The actor spoke about returning to the set to film Frasier after the shocking events of September 11, 2001. She recalled wondering how to approach comedy after one of the most devastating tragedies.

“And I remember when we had to go back to work, just like, how are we going to do this? How are we going to do comedy now?,” she said.

But it is often comedy that can offer some comfort to people amid tough times. She recalled during the show that, upon returning to the set, one of the actors, David Hyde Pierce, asked everyone to get together and share the contents of a letter from his friend. The letter conveyed a simple message about how comedy and their show had helped the person by making them laugh.

"And the letter in essence said, you know, I never thought I would feel normal again," Leeves said of the letter that David read. 

"'And I found myself watching an episode of Frasier and laughing. I was in shock. I was like, I'm laughing.' He said, 'There is value in what you do because it took me out of this horror,'" she further said about the contents of the letter.

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She recalled that it was encouraging to find out how people had been comforted by David Angell’s words. After production resumed, the cast and crew got together to pay tribute to the late legendary creator. Years later, Kelsey Grammer, who worked with David Angell in the show, paid tribute to the actor.

Frasier was not in production that day, which meant most of the cast members were at home. The same was true for Kelsey Grammer, who was awakened by a friend with the news. Kelsey Grammer recalled in a conversation with Deadline that he had spoken to David Angell before the shocking incident. He also recalled a gathering held by other producers to pay tribute to Angell. 

"He was a terrific writer. He was also a really nice guy. It was great to know him, and so losing him was something everybody felt like a gut shot," he said.

During the 9/11 attacks, David Angell and his wife were on a flight from their home in Cape Cod to Los Angeles so that the co-creator could attend a table read for an upcoming Frasier episode. They were aboard American Airlines Flight 11, which crashed into the World Trade Center. Grammer had previously worked with Angell on Cheers before teaming up with him again for Frasier. He recalled that he always remembers that heartbreaking day of loss.

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