In 1979, the producers[3] of Fridays saw Burrell in an HBO presentation of The War Babies at The Roxy Theatre and tapped her for the new American Broadcasting Company late-night comedy show.
Burrell worked with directors Francis Ford Coppola, Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Peter Medak, and Tim Burton as well as actors Susan Sarandon, Lee Remick, Carrie Fisher, Klaus Kinski, and Burgess Meredith.
Credits include: Mr. St. Nick, The Great Mom Swap, UFO Cafe, Mabel and the Bootleg King, The Last Vampire, Janus Highway, and Dominion for TNT.
After Fridays, Burrell went on to star in the television series Throb, Ron Howard's Parenthood, The Jackie Thomas Show, and appeared in recurring roles on Seinfeld and Home Improvement.
Burrell acted in several television films, including White Hot: The Mysterious Death of Thelma Todd with Loni Anderson and Those She Left Behind with Gary Cole.
She also acted in feature films including Samantha with Martha Plimpton, Ready To Rumble with Oliver Platt, and Kiss Me Goodbye with Sally Field and Jeff Bridges.
As an author and journalist, Burrell has contributed to Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Great Smokies Review,[7] and other publications.