Friends, Romans, and Accountants (11 Nov. 1982)

Norm's workplace party at Cheers is a miserable failure--so he tries to set up Diane as his boss's "date" for the evening.

Director:

James Burrows

Writers:

Glen Charles (creator), Les Charles (creator),

Stars:

Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Nicholas Colasanto

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Ted Danson	...	Sam Malone
Shelley Long	...	Diane Chambers
Nicholas Colasanto	...	Ernie 'Coach' Pantusso
Rhea Perlman	...	Carla Tortelli
George Wendt	...	Norm Peterson
James Read	...	H.W. Sawyer
Kenneth Kimmins	...	Fred Wilson
Jonathan Terry	...	Accountant #1
Jim Hudson	...	Accountant #2
Peter Van Norden	...	Mischa
Edie Berry	...	Accountant #3
John Ratzenberger	...	Cliff Clavin

Storyline

Norm volunteers to be his company's party director in order to advance the corporate ladder. After doing so, he realizes he knows nothing about party planning. On Diane's flippant suggestion, Norm decides to throw a toga party at the bar. Things start off badly on party night when Norm is the only one who dresses in costume. Things go downhill from there. The final blow for Norm is the fact that the woman he hired to be the boss' date at the last minute can't make it, so he pleads with Diane to keep his boss, Sawyer, company. Reluctant to prostitute herself, Diane initially refuses but changes her mind when she sees that Sawyer is a young, well-dressed, handsome man. An incident later at the party places Norm in a precarious position but elicits an unexpected response from his otherwise dour colleagues.

---

Plot Keywords:

toga party

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 November 1982 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The title is from William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, "Friends, Romans and countrymen, lend me your ears."

---

Quotes

Diane Chambers: [sitting at a table with a man, snapping her fingers to call Sam over] Barkeep? A little service please. Mr. Sawyer will have scotch rocks, and um, hmm, let's see, what am I in the mood for.
Sam Malone: How about a good beating.
Diane Chambers: Perhaps a vermouth cassis.
Sam Malone: Fine. If you need anything else tonight, please just snap your fingers... in several places.

---

Connections

References My Dinner with Andre (1981)

User Reviews