Cheers 

The regulars of the Boston bar "Cheers" share their experiences and lives with each other while drinking or working at the bar where everybody knows your name.

Creators:

James Burrows, Glen Charles, Les Charles

Stars:

Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger

Won 6 Golden Globes. Another 71 wins & 181 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Ted Danson	...	Sam Malone / ... 271 episodes, 1982-1993
Rhea Perlman	...	Carla Tortelli / ... 271 episodes, 1982-1993
John Ratzenberger	...	Cliff Clavin / ... 271 episodes, 1982-1993
George Wendt	...	Norm Peterson / ... 271 episodes, 1982-1993
Kelsey Grammer	...	Dr. Frasier Crane / ... 203 episodes, 1984-1993
Woody Harrelson	...	Woody Boyd / ... 201 episodes, 1985-1993
Kirstie Alley	...	Rebecca Howe / ... 149 episodes, 1987-1993
Philip Perlman	...	Phil 142 episodes, 1986-1993
Shelley Long	...	Diane Chambers / ... 124 episodes, 1982-1993

Storyline

The lives of the disparate group of employees and patrons at a Boston watering hole called "Cheers" over eleven years is presented. Over much of this period, Sam Malone (Ted Danson), a womanizing ex-Boston Red Sox pitcher and an alcoholic, owns the bar, its purchase and this life, which was his salvation from his alcoholism, which was largely the cause of the end of his baseball career. He ends up having a love-hate relationship with intellectual Diane Chambers (Shelley Long), who he hired as a waitress and whose cultured mentality is foreign to anyone else in the bar. He also has an evolving relationship with Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley), who managed the bar for the Lily Corporation, which bought it from Sam, but whose outward business savvy belied the fact that she was a mess of a woman who was struggling to find her place in life. The regular patrons are largely a bunch of self-identified losers, who bond because of their shared place in life, and because "Cheers" is their home ...

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Plot Keywords:

bar | bartender | boston massachusetts | psychiatrist | mailman | 

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Taglines:

The Laughs Are On The House!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although Julia Duffy lost out on the part of Diane, in the end it ended up being a windfall for her. During season one Duffy guest starred as a friend of Diane's on Cheers. Producer Barry Kemp saw that episode and thought Duffy would be perfect for a guest part on Newhart, it to in its first season, as Stephanie Vanderkellan cousin to Lesilie Vanderkellan played by Jenifer Holmes. Stephanie was portrayed as a comically spoiled rich girl from Rhode Island who was unsure about marrying her wealthy boyfriend that her parents approved of. Duffy was excellent in the part and Kemp and CBS, who were dissatisfied with the Leslie character, decided in season two to offer her a co-starring role as Stephanie. In the plot line Stephanie had left her boyfriend and was disowned by her parents, necessitating her to find a job. Dick and JoAnna Loudon, Newhart and Mary Frann's characters, offer her a job at their Stafford Inn as a maid, the comedy arising from the rich pampered Stephanie now having to work as a maid and do menial work. The character became a television classic and would earn Duffy a record seven Emmy nominations.

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Goofs

IN the Cheers series Frasier Crane is said to have scientists for parents but in the spin-off "Frasier", his dad is a police man.

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Quotes

Rebecca: There is some crap up with which I will not put.

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Crazy Credits

The style of the opening credits never changed throughout the series' 11 year run, unless a new cast member was added.

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Alternate Versions

Digitally Remastered episodes began circulating in syndication in Fall 2001. Current digitally remastered repeats on Nick at Nite feature the complete opening credit sequence.

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Connections

Referenced in Penn & Teller: Bullshit!: ESP (2003)

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Soundtracks

Where Everybody Knows Your Name
Written by Judy Hart-Angelo and Gary Portnoy
Performed by Gary Portnoy

User Reviews

What Television Is Meant to Be.

A dominant block-buster of a television series that put NBC on top in the ratings race in the 1980s and the network has not looked back since. When "Cheers" first came into homes around the nation in 1982, it was greatly ignored by the viewing public. The Emmy Awards more than anything resurrected a series that had no life after a first season that found the series consistently in the gutter of the Nielsen Ratings. After several big-time awards (including one for Best Comedy Series) "Cheers" sky-rocketed and was almost always a top 5 show and most of the times the number 1 program in America. In modern-day Boston, a small tavern does prove that there are still places where everyone does indeed "know your name". A former baseball player (Ted Danson) owns a bar that caters to many (bar-flies George Wendt and John Ratzenberger, former professional coach Nicholas Colasanto, waitress Rhea Perlman and love interest Shelley Long). Quirky stories, heartwarming moments, heartrending situations and consistent comedy would always follow the key players. As the years passed, the cast changed (Long left the show and was replaced with Kirstie Alley who became the owner and Colasanto passed away in real life and the Woody Harrelson character was created), but the constant was always the show's outstanding group of creative writers and top-notch directors. Psychiatrist Kelsey Grammar (and wife Bebe Neuwirth) would also come along early in the series and just add more color, heart and intelligence to a show that had a surplus of all those elements throughout its 11-year-run. From the emotionally-charged theme song to its smallest of bit players, "Cheers" proved that there could be quality on television and that it could sustain and withstand unfortunate problems with its players in real-life. Monumentally important to the art of television study. A truly outstanding achievement for all involved. 5 stars out of 5.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 September 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cheers

Filming Locations:

13 Chestnut St, Boston, MA 02108, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

22 min 30 min (266 episodes) 98 min (1 Episode)

Sound Mix:

Mono Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3