The place where everyone knows your name. We all know it, and now the theme song is probably stuck in your head. Cheers wasn’t quite an instant success but it held on long enough to become a sensational and groundbreaking hit. Barflies and patrons alike love Cheers because it’s a home away from home, a place where you can hang out even if you’re not physically present. While we were laughing at the humor or getting frustrated with the whole will-they or won’t-they component of Sam (Ted Danson) and Diane’s (Shelley Long) relationship, here are 10 details you never noticed.
Jay Thomas Killed Off His Own Character
Jay Thomas, who played Carla’s (Rhea Perlman) husband Eddie on the show, inadvertently got his character killed off on Cheers. Aside from acting, Thomas also hosted a morning radio show in the City of Angels. One morning he answered a call where the caller questioned what it was like to work on Cheers, to which Thomas, unfortunately, responded something resembling that it was difficult because he had to kiss Rhea Perlman. And voila, his character was killed via Zamboni. You never know who may be listening.
Many Of Cliff’s Fun Facts Are Improvised
Not only did John Ratzenberger practically create his character, but he added Cliff’s fun facts along the way. Cliff was always spouting off random knowledge about a multitude of subjects while hanging out at the bar.
How much may be accurate we’re not certain, but it was certainly entertaining and added a know-it-all quality to his character’s personality. As the seasons went on, Ratzenberger had more freedom to improvise. We’re glad for that.
Woody Played Woody
Purely coincidence but a pretty cool fact, nonetheless. Woody’s character was sweet but naive and a bit dim-witted. The role, however, boosted Woody Harrelson’s career and gave him a significant start. Harrelson has gone on to have significant roles in The Hunger Games franchise in addition to Now You See Me and Zombieland. We owe a big round of gratitude to Cheers for giving us Woody Harrelson/Boyd.
Cheers Conquered The Hard Topics
Certain aspects of a character’s past were brought up time and again. One such example is Sam being an ex-alcoholic. Now, an ex-alcoholic running a bar and being around the substance he once abused shows a great strength of character and willpower on his part, something we tend to overlook because Sam being anywhere else than in a bar scene seems off-putting.
Cheers was something of a trendsetter in bringing up these topics on the small screen, especially in sitcom format, and no doubt influenced how modern sitcoms address such topics currently.
Cheers Promoted The Concept Of Designated Drivers
You ever notice how Sam or Coach, or another Cheers employee offered to drive, or at least call a cab for, a particularly intoxicated patron? While everyone knows your name and they’re always glad you came, you could always count on Cheers to get you home safely, too. This is one of the best things the show has done, considering it balances out the alcohol consumption viewers were savvy to from watching the patrons consume sometimes alarming amounts of beer onscreen. Regardless, Cheers spread plenty of good messages in its eleven-year run, including drinking safety.
The Show Won Several Awards
Popular among viewers and critics alike, it’s no wonder the show won the awards it did. Shelley Long won the Emmy Award for “Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series”, and the show also won Emmy Awards for “Outstanding Comedy Series” (of course!) and “Outstanding Directing.”
The show has several amazing qualities, which is why it had the longevity it did. If any show at the time was deserving of so many awards, it was Cheers and we’re glad the awards committees felt the same way.
Norm Peterson Was Based On A Real Person
Norm (George Wendt) never quite wants to cease drinking and he never seems too thrilled to return home to his wife. According to co-creator Les Charles, Norm is based on a guy he knew when he was working in a bar following his college years. Like Norm, the anonymous barfly was at the bar every night, asked for just one more beverage and requested the staff to aid him in avoiding his wife’s inquiries of his whereabouts. Characterization doesn’t get much more authentic than that.
Ted Danson Got Schooled In Bartending
It’s commonly known that actors will usually undergo some kind of training to prepare for their roles to make their characters more realistic. Some are more rigorous than others, yet we appreciate the efforts made because their characters become all the more believable through their outside studies.
To prepare for his role as Sam Malone, Danson attended bartending school for a couple weeks in California. Sam’s a good bartender, so we’d say the training paid off.
Cheers Has The Second-Most Watched Series Finale Of All Time
Considering its incredible popularity throughout its eleven-year run, this isn’t hard to believe. People were devastated to learn their favorite bar was coming to a close and tuned in to see how it would end (the finale even brought back fan favorite Diane for a proper send-off). Cheers even beats the likes of popular shows Friends, Seinfeld, Magnum, P.I. and even its spin-off, Frasier, for this title. It’s hard to beat and may just remain a shade under MAS*H for the honorary title of number one for many years yet.
The Dialogue’s Origins Stem From Real Conversations
Next time you’re watching Cheers, listen closely to their conversations. If you were around in the ’80s in bars around Los Angeles, your conversations just may have been incorporated into the show. The show’s creators, in order to include real bar-like topics, listened in on others’ conversations to get a feel and vibe for the quality, quantity, and content of topics. We appreciate the lengths they went to in order to make Cheers a more genuine bar environment.
Now you know some extra trivia when it comes to everyone’s favorite bar. Its reruns still run in marathons to this day, popular as ever and still making generations laugh. After all, it’s nice to get away from all your worries, hanging out where everyone knows your name…
