Ted Danson’s dueling gigs on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Bored to Death have been delightful, and Shelley Long’s kooky cameo on Wednesday’s Modern Family triggered a still-rolling avalanche of Cheers nostalgia in our offices.
But that’s not the half of it. Woody Harrelson has a hit movie (Zombieland) and a serious role in a potential Oscar contender (The Messenger); Kelsey Grammer has another new sitcom (Hank); George Wendt has written a barstool professional’s guide to beer; Rhea Perlman was hilarious on a recent episode of HBO’s Hung; and Kirstie Alley is just a few pounds (lost or gained) away from another magazine cover. Meanwhile, John Ratzenberger is tuning up for his next Pixar gig.
The Cheers gang is having a moment, and it only reminds me how much I had missed them. The recent Seinfeld reunion hype actually made me ache for a reunion of a cast that I actually adored. Those characters were our friends, weren’t they? I suppose Frazier said it best in the finale (scroll to 1:30):
Has a show ever featured so many colorful, beloved characters? Do you feel like Cheers‘ greatness has been overshadowed by Seinfeld and Friends? Wouldn’t it be a great Curb Your Enthusiasm plot-point if Ted Danson and Jerry Seinfeld were bitter enemies?
Twenty years from now, I’d probably be feeling the same kind of nostalgia for the US version of The Office. That series is probably the best comedy on TV right now. All the characters are brilliant and memorable and all of them click together. What can I say? I love The Office.
Cheers had some of the most honest down to earth characters on tv who had actually chemistry together – the Office relies too much on the social awkwardness of their characters and the joke got old after the first couple of episodes.
I still think season 1 of Cheers was one of, if not the best season of tv ever for a sitcom that had something of a plot, Seinfeld doesn’t count because its not really like any other comedy – no consequences of actions, just plain comedy. Cheers was at its best during the early years with Coach and tanked once Diane left and Sam went from a flawed but street smart guy to a bumbling idiot, and as good as Woody was, he was no Coach Pantusso
I totally agree with you. Cheers is definitely overshadowed by Seinfeld and Friends, even though it is the superior show in my opinion. Cheers still holds up today extremely well and is still the best ever.
I would love to see a Cheers reunion!… I’m a little young to remember it’s original run but thanks to Nick at Night and Tv land I have been able to watch the show over the years and love the characters. Any show that could get them all together again would be watched by me.
Don’t forget last night’s sort-of shout out on Community:
Jeff: Cheers!
Abed: MASH!
Duncan: Fawlty Towers!
Both Seinfeld and Cheers are brilliant. Friends, although a good sitcom, had nothing on them. Right now the best comedies on network television are easily How I Met Your Mother and Modern Family.
Friends does not even hold up today with the horrid 90′s fashions so prominent – I never cared for the show clearly aimed at yuppies with their coffee-house. It wasn’t even funny. Cheers had a sort of everyman quality with an out of work accountant moonlighting as a painter, a mailman, a recovering alcoholic, the college graduate with no real skill, and Carla with whose looks I doubt would be cast on any show today. That is what made Cheers good, a bunch of loveable losers trying to make their lives better by going to a place where everyone knows their name.
preachy? you clearly watched maybe 1 episode of the Cosby Show, which is one of the greatest tv shows of all. time. the comedy on TCS was always subtle and understated and relied on premises that anyone could relate to.
Seinfeld was the greatest “pure” comedy of all time, no drama involved, just jokes. Cheers is the greatest sitcom that involved a bit of drama rolled together with comedy. NBC sure had some great shows – but the most overrated sitcom of all time has to be the Cosby show – the monopoly bit with theo was funny, everything else was so preachy it barely could generate a chuckle.
It’s Frasier, not Frazier. He only had a show for 11 seasons.
Cheers was so much better than Seinfeld and Friends. There is no comparison. With Cheers, I laugh just as hard in 2009 as I did in 1989.
Yeah as much as I love Friends, Scrubs, and The Office, Cheers will always be my all-time favorite. There were just so many fun relationships and situations on that show. And speaking of Harrelson, it’s STILL weird to think that the dumb hick from Cheers is the same guy I see in movies like Zombieland. lol
Im going to have to side with Cheers as best comedy ever. Stayed great all 11 season even with Shelley being replaced by Kirstie and Coach being replaced by woody.
My second and third would be Taxi and Soap. With Seinfeld and and Newsradio rounding out the top 5.
My goodness, this could be the perfect time for a reunion of Cheers – it takes course over one evening at the bar, where Woody is holding a victory party for being elected mayor, or for Congress….He brought on Frasier to help a an advisor/communications director. Cliff thinks the party is for him because he is retiring again from the Postal Service (When you have been Lady Liberty’s lover for so long, you cannot give it up). Norm is unhappy with the food spread, as well as someone trying to sit on his stool…..Sammy hits on some young campaign volunteers and laments that if he could have held on for a more dozen years, he would have a WS ring. Rebecca brings her near-Tortelli size family to the party, while Carla rails about her grandkids, who live with her by the airport. Lilith of course, passes by, sparking a short romance with Fras in Sam’s office, while Diane makes a documentary of Woody’s rise. Paulie and other b-characters are all there, as well as cameos by Red Sox/Patriots….
What? No mention of Frasier? That was my favorite of ALL of these. I still TiVo it when I need some laughs. That show should at least get an honorable mention.
I completely agree! Frasier was definitely the best sitcom of the 90′s. Hilariously and well acted and written.
there was never anything as wonderful as cheers and there never will. there was a heart to the show that none other could dare to capture.
Cheers was so well orchestrated that I’m still baffled as to why writers don’t try for the same format (at least). I know funny is tough, but just the plots of modern day tv shows are idiotic. I know The Office is a huge hit, but I prefer real world comedy with authentic people…and a laugh track! When I hear the audience laugh, it feels like an event. When I hear the deafening silence on The Office, I feel like I’m really stuck at work.