tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post7327909861580677269..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: The night the first CHEERS airedBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43066962983085513392014-08-30T23:21:51.490-07:002014-08-30T23:21:51.490-07:00I was 5 years old when Cheers debuted and definite...I was 5 years old when Cheers debuted and definitely wasn't watching then. But just a few years later I became a big fan of the show. Does anyone recall when it started running in syndication? I wish I could remember the first episode I saw. I have one ironclad memory of coming home with a new G.I. Joe toy at age 9 in 1987 and playing with it while watching "Dinner at Eight-ish" in primetime. I believe by this time I was already a daily viewer of the older episodes in syndication. The earliest one I think I might have seen new on NBC was season 4's "Fear Is My Co-Pilot."<br /><br />I'm sure I was describing Cheers as my favorite TV show at this time. I continued watching more or less consistently for the first 2 or 3 "Rebecca years," but lost interest after that. The clever dialogue seemed to be fading away in favor of zany, cartoonish gags and the storylines lost their emotional depth and relatability. I was a senior in high school by the time the last episode aired. Everybody watched it but the consensus the next day seemed to be, "meh."<br /><br />I rewatched seasons 1-5 ten years ago when the DVDs came out and found the shows to hold up extremely well, still as brilliant, clever, laugh-out-loud funny and emotionally involving as they were when I first saw them on NBC and in syndication. Cheers is unquestionably the best sitcom of the 1980s and one of the best sitcoms of all time. If there were never any episodes beyond the "Diane years" it would already qualify for that. I still haven't bothered to rewatch any of those "Rebecca years" nor the last 2 or 3 seasons that I never watched much of in the first place.JediJoneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15611535741499844326noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-59359124723426058322012-10-04T04:28:30.229-07:002012-10-04T04:28:30.229-07:00Ken.
One of my mother's great distractions fro...Ken.<br />One of my mother's great distractions from her terminal illness, with all its pain, was Cheers.<br />Thank you.Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09092985199027690430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-56386566861641971452012-10-02T20:57:15.700-07:002012-10-02T20:57:15.700-07:00I may have told this story before, but it's wo...I may have told this story before, but it's worth repeating. I was having Thanksgiving dinner at a friend's house, and after the feast, the wimmenfolk repaired to the kitchen to yak while us guys went to the living room to watch TV. Now this was at a time when KTLA was rerunning CHEERS at 11:00 while new episodes were still airing on NBC at 9:00. And of course it was a Thursday. So come 9:00, a new CHEERS starts, and when the theme song began, there were screams from the kitchen and all the women ran out and yelled, "It's 11:00 already???"cadavranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-28253844130380512052012-10-02T10:43:04.198-07:002012-10-02T10:43:04.198-07:00Ireland in the early 80's was grim, Cheers was...Ireland in the early 80's was grim, Cheers was one of the highlights. Still love it. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26642068491034018422012-10-02T09:10:29.872-07:002012-10-02T09:10:29.872-07:00That was very cool. Thanks for that Ken.That was very cool. Thanks for that Ken.chuckcdnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-41475505747382081682012-10-01T20:34:20.485-07:002012-10-01T20:34:20.485-07:00Add one more to the list of those who saw the prem...Add one more to the list of those who saw the premiere episode that night. I was leaving home for college the next day, and my car was packed to the gills, so I had to stay home. I was vaguely under the impression that Cheers was going to be about a cheerleading squad, and being a healthy 18 year old, I thought it might provide a few minutes of eye candy. I was never so glad to be wrong about a show. I was instantly hooked. After moving into the dorms, I started making other students come watch this great show. Thursday nights became TV night because of Cheers and Hill Street Blues. (I think the other two shows for the NBC lineup were Fame and Gimme A Break, so we started with Cheers.) I had the largest television (a whopping 19 incher), so my room became the TV room. I'm still great friends with most of those people to this day.<br /><br />That was also the same year USA Today started publication. On Wednesdays, they would post the ratings for the previous week. They listed the top 20 and the bottom 5, and Cheers was always in the bottom five. That's when I decided the public at large were idiots. I couldn't understand why people weren't watching this great show.<br /><br />I'll always maintain Cheers is the greatest sitcom of all time. I don't care what anybody else says.MontyBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-60549831643822444242012-10-01T18:12:55.118-07:002012-10-01T18:12:55.118-07:00While my father wasn't given to lavishing prai...While my father wasn't given to lavishing praise on sitcoms, I remember after the "Cheers" pilot aired, he said "That's a funny show."<br /><br />Then, though in 40 years, I don't know that I've seen him at a bar when he wasn't waiting for a table or plane, he said, "They're right. You do want to go where everybody knows your name." chalmersnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-80886110936623798762012-10-01T14:53:07.156-07:002012-10-01T14:53:07.156-07:00P.S. -
Andy again, who wrote about Cheers being m...P.S. -<br /><br />Andy again, who wrote about Cheers being my first sitcom writing credit... Having caught up on your previous post, I went on to write for Seinfeld, so I'm honored as well to be associated with that top five group you mentioned!Andy Cowannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-25796544091916927512012-10-01T13:46:16.526-07:002012-10-01T13:46:16.526-07:00I saw your blog Monday morning after I watched on ...I saw your blog Monday morning after I watched on DVD the "Cheers" pilot Sunday night. I was also one of those who saw it first run 30 years ago. (Did it not air at 9PM that first season?) "Cheers" from 30 years ago is still better than any other sitcom on the air - some things have just not evolved.Franco Tamburronoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-86954671632509753182012-10-01T12:46:32.814-07:002012-10-01T12:46:32.814-07:00Friday question: Early on having the show always c...Friday question: Early on having the show always come back to Sam & Diane made it so powerful, and that was lost in the Rebecca years, as funny as they were. It lost that through-line, and that emotional power, I thought. Having Sam pine for Rebecca was amusing for a season or two, but it got old and went nowhere, and Sam became such a lonely and sad character for the final run, it made me enjoy the show a bit less -- I even enjoy the repeats a LITTLE less because of it. Looking back on it now, do you think it was a good move to have Sam's character end up like that? Yes, wedded to the bar was nice, but he really was alone.<br /><br />(Now, I'm kind of glad he and Diane didn't wind up together in the end because that would have been too cliched and a copout, but some new Sam & somebody romance might have been great for the last year or so of the show.)Stevenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89468685049696315072012-10-01T10:49:13.587-07:002012-10-01T10:49:13.587-07:00I remember watching the first episode of Cheers. I...I remember watching the first episode of Cheers. I remember it being heavily promoted and was looking forward to seeing it. I was just starting high school and little did I know that Cheers was about to become a part of my Thursday night routine.<br /><br />Our trash pick-up happened on Friday morning, so trash duty was assigned to me or one of my four other brothers. Trash pick-up was in the alley behind our house and across the alley was a supermarket that had a beaten up soda machine sitting just outside the entrance. That night, the night of the first Cheers episode, it was my responsibility to take out the trash. Which I did. And then walked over and bought a diet Dr. Pepper from the machine and came back. I fired up a bag of microwave popcorn and headed for the TV room, where my Mom and other brothers were firmly locked down for Magnum P.I. and Simon and Simon. In this era, we didn't have central air, so the only air conditioners were in the TV room and in Mom's room upstairs. So...<br /><br />...I went up to her room, flipped on the color TV and, in complete and beautiful air conditioned isolation, with my popcorn and diet Dr. Pepper, I watched Cheers. I loved it. I remember hearing that theme song and knowing I was going to love the show, if only for the theme! The show was terrific. Hooked. <br /><br />I modified it a bit and would take out the trash and buy the diet Dr. Pepper before Cheers, and then do the popcorn right before "Hill Street Blues." But that Thursday night routine became my Thursday night tradition and I look back fondly on it even to this day.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107309396839340695noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-61219443156535045602012-10-01T10:46:12.871-07:002012-10-01T10:46:12.871-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107309396839340695noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-16703670085368225982012-10-01T08:02:56.336-07:002012-10-01T08:02:56.336-07:00My favorite coach line was Sam comes into the bar,...My favorite coach line was Sam comes into the bar, kinda harried looking and walking fast and before he heads into his office tells Coach, "I don't want to be bothered." and Coach says "who does!"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-69076317689712412342012-10-01T05:07:06.483-07:002012-10-01T05:07:06.483-07:00I'll never forget the night of the first episo...I'll never forget the night of the first episode, either; it was the day I got my first Monthly Bill, so to speak. Laying there in AG-O-NY with a heating pad, scared to take Tylenol (remember THAT madness?!), feeling happy to "be a woman" but totally miserable too... until "Cheers" came on. I decided to give it a shot, and ended up with my sides hurting instead of my abdomen. Turns out corny ol' Reader's Digest is right; laughter IS the best medicine! That, and chocolate.<br /><br />Cheers, thanks a lot,<br /><br />StormStormnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-81257508204849432402012-10-01T04:42:59.045-07:002012-10-01T04:42:59.045-07:00I was also among the few who watched that opening ...I was also among the few who watched that opening night. I still remember when Diane's pompous date recited poetry and ended with, "That's Donne," and Sam said, "I certainly hope so." I not only laughed out loud, I knew this was going to be something on a higher level than other shows that would never dare go for a reference like that, and I made it appointment TV from night one. Only other time that's happened was years later, when I was flipping around and landed about 10 minutes into a new doctor show I'd never heard of (also a genre I'd never had any interest in before). It was "House." Never missed another episode after that, and now have all the seasons on DVD.Pat Reederhttp://www.hollywoodhifi.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-15877768838656568442012-10-01T02:59:41.831-07:002012-10-01T02:59:41.831-07:00Coach: (answering phone) Cheers... (then yelling o...Coach: (answering phone) Cheers... (then yelling out) Is there an Ernie Pantuso here?<br /><br />Sam: That's you, Coach.<br /><br />Coach: Speakingemilynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-5563237401350163722012-10-01T02:39:41.529-07:002012-10-01T02:39:41.529-07:00Thank you for this wonderful blog post. I discover...Thank you for this wonderful blog post. I discovered "Cheers" during the Sam and Diane episodes in reruns in 1991. I was twelve, and it became an extremely important show to me. <br /><br />I so enjoy your writing for television, film, and this blog. I hope to take your writing workshop next time it's offered. <br /><br />Thanks for all the laughs. :)<br />Robin Ravenhttp://www.robinraven.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-71962826546677304922012-09-30T23:11:21.061-07:002012-09-30T23:11:21.061-07:00Strangely, a 30th anniversary marathon did happen....Strangely, a 30th anniversary marathon did happen. On Cloo.Kenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16638209953021288461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-37020707813640533472012-09-30T23:06:03.008-07:002012-09-30T23:06:03.008-07:00I think one of the funniest lines I have EVER hear...I think one of the funniest lines I have EVER heard was when Norm walked into the bar and after being asked a question stated "It's a dog-eat-dog world and I'm wearing Milk Bone underwear". To this day that line still makes me laugh my ass off.YEKIMIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01921751875397071034noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-46635578657865073882012-09-30T21:33:07.496-07:002012-09-30T21:33:07.496-07:00My first sitcom writing credit, thanks to the oppo...My first sitcom writing credit, thanks to the opportunity given to me and my then writing partner by the late, great David Angell. The thrill of seeing the first of three of our episodes filmed on that iconic set was unbelievable. Throw in Jim Burrows introducing us from the audience, and we felt, for a moment, like we were indeed at a place where everybody knew your name! Congrats, Ken.Andynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-46919321414932216572012-09-30T20:55:44.429-07:002012-09-30T20:55:44.429-07:00My favorite show ever. Nothing comes close for me...My favorite show ever. Nothing comes close for me.Julie Mnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-42032742408567362472012-09-30T19:00:45.743-07:002012-09-30T19:00:45.743-07:00Ken,
Thanks for such a well written article. I fe...Ken,<br /><br />Thanks for such a well written article. I felt like I was there celebrating with you! Good writing will never go out of fashion, that's why we're still talking about Cheers, today. <br /><br />Jonah Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03307743575731853498noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-35275222581060732982012-09-30T15:44:49.244-07:002012-09-30T15:44:49.244-07:00Great story. I remember watching the pilot all by...Great story. I remember watching the pilot all by myself and laughing out loud. I guess the show wasn't a hit right off the bat, but back then there were millions of us viewers who knew it was the best comedy on TV from the start.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34847549569606331042012-09-30T15:20:49.431-07:002012-09-30T15:20:49.431-07:00I remember a TV ad before the "Cheers" p...I remember a TV ad before the "Cheers" premiere featuring a pair of beer mugs shattering as they knocked into each other. I'm glad I watched anyway.<br />Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-14962026773325411782012-09-30T15:10:35.719-07:002012-09-30T15:10:35.719-07:00Ken, I just want to say, "Thank you". I...Ken, I just want to say, "Thank you". I've been watching the first season on Netflix, and it's just as funny now as it was 30 years ago. Easily funnier than anything that is on TV now.dgwphotographyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17457021093344362212noreply@blogger.com