Frasier, Wings, & More: Just How Many Cheers Spin-Offs Are There?
"Cheers" had a long, hard climb from the bottom of the Nielsen ratings — it was the 77th most popular program out of the 100 shows that aired during its debut week — to the top of the charts. Critical acclaim and a whole lot of Emmy attention helped the show survive. It took a good three seasons to catch on with the viewing public, but eventually "Cheers" managed to go from an obscure darling of the sophisticate set to a pop culture sensation. Once popularity did arrive — with the show's 9th season coming in at No. 1 in the Nielsen rankings for that year – it stuck around, and its series finale would be watched by over 84 million viewers.
Sooner or later, every successful show must confront that bugaboo of mass appeal — the spin-off. Launching a fresh set of series in the wake of its success, "Cheers" managed to produce three shows that extended its legacy. Each would endure a different fate. One would become a cultural institution (and inspire its own revisitation decades later); one would become a long-lasting juggernaut; and the last would soldier on for half of a single season before sliding into obscurity. Here are the three series that took a little piece of Boston and tried to make it their very own.
Frasier is Cheers' only direct sequel
"Frasier" launched a season after "Cheers" had its series finale and immediately became the most critically acclaimed and decorated offering to spin off from "Cheers."
The show sees former barfly and psychiatrist Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) split from his wife, Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth) and head to his hometown in Seattle to establish a new life for himself. There, he finds himself keeping an eye on his former police officer father, Martin (John Mahoney) — who comes to Frasier's swanky new penthouse complete with a little terrier named Eddie (Moose the Dog) and an easy chair Frasier loathes. Frasier also finds himself clashing with his fussy younger brother, Niles (David Hyde Pierce). Frasier hires a physical therapist and all-around housekeeper, Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves) to look in on his dad — which will change Niles' life forever. On the work front, Frasier establishes himself as a radio psychiatrist, and at the station, he makes friends such as his producer, Roz Doyle (Peri Gilpin).
It's rare that a sitcom spin-off manages to create its own distinct worlds, but "Frasier" did that in spades. The highly acclaimed series managed to run for 11 seasons and took home a plethora of Emmys and Emmy nominations during that run. It's become such a success in syndication and streaming that in 2023, the show was revived with a reboot that sees Frasier return to Boston and move in with his now-adult fireman son, Freddy (Jack Cutmore-Scott).
Wings and Cheers (and Frasier) take place in the same universe
"Wings" is a unique case in the pantheon of "Cheers" spin-offs. While the main characters of "Wings" don't appear on "Frasier" and "Cheers," the airport serves as a fairly important place for the characters of the latter two series. Multiple other shows, such as "The Simpsons," "St. Elsewhere," "Boston Legal," "Caroline in the City," "Boston Public" and "Ally McBeal" share locations, character cameos, and references with "Cheers." But "Wings" is different, in that multiple "Cheers" characters appear in the terminal at Sandpiper Air throughout its 8-season run.
The sitcom centers around two brothers — responsible and strait-laced Joe (Tim Daly) and ladies' man loose cannon Brian Hackett (Steven Weber) — who co-own and run a small airline in Nantucket called Sandpiper Air. Both brothers pilot charter flights for their unusual clientele using the single plane they own, and while Brian dreams of escaping Massachusetts to resume his roaming ways, Joel simply wants to keep holding down the fort.
Also present are Helen Chappel (Crystal Bernard), a cellist and childhood friend of the Hackett boys who yearns for more while running the airport's lunch counter; ambitious Roy Biggins (David Schramm), a rival who books flights out of the same airport Joel and Brian use; sweet but forgetful Fay Cochran (Rebecca Schull), who runs the ticket counter; dim bulb mechanic Lowell Mather (Thomas Haden Church); and Antonio Scarpacci (Tony Shalhoub), who ferries tourists in his cab. "Cheers" characters Frasier and Lilith, Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley), Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger), and Norm Peterson (George Wendt) appear on the show as guests.
"Wings" was a reliable performer for NBC, and while it wasn't quite as big of a hit for them as "Frasier" was, it still managed a respectable run.
The Tortellis did not last for long
The most obscure "Cheers" spin-off has to be "The Tortellis," a one-season wonder. While it serves as the very first spin-off ever launched from its mother series, it has since fallen into obscurity and remains unavailable on legal streaming or Blu Ray.
The series focuses around two regularly recurring "Cheers" characters — Nick Tortelli (Dan Hedaya), Carla's (Rhea Perlman) shiftless ex-husband, and his bright-eyed, naïve, much younger wife, Loretta (Jean Kasem). To set up the spin-off, Loretta responds to Nick's constant conning by running off to Las Vegas. Seeking shelter with her practical sister Charlotte (Carlene Watkins) and Charlotte's toddler son, Mark (Aaron Moffatt), Loretta hunkers down and refuses to budge unless Nick changes his ways. Determined to save the marriage, Nick follows Loretta to town and vows to do just that — though while trying to establish his own TV repair business, he does keep falling off the straight and narrow path. Also joining them are Anthony (Timothy Williams) and Annie (Mandy Ingber) Tortelli, two of Nick's four children with Carla.
Unlike "Cheers," "The Tortellis" did not receive a reprieve after garnering low ratings during its first season. The show was canceled in May of 1987, and the Tortelli family was woven back into the fabric of "Cheers" with further subsequent appearances. Now the only place curious sitcom fans can see it is on YouTube, marking quite an ignominious ending for the inaugural spin-off of a classic sitcom. Fortunately, NBC didn't say no when the show's producers pitched them another spin-off idea, resulting in the existence of "Frasier."