| Cheers | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | |
| Directed by |
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| Starring | |
| Theme music composer |
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| Opening theme | "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" by Gary Portnoy |
| Ending theme | "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" (instrumental) |
| Composer | Craig Safan |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 11 |
| No. of episodes | 275 (including three double-length episodes and a triple-length finale) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Cinematography |
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| Camera setup | Film; Multi-camera |
| Running time | 21–25 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | NBC[1] |
| Release | September 30, 1982 – May 20, 1993 |
| Related | |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
Cheers is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993, for 11 seasons and 275 episodes. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association with Paramount Television and was created by the team of James Burrows and Glen and Les Charles. The show is set in the titular bar in Boston, where a group of locals meet to drink, relax, socialize, and escape from their day to day issues.
At the center of the show is the bar's owner and head bartender, Sam Malone, who is a womanizing former relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox. The show's ensemble cast introduced in the pilot episode are waitresses Diane Chambers and Carla Tortelli, second bartender Coach Ernie Pantusso, and regular customers Norm Peterson and Cliff Clavin. Later main characters of the show also include Frasier Crane, Woody Boyd, Lilith Sternin, and Rebecca Howe.
After premiering in 1982, it was nearly canceled during its first season when it ranked almost last in ratings for its premiere (74th out of 77 shows). However, Cheers eventually became a Nielsen ratings juggernaut in the United States, earning a top-10 rating during eight of its 11 seasons, including one season at number one (season 9). The show spent most of its run on NBC's Thursday night "Must See TV" lineup. Widely watched, its series finale in 1993 became the most-watched single TV episode of the 1990s, and the show's 275 episodes have been successfully syndicated worldwide. Nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series for all 11 of its seasons on the air, it earned 28 Primetime Emmy Awards from a record of 117 nominations.
During its run, Cheers became one of the most popular series in history and received critical acclaim from its start to its end and is frequently cited as one of the greatest television shows of all time.[2][3][4][5][6] In 1997, the episodes "Thanksgiving Orphans" and "Home Is the Sailor," aired originally in 1987, were respectively ranked No. 7 and No. 45 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.[7] Its series finale was watched by an estimated 93 million viewers, almost 40% of the US population at the time.[8] The series also produced three spin-offs: The Tortellis, Wings, and Frasier; and a Spanish remake.
- ^ Wood, Jennifer M. "Bar Trivia: 30 Facts About Cheers". Mental Floss. http://mentalfloss.com/article/56133/30-things-you-might-not-know-about-cheers Archived June 16, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "TV Guide Names Top 50 Shows". Cbsnews.com. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
- ^ "101 Best Written TV Series List". wga.org. Archived from the original on June 7, 2013. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
- ^ Fretts, Bruce; Roush, Matt. "The Greatest Shows on Earth". TV Guide Magazine. 61 (3194–3195): 16–19.
- ^ Sepinwall, Alan (September 26, 2022). "The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time - 50-1". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ "The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time". Variety. December 20, 2023.
- ^ "Special Collector's Issue: 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time". TV Guide (June 28 – July 4). 1997.
- ^ Darowski, Joseph J.; Darowski, Kate (2017). Frasier: A Cultural History. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1442277960. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2020.