Frasier
Frasier is a popular American situation comedy television series that starred Kelsey Grammer, reprising the character of psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane from parent show Cheers, which had ended months before. David Hyde Pierce, John Mahoney, Jane Leeves, and Peri Gilpin rounded out the regular cast.
The show was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub Street Productions) in association with Paramount Television. The trio also wrote and produced Cheers and created Wings.
The series aired on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993 to May 13, 2004, becoming one of the most popular shows of all time with both viewers and critics. The show won a record 39 Emmy Awards during its run.
Currently, reruns are airing in daily syndication and on Lifetime Television in the US and Paramount Comedy 1, Paramount Comedy 2 and Channel 4 in the UK.
Premise
Psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane (Grammer) returns to his hometown of Seattle, Washington, following the break-up of his marriage and his life in Boston (which was covered in the series Cheers). His plans for his new life as a bachelor are complicated when he is obliged to take in his father, ex-police officer Martin Crane (Mahoney), who had to retire and is unable to live by himself owing to an injury caused by being shot in the line of duty. Frasier and Martin are joined by Daphne Moon (Leeves), Martin's eccentric, British, live-in physical therapist, and Martin's dog Eddie (Moose). A frequent visitor to their apartment is Frasier's younger brother Niles (Pierce), a fellow psychiatrist who, like Frasier, is pompous, snobbish, and overly intellectual.
Frasier hosts a radio talk show in on KACL 780AM (named to honor the show's creators, Angell, Casey, and Lee). His producer is Roz Doyle (Gilpin), a woman with an active romantic life who, while decidedly different from Frasier in taste and temperament, nevertheless becomes a very close friend over the course of the series.
Numerous running jokes and themes are developed throughout the series. Chief amongst them is the class and familial conflicts between Frasier, Niles, and Martin; the two sons, who possess fine tastes, intellectual interests and rather high opinions of themselves, frequently clash with their more blue-collar, down-to-earth father, and a running theme in the early seasons in particular is Frasier and Martin's difficulty in reaching an accommodation with each other and in sharing an apartment. Despite being incredibly similar in personality, interests and sensibilities, the relationship between Frasier and Niles is no less turbulent; victims of intense sibling rivalry, their jealousy of each other and petty attempts at one-upmanship (which frequently result in chaos) drive many of the plots. Other developing storylines include Niles' growing love for Daphne (of which she remains unaware in the early seasons, despite its increasingly obvious nature) and the breakdown of his marriage to the never-seen Maris, Frasier's search for love in his own life, and the various attempts of the two brothers to enter higher levels of Seattle's elite.
Cast
Regulars:
- Kelsey Grammer as Dr. Frasier Crane. Grammer was asked to shave the beard he had had during the final season of Cheers because the producers felt he didn't look young enough to be John Mahoney's son; Mahoney is only 15 years older. Grammer sang the song heard during the closing credits, "Tossed salad and scrambled eggs", by Bruce Miller and Daryl Phinessee.
- John Mahoney as Martin Crane. In a final-season interview, Mahoney said the first offer he received to play Martin Crane consisted of a phone call from Grammer in which he asked, "Will you be my Dad?" The second choice for Frasier's father was Robert Prosky.
- Jane Leeves as Daphne Moon. Leeves used a mixture of different Northern English accents to portray a stereotypical working class Briton. She is actually from Sussex, in the south. Lisa Maxwell was originally cast as Daphne, but severe disagreements with the producers led to her being replaced.
- David Hyde Pierce as Dr. Niles Crane. The show was originally written with Frasier as an only child (references had already been made to this in Cheers, but one of the producers saw a headshot of Pierce and commented that he looked exactly like Kelsey Grammer did when he first appeared on Cheers. In Season's 2's "The Show Where Sam Shows Up", one of the first things Sam Malone says when he first meets Niles is how he looks exactly like Frasier did when he first knew him back in Boston. The second choice for the role of Niles was Peter MacNicol.
- Peri Gilpin as Roz Doyle (named in honor of a producer of Wings, which shares show creators with Frasier). Lisa Kudrow was originally cast as Roz, but was replaced before production began.
- "Moose" and "Enzo" as Eddie the dog. Eddie received more fan mail than any other cast member in Frasier. He is also reputed to have earned $10,000 per episode.
Recurring guest stars:
- Dan Butler as Bob 'Bulldog' Briscoe, the obnoxious host of a radio sports show. Butler was made a series regular for seasons 4 and 5.
- Edward Hibbert as Gil Chesterton, food critic at the radio station.
- Bebe Neuwirth as Lilith Sternin, Frasier's ex-wife (also on Cheers). Neuwirth was offered a regular role as Lilith, but turned it down so she could return to the Broadway stage.
- Trevor Einhorn as Frederick Gaylord Crane, Frasier's son. The character was first played in Season 3 by child actor Luke Tarsitano. The following season, Einhorn took over for the rest of the series. The writers had Frasier say that he missed Frederick in the pilot episode so that the audience wouldn't view him as deserting his son.
- Tom McGowan as Kenny Daley, the station manager.
- Patrick Kerr as Noel Shempsky, a geeky station employee.
- Harriet Sansom Harris as Bebe Glazer, Frasier's amoral agent.
- Marsha Mason as Sherry Dempsey, Martin's lady friend
- Saul Rubinek as Donny Douglas, Daphne's fiancé
- Jane Adams as Mel Karnofsky, Niles' girlfriend and (for a few days) wife.
- Millicent Martin as Gertrude Moon, Daphne's mother. Although not noticed by the average American viewer, aside from her mother, none of Daphne’s relatives nor her ex-boyfriend have Manchester accents, despite supposedly being from there. They mostly have Southern English accents (i.e. London). Her brother Nigel's accent is Cockney. Ironically, John Mahoney actually is from Manchester.
- Anthony LaPaglia as Simon Moon, one of Daphne's brothers.
- Brian Stokes Mitchell as Cam Winston, Frasier's upstairs neighbor and nemesis.
- Wendie Malick as Ronee Lawrence, Martin's girlfriend and eventual wife.
See also Minor characters on Frasier.
Records
- Grammer played Frasier for twenty years, tying the James Arness portrayal of Marshall Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke in terms of character longevity in primetime American television. The record for all of television is held by Helen Wagner, for her portrayal of matriarch Nancy Hughes on the soap opera As the World Turns. Ms. Wagner has been playing the role since the show's first episode in 1956.
- Grammer was briefly the highest-paid television star in history, reaching a salary of $1.6 million per episode for the last two seasons; his record was surpassed by Ray Romano within a year.
Awards
Emmy Awards
- Comedy Series (1994-98)
- Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Kelsey Grammer (1994, 1995, 1998, 2004)
- Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: David Hyde Pierce (1995, 1998, 1999, 2004)
- Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
- Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
- Directing in a Comedy Series
- Writing in a Comedy Series
- David Angell, Peter Casey, David Lee (1994)
- Chuck Ranberg, Anne Flett-Giordano (1995)
- Joe Keenan, Christopher Lloyd, Rob Greenberg, Jack Burditt, Chuck Ranberg, Anne Flett-Giordano, Linda Morris, Vic Rauseo (1996)
- Jay Kogen (1999)
- Editing: Ron Volk (1994, 1996, 1998, 1999 with Scott Maisano, 2001-04)
- Sound Mixing (1996, 2002, 2004)
- Art Direction (2004)
Grammer has been Emmy-nominated for playing the same character on three different shows: Cheers, Frasier and a guest appearance on Wings. 2003 was the first year that Grammer didn't receive an Emmy nomination for this series. David Hyde Pierce's streak remains unbroken.
Critical reaction
In a retrospective review in The Radio Times Guide to Television Comedy, Mark Lewisohn called the show a "comedy masterpiece", noting the following (although the first bullet point is correct for the quote, more locations were eventually included in the show such as Niles Crane's apartment):[1]
- From just three studio-bound locations - Frasier's fine apartment 1901 in Elliott Bay Towers, with its panoramic view of Seattle; the KACL studio; and the perfectly named Café Nervosa, where Frasier, Niles and the others meet for coffee - truly great comedy was wrought.
- [T]he producers remained determined to keep Frasier adult and sophisticated: the scripts were literate, the plots tight and the one-liners extremely funny and incisive. The writers were never afraid to use classical references in the lines or make jokes about subjects that many of the viewers wouldn't have experienced.
Frasier was voted by sitcom writers, producers and actors as the greatest sitcom of all time in the Channel 4 (UK) show The Ultimate Sitcom, aired on January 2 2006.
Episodes
At the beginning of its second season, the show was a Tuesday night staple, competing against another successful sitcom, Home Improvement.
The season 4 episode "Head Game" only featured Frasier for the first few minutes, with the rest of the episode centered around Niles. This role was written for Frasier, but Grammer was being treated for his addiction problems, so it was re-written for Niles instead. This is also the reason why Niles fills in for Frasier on his radio show, because the show is integral to the plot.
In the premiere episode of the sixth season, the show took over the time slot previously occupied by Seinfeld. The episode opens with Frasier auditioning for a TV show after being fired from his radio show, and his opening speech is a reference to the acquisition of Seinfelds slot: "Before we begin, I'd like to say how honored I am to be taking over this slot. Obviously, I have some rather big shoes to fill - my predecessor here was much beloved. But I have never been one to shrink from a challenge and I'm sure we'll enjoy many happy years here together in my new home."
During season 8, Jane Leeves's pregnancy was disguised by a storyline involving a severe over-eating disorder; later, her pregnancy leave was accounted for by having Daphne go to a health spa to cope with her weight problem. Daphne lost 9 lbs 12 oz at the spa, an inside joke referring to the fact that Leeves' daughter Isabella's birth weight was 9 lbs 12 oz.
For the last few seasons on the air, it was also reinstated as a Tuesday night staple, competing against another popular series, 24.
The final episode was at the time the 16th highest rated series finale, behind M*A*S*H, Cheers, Married... with Children, Seinfeld, Mad About You, Home Improvement and Friends. It was also the highest rated finale in front of Sex and the City, Everybody Loves Raymond, Will & Grace and The King of Queens.
Production
The show is set in Seattle, Washington, but only one episode, "The 1000th Show", was filmed there.[2] The remainder was filmed on Stage 25, Paramount Studios, and at various locations in and around Los Angeles.
No building or apartment in the city really has the view from Frasier's residence. It was created so that the Space Needle would appear more prominently. According to the season 1 DVD bonus features, the photograph which was used on the set was taken from atop a cliff, possibly the ledge at Kerry Park, a frequent photography location. Only once was there an exterior shot facing Frasier's apartment building, in Season 4 episode "The Impossible Dream".
The radio station callers' lines were spoken by anonymous voice-over actors while filming the show in front of a live audience. This gave the cast something to react to. During post-production, the lines were replaced by celebrities, who literally phoned in their parts without having to come into the studio. The end credits of season finales would show headshots of all the celebrities who had "called in" that season.
''Cheers'' connections
- Every regular cast member of Cheers appeared in at least one episode, except for Kirstie Alley (Rebecca Howe) and the late Nicholas Colasanto (Coach). Alley was alleged to have turned down an appearance because she is a Scientologist (Scientologists reject psychiatry/psychology).
- Kelsey Grammer has said that "The Show Where Diane Comes Back" is one of his favorite episodes. On Cheers (1982), Shelley Long didn't like the Frasier character and lobbied hard to get Grammer removed from the show. The producers disagreed, noting that the audience liked him. When Long's character, Diane Chambers, appeared on this show, Grammer said it was an opportunity for them to make peace.
- In "The Harassed" (2003), Frasier and Julia Wilcox have a heated argument, during which Frasier asks Julia "Are you as turned on as I am?" In the Cheers (1982) episode "Showdown - Part 2" Sam and Diane are having a similarly big argument. During this argument, Sam asks the exact same question, to which Diane replies "More!" and they kiss. The episode aired in 1983, and as an in-joke Bulldog later criticizes Frasier's rather dated choice of line by saying that no one has used the term "turned on" for 20 years.
- John Mahoney appeared in an episode of Cheers, as Si Phlembeck, an over-the-hill advertising executive hired by Rebecca to write a jingle for the bar. Grammer and Mahoney shared a few lines. The plot of an episode of Frasier is somewhat similar to the Cheers episode.
- In the eighth season Cheers episode "Two Girls for Every Boyd", Frasier tells Sam Malone (Ted Danson) that his research scientist father had died. In the Season 2 episode "The One Where Sam Shows Up", when Sam meets Martin, he brings up the discrepancies. In an example of retconning, Frasier explains it away by saying he had just had a fight with his father on the phone and he was very angry with him at the time.
- Robert Prosky played the father of Cheers regular Rebecca. Although he was not cast as Frasier's father, he appeared in Season 4 as a J.D. Salinger-like writer who strikes up a friendship with Martin.
- Peri Gilpin was in a Cheers episode titled Woody Gets an Election, playing a reporter who interviews Woody when he runs for office.
- Niles' wife Maris is never seen (at least her face) or heard from. The same device was used for Vera, Norm Petersen's wife in Cheers. This method is used again when Martin meets the woman he has been watching from across the street via his telescope.
- After Cheers had finished filming, the bar was taken down and the sets for this show were built over it. The producers made certain there were no stools in the coffee shop to distance it visually from the Cheers bar.
Trivia
- This series is the most successful spinoff of another series ever, spawning over 260 episodes.
- In an eerie case of life imitating art, in Season 4, Episode 23 "Odd Man Out" (aired in the US and UK in 1997), a stranger named Laura calls Frasier's answering machine to say that she will be flying into Seattle on American Airlines Flight 11. Tragically, this is the flight on which series creator David Angell and his wife perished, when it hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Niles and Daphne's baby, born in the final episode, is named David, after Angell.
- In the Simpsons episode "Brother from Another Series", David Hyde Pierce guest stars as Cecil Terwilliger, brother of Sideshow Bob, a recurring villain voiced by Kelsey Grammer. The episode also alluded to Niles' wife, Maris Crane, and makes use of subtitle slides as the "Frasier" series does. Sideshow Bob and his brother Cecil Terwilliger will reappear in a future episode of The Simpsons with Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce reprising there respective roles. John Mahoney will also appear as Sideshow Bob and Cecil Terwilliger's father.
- The actor playing the deliveryman who wheels in Martin's chair in the first episode reprised his role in the final episode, and wheeled Martin's chair out of Frasier's apartment.
- The cast performed a "mock-audition" of Star Trek: Voyager during the Star Trek 30 Years and Beyond primetime special on October 6, 1996, alongside Kate Mulgrew as Voyager character Captain Janeway (a YouTube clip is available here). Grammer had previously played Captain Morgan Bateson in the episode "Cause and Effect" of Star Trek: The Next Generation, in this "audition" he played the Klingon. The primetime special was hosted by Ted Danson, who played Sam Malone on Cheers as well as on Frasier. Incidentally, Mulgrew also has a connection to Cheers, having played the role of Sam Malone's love interest in two episodes.[3]
- Frasier's door number, 1901, is the year Freud's "The Psychopathology of Everyday Life" was published.
- Niles Crane's whippet was named "Girl". In a nod towards Niles' profession as a psychiatrist, Girl required nerve medication. (Episode #67 "Chess Pains")
- Frasier, Niles, and Martin deliver a cab driver's baby. The cab number, 804, is the same as the one in which Alex (Judd Hirsch) delivered a baby on an episode of "Taxi".
- In his previous series, The Powers That Be, David Hyde Pierce played a very similar character, a stuffy milquetoast with a mad passion for the maid.
- David Hyde Pierce has said that, prior to this series, he had no strong interest in either wine or opera. Ironically, he was introduced to both by John Mahoney, whose Martin Crane character eschews anything cultured.
- In the series finale, three of Daphne's brothers visit from England, however, none of the actors playing them are English. They were Anthony LaPaglia (Australia), Richard E. Grant (Swaziland) and Robbie Coltrane (Scotland).
- It is eventually revealed that Frasier and Niles were named after two lab rats their mother was using in an experiment (psychology?) when she was pregnant with Frasier. Frasier (the rat) had already died when Frasier (the human) was born.
- In one episode, after a night at the opera watching "Rigoletto" by Verdi, Frasier remarks to his date that the finest soprano to sing the role of "Gilda" was "The great Mathilde DeCagney". Mathilde DeCagney is the animal trainer who owns Moose, the dog who plays Eddie.
- In the premiere episode of season 8, Niles takes a mobile phone call. After a pause, he says, "No, there is no Wendell Vaughn here." Wendell Vaughn is the real name of the Marvel Comics superhero Quasar.
- In the episode 'An Affair to Forget', Niles says he turned back from crossing the Washington/Oregon border because he had fruit. There are no agricultural inspection stations to enter Oregon. There are however, inspection stations on the California border (where the show was filmed).
DVD Releases
As of 2007, Paramount Home Entertainment has released Seasons 1-9 & 11 on Region 1 DVD. Season 10 is expected in 2007.
Other merchandise
VHS
The first four seasons have been released on VHS along with a series of 'Best Of' tapes. These tapes consist of four episodes taken from seasons 1-4. No more video releases have been announced.
NBC broadcast history
All times listed are North American Eastern Standard Time.
- September 1993-May 1994 - Thursdays 9:30pm
- September 1994-May 1998 - Tuesdays 9:00pm
- September 1998-May 2000 - Thursdays 9:00pm
- October 2000-May 2004 - Tuesdays 9:00pm
Syndication and international broadcasters
External links
Citations
- [1] ''Frasier'' from the BBC Guide to Comedy
- [2] TV.com Episode Summary
- [3] http://www.tv.com/cheers/strange-bedfellows-1/episode/14165/summary.html?tag=ep_list;ep_title;23