I grew up loving the dry, quick-witted humor of Kelsey Grammer as Frasier going back to when he first appeared as him on Cheers years before the original spinoff that lasted from 1993-2004. So when Paramount Plus announced they’d be rebooting the show, I was interested to see just where they would take the character in 2023.
The answer to that now of course being back to Boston where Fraiser Crane had originated, where he quickly moves in with his adult son Frederick (Jack Cutmore-Scott) in his upscale apartment while taking a professorship at Harvard. The same type of mishaps that followed Crane in the original show no doubt seem to follow him here, leading to more than just the occasional laugh.
Gone now though are many of the key characters from the first series that contributed to so much to what made the show so great to begin with, including Niles Crane (David Hyde Pierce), Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves), and of course, the late John Mahoney as Marty Crane (whose loss is handled gracefully here). There are however a couple of worthy guests who do show up, most notably Bebe Neuwirth as Frasier’s ex wife, Lilith, and Peri Gilpen as his friend and former co-worker from his days as a radio talk show host in Seattle, Roz Doyle.
All things considered, it’s great to have Frasier Crane back again in a world that truly needs him at the moment (and foolishly wants to cancel the actor who plays him simply because…you guessed it, he hasn’t subscribed to the same forced, brainwashed indoctrination that the rest of the Hollywood elites have!). Lighten up, and laugh a little already.
I was far too young for Cheers during Shelley Long’s run as Diane Chambers in the earlier seasons, but can clearly remember watching the show after Kirstie Alley had come on board in the late ’80s as Rebecca Howe, and quickly became a fan all the way up to the much-watched series finale on May 20, 1993. In that short span of time watching the show, I’m not ashamed to admit I had the major hots for Alley. But it was more than just a physical attraction; her ability to appear so down to Earth, not to mention quick-witted, made her a strong, relatable example of an ’80s woman, just as much as a sexy one. I wasn’t prepared when I learned of her passing last night on December 5, 2022.
Alley was born in Witchita, Kansas on January 12, 1951, and made her film debut four decades ago in 1982’s Star Trek II:The Wrath of Khan. Although I’ve never been much of a Trekie myself, the sequel was much more tolerable than many other entries in the series, perhaps partly due to Alley’s involvement.
From there on out, Alley made appearances in a number of supporting roles in such ’80s staples (at least in my book) as 1984’s Blind Date and the Sci-Fi action/thriller Runaway opposie both Tom Selleck, and Gene Simmons of KISS (a personal favorite of mine to this day, and the scene where Alley “strips down” in front of Selleck is one still etched in my mind after all these years).
If there were a “breakthrough” year for Alley, it’d have to be 1987; not only did she score big co-starring (with Mark Harmon) in the hit film Summer School, she also landed said role of Rebecca on the previously-mentioned hit television series Cheers, a character she would thrive as for six full seasons.
By 1989 she had become a box office draw, co-starring with John Travolta in what was billed as his “comeback” in 1989’s comedy romp Look Who’s Talking (re-uniting her in sorts with her Blind Date co-star Willis). The film was successful enough to spawn two sequels; 1990’s Look Who’s Talking Too and 1993’s Look Who’s Talking Now.
Aside from the L.W.T. sequels, the ’90s were not as kind to her at the box office, but she appeared in a number of underrated films such as 1990’s Madhouse with John Larroquette, John Carpenter’s Village of the Damned (1995), and 1997’s For Richeror Poorer (along with Tim Allen). But she fared better on the small screen, landing another hit show in the form of Veronica’s Closet on NBC, which ran from 1997-2000.
She made more sporadic appearances throughout the next couple of decades, becoming a spokeswoman for Jenny Craig in 2004 after struggling with weight issues, and occasionally still scoring a memorable role or two (her guest spot on a 2006 episode of The King of Queens particularly stands out) and short-lived starring roles like 2013’s Kirstie, and 2016’s Scream Queens.
Most recently, Alley appeared as a contestant on season seven of The Masked Singer earlier this year, which looks to be her final public appearance now since her family announced her passing at the age of 71 on Monday night after a battle with cancer. Although I can’t say I understood every aspect of her personal life (especially her spiritual beliefs), I definitely think her and I would’ve seen eye to eye politically (among other things). Her death no doubt came as a sudden shock to many, and left yet another huge unfortunate void for all of us children of the ’80s. She will be missed by many.
