'Frasier' Wasn't The First Spin Off Of 'Cheers', But No One Wants To Remember The Original
Everyone remembers how iconic Cheers was. It was really one of the greatest shows of its time, and also helped launch another hit sitcom as well. Frasier was one of the longest running sitcoms ever, and as far as spin-offs go, it doesn't get much better!
Cheers came out in 1982, and continued to run for 275 episodes. The finale of the 11th season aired on May 20, 1993, but shortly after it ended, Frasier began.
Premiering in September 1993, Fraiser was the perfect follow up. It was witty and smart, and millions of people loved it. The thing is, just because Frasier was the most successful spin-off, doesn't mean it was the only one.
Turns out, there was a spin-off of Cheers that came out years before Frasier; it just wasn't as popular.
Can you remember the original spin-off? It never did as well as Frasier, but it came out before Cheers even ended!
The Tortellis premiered in 1987, which would have been during the sixth season of Cheers. It followed the story of Carla's ex-husband, Nick, and his new 'trophy wife' Loretta.
The show followed Nick and Loretta as they moved to Las Vegas, away from the Boston based bar where his ex-wife Carla worked. The show actually started with a dream sequence where Rhea Perlman actually made an appearance.
Former Cheers guest stars, Dan Hedaya and Jean Kasem, reprised their roles. They were joined by Nick and Carla's son Anthony who is now married to a woman named Annie.
The show only lasted 13 episodes before it was cancelled. The fact was, the show just didn't work. The characters weren't enough of a pull to get people to watch, especially given the fact that Cheers was still on the air.
When Fraiser premiered, Cheers had just ended. There was no competition for audience's attention and so it was able to thrive on its own.
Luckily for the characters, they were able to return to Cheers for a few appearances. They just claimed that the TV repair business Nick went to Las Vegas to start had failed so they had come back home.