Actually featured him in the teaser, in bed with the chicken pox and about half a dozen girls.


Did anybody else notice how cheap of a set that was??
I mean, they put the fish from the bar above his bed!!




It was actually kind of dissappointing in a way, I mean.... 11 years without once seeing his apartment made his character intriguing. And then they throw the record away with a cheap bedroom shot. We never saw his family either.... does anybody know why??

When I saw that episode, I always thought that was in a hotel room.

I don't remember that episode, but I think the reason they never showed his family was to stress the fact that the people at Cheers were his family. After all, he said he felt like an outsider around his parents and Derek. He could only rely on the people at the bar.

Originally posted by Brian Damage
When I saw that episode, I always thought that was in a hotel room.

Ohh, maybe.
Doesn't explain the fish though....

It always bugs me that people claim that episode doesn't have Sam in it, when he's in the teaser. It's not a big role, but he still appears.

We never saw anyone from Norm's family, either. I think it was because the characters didn't necessitate showing their families.

Originally posted by slackermonkey
It always bugs me that people claim that episode doesn't have Sam in it, when he's in the teaser. It's not a big role, but he still appears.

We never saw anyone from Norm's family, either. I think it was because the characters didn't necessitate showing their families.

I think it's because Ted Danson wasn't there for the episode shoot that it's considered he wasn't in the episode. (I'm sure that scene was shot afterwards or before-hand.... why would they want the star to not appear??)



About Norm's family, that was addressed though. The bar was his life.

Originally posted by slackermonkey
It always bugs me that people claim that episode doesn't have Sam in it, when he's in the teaser. It's not a big role, but he still appears.

We never saw anyone from Norm's family, either. I think it was because the characters didn't necessitate showing their families.

True, but Vera was very present (even if she didn't appear). And we saw Diane's mother, Carla's ex-husband, her sisters and kids, Ma Clavin, Coach's daughter...

See, Chambers had brought up the same point I was trying to make about how Sam's character doesn't necessitate showing his family. His family is the bar. And Norm doesn't have a life outside the bar, so it makes sense that we see very little of it. :p

And the characters I meant didn't need to have their families shown were Sam and Norm. I know everyone else had at least one family member show up at some point, even Lilith.

Originally posted by slackermonkey
And the characters I meant didn't need to have their families shown were Sam and Norm. I know everyone else had at least one family member show up at some point, even Lilith.
Ooh gotcha. Sorry about that.

Not a problem.

Although counting it up in my head, Carla has had more family members shown than any other character. Her mother, siblings, kids and both husbands. I wonder why hers was given the most attention.

Originally posted by slackermonkey
Not a problem.

Although counting it up in my head, Carla has had more family members shown than any other character. Her mother, siblings, kids and both husbands. I wonder why hers was given the most attention.

Guess it's just part of the whole Italian thing. They did the same thing on Friends with Joey. They gave him a huge family.

Yeah, but we hardly got to meet any of them. His parents showed up once, his sisters were mostly just background and one sister got a good appearance.

Also, I wish we could have met Woody's immediate family. Only his cousin ever showed up, right? I bet his parents would have been fun to see.

Also, I think many of the Carla storylines depended on her family, since they pretty much took up her entire life outside of the bar. Joey, on the other hand, didn't have any responsability over his parents or sisters and didn't have any kids.

True. Not many of the other Friends' parents appeared very often, either. I guess to underline the fact that they are each other's surrogate family.

He was also only in the opening scene of "Book of Samuel," too, right? Though I suppose he was probably at that episode taping which is why it isn't counted as him not appearing?

What's funny about Norm and Vera, is that for the longest time I thought that everyone at the bar knew Vera, and it was just a joke that we never saw her, but then in the episode where Diane tells them there are two gay men in the bar, Cliff says "what about you Norm, where is this Vera you are always talking about?" (well something like that)

Originally posted by slackermonkey
True. Not many of the other Friends' parents appeared very often, either. I guess to underline the fact that they are each other's surrogate family.

Ross and Monica's parents were on a lot.


About them not knowing Vera.... I think at the beginning they had never met her, but I'm sure they all met her at one point or another throughout the series.
I know for sure that Cliff met her.

Originally posted by barwars
Ross and Monica's parents were on a lot.

Key phrase: "not many." They were the exception. I probably should have been clearer on that.

And yeah, on Cheers they did all meet Vera for the first time during "Thanksgiving Orphans," remember? Though I don't know if she stuck around after getting a pie thrown in her face.

Originally posted by slackermonkey
Key phrase: "not many." They were the exception. I probably should have been clearer on that.

And yeah, on Cheers they did all meet Vera for the first time during "Thanksgiving Orphans," remember? Though I don't know if she stuck around after getting a pie thrown in her face.

Good point.

And no, she didn't stay around after the pie in the face.
I forget exactly what she said.... but she told Norm they were leaving.

Yeah, that's why I wasn't sure if Norm convinced her to stay or not -- the episode just ended with her going, "That's it, I'm leaving."

I think by S2 or S3 Cliff hadn't met Vera yet. There's one episode of those years in which Norm drives Cliff home because he's too drunk to drive and Cliff says something like "I'd like to meet Vera, I haven't met her yet". As you said, I think the gang finally met Vera in "Thanksgiving Orphans".

As for the episode "without" Sam: to me, being in the teaser IS appearing on the episode. Tip O'Neill or John Kerry never appeared on Cheers either, for that matter. :)