Glen and Les Charles Recall "Sheer Panic" after Shelley Long Left "Cheers"

[JamesG]

"Cheers" wouldn't have "Survived" without Shelley Long's Diane, Creators Say — So They Panicked When she Left
by Shania Russell
February 27, 2025


Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name — a place that might not exist, if not for the work of Shelley Long.

During a visit to the Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast, "Cheers" creators and brothers Glen and Les Charles credited Long's performance as Diane Chambers with securing the debut season's success.




"We said often that we're not sure that Cheers would have survived without Shelley in that first season because she was so strong and so confident and knew exactly who the character was and who she was,” Les told hosts and "Cheers" alums Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson.

“And I think all of the rest of you were finding your way a little bit.”




To that, Danson quipped, "Kiss my ass. That's so rude." But ultimately, he didn't disagree.

"Shelley really gave the first year or two or three the boost that Cheers needed," Danson said. "Because she landed into her part feet first in the pilot and was astounding and unlike any other character we've seen since maybe, you know, I Love Lucy or something."

He admitted that he had to "learn so much" when the series began, but praised Harrelson — who joined the show in its third season — claiming he arrived "full-fledged."




At the end of the fifth season, Long left the sitcom to focus on films and her family. Because of all that her presence and performance added to the show, Les recalled the brothers experiencing "sheer panic" when it came time for her departure.

"There were some critics that said when Shelley walks out the door, that's the end of Cheers," Glen said, adding that it was difficult to believe otherwise since "a main element of the show was the Sam-Diane courtship."




Momentous as it was, Shelley's departure wasn't a shock, Glen pointed out.

"[She] had signed on for five years anyway. Her contract was up, it's not like she stormed out of here," he said. "She did say, 'I'm out of here,' but she was allowed to do that. She was having a certain amount of success in film and thought she had a career in film. So we can't fight that."




As for what became of "Cheers" in her wake, the sitcom ultimately introduced Kirstie Alley as Rebecca Howe in season 6 — though Glen insists she was never meant to serve as a straight-up Diane replacement. As the new manager of the Cheers bar, she offered a new dynamic for the writers to explore with Sam.

"She's a very good actress. She's obviously very sexy and interesting to watch," Glen said. Based on her prior work, the creators weren't positive that she could be funny, but decided she didn't necessarily have to be. But it wasn't long before Alley proved her comedy chops as well.

Danson praised her performance as well, adding that Alley was “a woman who could play desperation, on the verge of a nervous breakdown, be moving, and still be funny."

https://ew.com/cheers-wouldnt-have-s...s-say-11688078

[Alan Brady's Hair]

There were some critics that said when Shelley walks out the door, that's the end of Cheers," Glen said, adding that it was difficult to believe otherwise since "a main element of the show was the Sam-Diane courtship."

The thing is, Sam and Diane were a new phenomenon in sitcoms. No one knew that if you kept such a storyline running for seven or even ten years, the show would just turn into soap opera. It turned out to be a lucky break that she left before the story got tedious.

[DJM77]

Woody Harrelson joined Cheers in the fourth season, not the third season as the article stated.