Season One Ep 2 Sam's Women

Coach: "Beer, Norm?"

Norm: “Hey, I've heard of that stuff. Better give me a tall one in case I like it.”

The first and possibly only appearance of horny Norm! Vera doesn't have a name yet, but Norm's wife is briefly mentioned in the first episode, and Norm's confirmed as 100% faithful in season 2, resisting the considerable charms of Alf's Anne Schedeen, but here's Norm going gaga for a leggy blonde named Brandee "with two e's". While I like this excitable side of Norm--note the chummy way he greets Carla ("Hey, girl!")--I'm glad they didn't stick with this approach as Sam's hound enough for the whole bar. And right on cue, Sam swoops in offering 'Brandee' ("with two 'e's") an "amusing little wine", much to Diane's disappointment, as she was operating under the assumption Sam had more depth. While Sam and Diane debate his taste in women, Brandee gets antsy and leaves with another fella.

Back at the Bar, Leo (Donnelly Rhodes of Soap, Danger Bay, BSG reboot, and Canuck man-crush renown) approaches Coach, asking for the owner before the last owner, Gus. Desperate for Gus's patented brand of advice, Leo's traveled all the way from Seattle to seek his counsel, only to find Gus has passed. Why didn't Leo call instead of travelling cross-country? Because that's how they wrote it. Leo's son is marrying a man and Coach responds with less-than-evolved advice which Leo mistakes for reverse psychology, deciding to embrace his gay son no matter who he loves. It's amazing how far we've come in 37 years as the gay fiancé reveal gets a raucous laugh here, and probably wouldn't merit much response besides "Congrats!" today.

Another momentous anomaly in the show's run is the first and only appearance by Sam's rarely-mentioned ex-wife, Debra.

                                                      "...I think her name's Debra..."

Sam and Debra have just returned from the symphony and Sam makes sure Diane hears all about it. Debra, as portrayed by Tony Award winner Donna McKechnie, comes off as quite classy and even age appropriate (actually 7 years older than Danson), and Diane's impressed until she eyes the two-year old program, and Debra concedes they just came back from Star Wars (presumably on re-release). Turns out Debra and Sam were once married, and she's been enlisted as a sophisticated ringer. Sam confesses that Diane's ruined all his fun: "Y'know, this week, I have gone out with all the women I know--I mean all the women I reeeally enjoy--and all of a sudden, all I can think about is how stupid they are. I mean, my life isn't fun anymore. And it's because of you." Here we get our first real flirty Sam/Diane sparring session. Diane insists "a really intelligent woman would see your line of BS a mile away". Sam proves her wrong when he sells her a line about her eyes, and she almost melts. Watching Shelley Long get weak in the knees makes me kinda wobbly, too!

Favourite exchange-- Diane: Tell me, once you've consumed as much sex for as long as you wanted, what would you do then?" Norm: "...I'd help the poor."

Danson Hair

Very much like the pilot, but slightly graying at the temples. At the behest of producers, Danson colored his hair for years, so I'm assuming this is just his own gray shining through. But his hair's like snowflakes from episode to episode. No two are quite alike.

MVP

George Wendt. Norm's come-hither/shit eating grin's hilarious, and it's fun watching him trip over himself to provide a light for Brandee's cigarette. Norm's never established as a smoker, so I'm guessing he hangs onto the lighter for just such an occasion. Or he goes to lots of Peter Frampton concerts.

Trivia

- Jack Knight's first appearance of 8 as 'Jack'.

- The first of writer Earl Pomerantz's four Cheers episodes. Pomerantz wrote for several MTM shows, and went on to create Major Dad among other sitcoms. Earl Pomerantz. What a great name! He also worked with Eugene Levy and Andrea Martin pre-SCTV, in Ivan Reitman's Cannibal Girls, and his brother, Hart Pomerantz, was an early collaborator of SNL's Lorne Michaels. It's all connected! And it's nice to see a Canadian writer working on Cheers.

Guest Stars

- Donnelly Rhodes plays the advice seeking Leo. Winnipeg-born Rhodes had a long career on both sides of the border, but he's probably most beloved to Canadians of my vintage for Danger Bay, a show where a marine biologist and his kids find far more danger and intrigue than one might expect at a Vancouver Aquarium. Coincidentally, for a show set on the water, the actress that played his daughter is named 'Ocean'. Full name? Crystal Ocean Supri Heavenly Blue Sky Hellman. Take that, Earl Pomerantz!

- Keenen Ivory Wayans (pre-Ivory middle name which he added back soon after), best known as the creator of In Living Color, appears in the cold open, and even gets one line, "Those are our drinks." as Customer #1 in his second ever onscreen appearance. It was onward and upward for Wayans from there.

- Donna McKechnie guests as Sam's ex-wife, Debra. McKechnie won her Tony for A Chorus Line, and had a long partnership with A Chorus Line's director, Michael Bennett. She'd already had a succesful career on stage and screen pre-Cheers, and went on to many other projects, but this is the first and last time we ever see Sam's ex-wife on Cheers.