Alan Koss

This is a list of characters from the American television sitcom, ''Cheers''.

Original main characters

Before the ''Cheers'' pilot, "Give Me a Ring Sometime", was finalized and then aired in 1982, the series originally consisted of four employees of Cheers, the bar, in the original script. There was neither Norm Peterson nor Cliff Clavin, regular customers of Cheers; later revisions added them as part of the series.Wendt 2009, pp. 112–114.

Sam Malone

Samuel "Mayday" Malone (Ted Danson) — a bartender and owner of Cheers. Sam is also a ladies' man. Before the series began, he was a relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox when he became (and still is) a friend of Coach, but then he became alcoholic, which took a toll on his baseball career. He has had on-again, off-again relationships with Diane Chambers, his opposite, in the first five seasons (1982–1987). During the breaks in their relationship Sam has flings with many not-so-bright "sexy women", but generally doesn't pursue relationships and fails to seduce some intellectual women.

After Diane leaves Boston, he pursues Rebecca Howe, largely unsuccessfully. In the end, he is still unmarried, recovering from sexual addiction with help from Dr. Robert Sutton's ( Gilbert Lewis) group meetings, advised by Frasier, in the penultimate episode "The Guy Can't Help It" (1993). Sam Malone was originally written as a former football player, but the casting of Ted Danson led writers to change Sam into an ex-baseball player.

Diane Chambers

Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) — a highly academic, sophisticated college student. In the pilot, Diane is abandoned by her fiancé Sumner Sloan (Michael McGuire), for whom she'd worked as an assistant, as he returns to his ex-wife. Without a job, money, or man, she reluctantly becomes a cocktail waitress. Over time, she becomes a close friend of Coach. She has an on-and-off relationship with bartender Sam Malone. When not involved with Sam, Diane dates men who fit her upper-class ideals, such as Frasier Crane. Later in the fifth season, she leaves Boston behind for a writing career and in the eleventh and final season lives in Los Angeles.

Coach

Ernie "Coach" Pantusso (or Pantuso) ( Nicholas Colasanto) — a "senile" co-bartender, widower, and retired baseball coach. Coach was also a friend of Sam and a close friend of Diane. He had a daughter, Lisa. Coach was often easily tricked, particularly into situations that put the bar at stake. Nevertheless, he listened to people's problems and then helped to them with advice and analyses. In the fourth season, Coach died without explicit explanation while the actor Colasanto himself died of a heart attack in February 1985.

Carla Tortelli

Carla Maria Victoria Angelina Teresa Apollonia Lozupone (Rhea Perlman) — a "wisecracking, cynical" cocktail waitress, who abuses customers. At the series premiere, she was the mother of four children and divorced from Nick Tortelli (Dan Hedaya). She flirts with men, including ones who are not interested in her, and believes in superstitions, but secretly carries the torch for Sam. She is both highly fertile and matrimonially inept.

Carla's last husband, Eddie LeBec, a washed-up ice hockey goalie whom she married during the run of the show, eventually died in an ice show accident involving a Zamboni. Carla later discovered that Eddie had cheated on her, committing bigamy with another woman whom he had gotten pregnant. Carla's sleazy first husband, Nick Tortelli (Dan Hedaya), also made appearances, variously challenging Carla with a custody battle or a legal scam stemming from their divorce. Carla's eight children, four of whom were born during the show's run, were notoriously ill-behaved, except for Ludlow, whose father was a prominent academician. Perlman's real-life pregnancies were written into the series as Carla's pregnancies.Top 10 Pregnant Performers: Where Everybody Knows You're Pregnant (or Not)
" ''Time''. Web. 2 June 2012.

Norm Peterson

Hilary Norman Peterson (George Wendt) — a bar regular and semi-unemployed accountant, whose common name "Norm" is often shouted whenever he enters the bar. Outside the bar, he frequently changes jobs and has a troubled marriage with (but is still in love with and married to) Vera, an unseen character. Later in the series, he becomes a house painter, especially for Rebecca's bar office. (Despite a few fleeting appearances and vocal cameos, Vera's body is seen in the fifth-season episode " Thanksgiving Orphans" (1986), but her face is covered with a pumpkin pie. Her body is played by Bernadette Birkett, the real-life wife of George Wendt.)

Originally, there was no Norm Peterson. Wendt auditioned for a minor role George for the pilot episode, who was Diane Chambers' first customer and had only one word in one line: "Beer!" After he was cast as George, Wendt's role was rewritten into Norm.

Cliff Clavin

Clifford C. Clavin, Jr. (John Ratzenberger) — a know-it-all bar regular and postman. He mostly lives with his mother, Esther Clavin (Frances Sternhagen), in the family house (until its on-screen destruction in season 6) and then in a condo, although he first purchases the condo as a bachelor pad for himself. He is ridiculed by friends and enemies alike, including Norm and Carla, for his know-it-all attitude. Cliff is mostly hopeless with women. His longest relationship is with fellow postal worker Margaret O'Keefe (Annie Golden), which begins during Cheers' seventh season (1988–89). When Margaret becomes pregnant with another man's child in 1993's "Do Not Forsake Me O My Postman", Cliff stays by her side as the baby's stepfather before Margaret returns to the child's biological father.

In "The Barstoolie" (1985) Cliff meets his father, Cliff Clavin Sr. (Dick O'Neill), who left Cliff and his mother years earlier when Cliff was still a child. Cliff later realizes that his father is a fraudster and a fugitive from justice, and will run off again. Cliff does not want to turn his father in; Cliff Sr. disappears, leaving his son devastated.

Ratzenberger auditioned for the Norm Peterson role but, sensing he would not get the role, Ratzenberger pitched the idea of a bar "know-it-all". The producers loved the idea so the security guard Cliff Clavin was added for the pilot. However, the producers changed his occupation into a postal worker because they perceived postal workers as more knowledgeable than security guards.

Subsequent main characters

Woody Boyd replaced Coach, who died off-screen in the fourth season. Frasier Crane began as a recurring guest role and became a permanent character. Rebecca Howe replaced Diane Chambers, who left Boston for a writing career in 1987. Lilith Sternin started as a one-time character in the Season 4 episode, "Second Time Around" (1986), and became a recurring character in Season 5 (1986–87), and a regular character for Season 10 and the episodes that she appears in for Season 11 (1992–93).

Frasier Crane and Lilith Sternin

Frasier W. Crane ( Kelsey Grammer) and Lilith Sternin (formerly Sternin-Crane) (Bebe Neuwirth) — married psychiatrists and bar regulars, although Lilith rarely orders drinks. Frasier starts out as Diane Chambers's love interest. When she jilts him at the wedding altar in Europe, he ends up frequently going to Cheers pub for drinks and becomes everybody's bar friend. His first date with Lilith in "Second Time Around" (1986), Lilith's only episode of the fourth season, does not go well because they constantly argue. In the fifth season, Frasier and Lilith meet again when they are scheduled for a psychological talk show. With help from Diane, Frasier becomes aroused by Lilith's makeover, especially with her hair down, for the talk show. Frasier and Lilith flirt with each other on the talk show. Although they later feel guilty, Frasier and Lilith overcome their guilt with more help from Diane and begin their relationship.

They move in together, get married, and in the seventh season (1988–89) conceive a son Frederick, who is born in the following eighth season (1989–90). Their marriage is strained when Lilith has an affair with Dr. Louis Pascal (Peter Vogt). In the ''Cheers'' spin-off '' Frasier'', Frasier divorces her, gives custody of Frederick to Lilith, and moves from Boston to Seattle. Lilith appears in the spin-off recurringly.

Woody Boyd

Woodrow Tiberius Boyd (Woody Harrelson) — a co-bartender, commonly called "Woody". When he arrived from his Midwest hometown to Boston, Woody wanted to meet his pen pal Coach. However, he finds out that Coach already died, and is hired to work at the bar. Later, he dates Kelly Gaines (Jackie Swanson), marries her and is elected to the Boston City Council. At the end, he and Kelly have a son and daughter as revealed in ''Frasier''.

Rebecca Howe

Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley) — a "voluptuously beautiful" manager and occasional waitress. Initially, she starts out a strong independent woman, but after several romantic failures with (mainly) rich men, she becomes "more neurotic, insecure, and sexually frustrated". At the start, Sam attempts to seduce Rebecca without success, but, when her persona changes, he loses interest in her. In the series finale, she marries the plumber Don Santry ( Tom Berenger). In '' Frasier'', according to Sam, she divorces Don and then ends up visiting the bar without working there again.

Recurring characters

Each of the following characters of ''Cheers'' may or may not be particularly significant to the story of the series; each ''was introduced in one season and would appear in subsequent seasons'' — unless introduced in season 11, which was the last season. However, even when a character appeared earlier, information is arranged based on a character's first appearance rather than an actor's, especially when a same actor portrays different characters. Moreover, uncredited appearances are disregarded.

Introduced in season 1

Sumner Sloan

Sumner Sloan ( Michael McGuire) is a college English literature professor for whom Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) worked as a teaching assistant. Divorced, Sumner became engaged to Diane, whom he left to return to his ex-wife, Barbara, flying to Barbados on the flight Diane had booked for them both. Sumner tried secretly to win Diane back while she was seriously dating Sam Malone (Ted Danson), an attempt which ultimately failed. Diane ultimately states that it wasn't because Sam read '' War and Peace'', but that he read it for her.

In "I Do, Adieu" (1987), where he last appears, Sumner returns after he heard the news about Sam and Diane's engagement. Sumner tells Diane that he sent one of her unfinished manuscripts to one of his colleagues, who had praised it. He warns her that writing both a novel and being a housewife to Sam simultaneously is impossible. Moreover, he warns her that choosing one would put an end to the other, either her marriage or her writing talents. Diane orders Sumner to leave the bar right away, but after talking with Sam, she decides to invest six months of her time into the endeavour of finishing the book, and they ultimately do not marry.

Harry the Hat

Harry "the Hat" Gittes (Harry Anderson) is a con artist who first appeared in "Sam at Eleven" (1982). More often, Harry has been kicked out by Sam for his confidence tricks, while Harry tricks bar customers into giving him money. Sam has standing orders to have Harry thrown out of the bar on sight, but Harry will help out the gang at Cheers upon occasion—partly out of sentiment, and partly to protect the Cheers gang from operators even more unscrupulous than himself. As Harry notes, "I don't like the idea of someone else plucking ''my'' pigeons." In " Pick a Con... Any Con" (1983), Sam Malone (Ted Danson) bails Harry out of jail because Sam and Coach ( Nicholas Colasanto) want him to spite a hustler, George Wheeler ( Reid Shelton), who has been taking away $8,000 worth of bar assets from Coach at card games of gin rummy. Then Harry suggests poker, which he assumes that George may not be good at conning, and prices Sam's requests for $5,000. Later, Harry ends up "losing" to George at poker games.

However, as discovered, Harry's hand was four of a kind (four 3s), which would have beaten George's straight hand. As they later admit, Harry and George had been cheating players, including Sam, at poker to take away their money. Therefore, they play a serious but final game. When Coach scratches his nose, George indicates a gesture that his three Queens ( three of a kind) would beat Harry's hand. This time, however, Harry's four 3s in his hand beats George's hand, so Harry takes all the money and then leaves the bar. Nevertheless, as it turns out, the whole events are part of Harry and Coach's plan to spite George, so Harry comes back after George leaves and then gives everyone back $8,000. Harry appeared four times in the series’ first and second seasons, after which he disappeared until season six's "A Kiss is Still a Kiss". This was actually due to the fact that the actor-magician had achieved fame in his own right by starring in his own series ''Night Court'', which followed ''Cheers'' on NBC's Thursday night " Must See TV" line up. Harry casually explained his long absence—when asked how long it had been since his last visit to Cheers, he replied it had been "two to ten, with time off for good behavior".

In "Bar Wars VII: The Naked Prey" (1993), Harry "refuses" to help out the Cheers gang spite Gary ( Robert Desiderio; previously Joel Polis), who has been taunting the Cheers gang by pranking them and seemingly always winning their competitions. He tells the gang that they are naturally "losers" and that topping Gary is impossible. However, he ultimately cons Gary by pretending to be a contractor with a fake name. Gary has his own pub, Gary's Olde Towne Tavern, demolished under Harry's "contract" for millions, but then Gary realizes that he was conned and that the money does not exist. Harry hides while Gary angrily exits the bar to chase after him. At the end, Harry steals the money from Cheers's cash register as a form of payment for taking down Gary.

Dave Richards

Dave Richards ( Fred Dryer) is a sports commentator, friend of former baseball player Sam Malone (Ted Danson), and also divorced. In "Sam at Eleven" (1982), Dave wants to interview Sam only because, unbeknownst to Sam, none of high-profile celebrities at Dave's priorities were available. However, when one of the high-profile sports celebrities (John McEnroe) is finally available, Dave halts his interview with Sam, which puts an end to Sam's second chance of fame.

In "Old Flames" (1983), Dave realizes that Sam and Diane are together and bets that their relationship will end in 24 hours, so he and Sam can have debauchery with women. Then Dave sets Sam up with another woman to put his relationship with Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) at stake. However, Sam refuses to have a fling with that woman because he still thinks about Diane. After the time expires, Dave fails to break them up because Sam and Diane are still together. In "Love Thy Neighbor" (1985), Dave is heard on the radio, where he interviews Sam about Diane. In "'I' on Sports" (1987), Dave offers Sam a job as Dave's substitute for covering sports on television, which Sam accepts. (Nevertheless, Sam's news career is short-lived.)

Fred Dryer originally auditioned for the role of Sam Malone, who was initially a football player. Because he was a football player, Dryer was considered for that role. However, the role was eventually given to Ted Danson.

Paul

Paul (Paul Vaughn) was a bar customer who appears recurringly until "Manager Coach" (1983), an episode of the second season (1983–1984). He spends most of his time antagonising Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger). He is not to be confused with Paul Krapence (Paul Willson).

Alan

Alan ( Alan Koss) was a bar patron who appears recurringly through the show's entire run. The character of Alan is known to be single, and lives in a room with a Murphy bed. In his first appearance " Let Me Count the Ways" (1983), Alan informs waitress Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) that she has given him a wrong drink. Immediately, she breaks into tears, so Alan tries to cheer her up without avail by "accepting" and then drinking the wrong order. In "The Heart Is the Lonely Snipe Hunter" (1985), he is one of the boys who purposely abandon Frasier Crane ( Kelsey Grammer) at the fabricated snipe hunting game. In "Those Lips, Those Ice" (1988), when Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) assumes that her then-husband Eddie (Jay Thomas) is cheating on her with another woman, Alan advises Carla to tell Eddie how she feels inside by expressing not only her heart but also her soul, so they both "give unto" each other. Norm Peterson (George Wendt) reacts by calling him a "clown".

Andy Schroeder

Andy Schroeder ( Derek McGrath) is an ex-convict. Andy first appears in "Diane's Perfect Date" (1983) as Diane Chambers's (Shelley Long) blind date, paid by Sam Malone (Ted Danson), who calls him "Andy-Andy" because he does not know and has not asked his surname, for $20. It is discovered he killed the waitress in an Italian restaurant, Via Milano, and was imprisoned. He rides a motorcycle. During the date, Diane and Sam are horrified by Andy's murderous comments.

Andy later reappears in "Homicidal Ham" (1983) and then holds people hostage to commit robbery with a gun. Fortunately, Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) catches him after he drops the gun. As learned, Andy has no job because of his past; nevertheless, Andy learned acting in high school. Diane convinces Sam not to send him to the police and, instead, gives him a chance to do performance in Shakespearean play ''Othello''. Andy then falls in love with Diane, but he becomes jealous and then murderous when he see Sam and Diane kissing. At the play, performed in the bar, Andy chokes Diane to near death until Sam rescues her, and Norm Peterson (George Wendt) and Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger) grab hold of Andy.

Later, he is sometimes called "Andy-Andy" by characters and real-life sources alike. In "Diane's Nightmare" (1985), Andy marries Cynthia ( Nancy Cartwright), but the whole thing turns out to be Diane's dream. In "Do Not Forsake Me, O' My Postman" (1992), Andy returns to the bar with bomb detonator around his body and wants to see Diane. Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson) tells him that Diane no longer works as a waitress anymore, so Andy leaves.

Boggs

Boggs (Duncan Ross) is a chauffeur to Helen Chambers ( Glynis Johns), mother of Diane (Shelley Long). In " Someone Single, Someone Blue" (1983), Boggs repeatedly asks Diane to be his wife to help her mother Helen keep her inheritance under the late Spencer Chambers's will. When the time expires and Diane is still single, Helen loses all the wealth. Fortunately, as he ultimately admits, Boggs embezzled a healthy proportion of the Chambers's money in the past and has money still remaining. He proposes to be Helen's husband, and Helen accepts. In "Rebound, Part One" (1984), after Diane's huge breakup from Sam Malone (Ted Danson), Boggs takes Diane back from psychiatric hospital to her apartment. He notifies her that Helen felt uncomfortable contacting Diane while Diane was in the ward.

Justice Harrison Fiedler

Justice Harrison Fiedler (Dean Dittman) is a justice of the peace. In his first episode, "Someone Single, Someone Blue" (1983), he performs Sam and Diane's (almost) wedding, which is halted by Diane's mother Helen, who is appalled by their bickering toward each other. In his second and last episode, "Bar Bet" (1985), her performs a faux wedding of Sam and Jacqueline Bisset (not to be confused with the actress Jacqueline Bisset), whom Sam obtained to avoid losing his bar to his friend Eddie Gordon (Michael Richards).

Introduced in season 2

Tom

Tom Babson (Tom Babson), an aspiring lawyer who studies law and attempts to pass the bar exam. He is primarily involved in main stories that involve legality, like financial will and parental custody. The character credit in early episodes is variously Barney, Tom or Tom Sherry, but he is never called anything but Tom (and refers to himself as "Thomas W. Babson, Esq.") In "Chambers vs. Malone" (1987), he has finally passed the bar (after numerous attempts), and is a defense attorney for Sam Malone's (Ted Danson) court case of "assaulting" Diane Chambers (Shelley Long). Although Sam testifies that there was no assault, Tom requests that Sam propose to Diane in front of the court, which Sam reluctantly does. His last episode is "Airport V" (1988).

Nick and Loretta Tortelli

Nick and Loretta Tortelli (Dan Hedaya and Jean Kasem) are a married couple currently living in Las Vegas. In previous season, Nick was referenced, mostly by his ex-wife Carla (Rhea Perlman); as discovered, he was a deadbeat father and disloyal husband when he cheated on Carla with another woman. He has made no attempt to support his children financially and barely has any contact with them. Nick is loud, unkempt, and extremely unsophisticated; despite these tremendous flaws, he has at times exercised an inexplicable romantic power over Carla. In their first episode "Battle of the Exes" (1983), after Nick and Loretta's wedding, Nick comes into the bar and then begs Carla to reunite with him, even though he is married to Loretta. However, Carla turns him down in "favor" of Sam Malone (Ted Danson) (although, unbeknownst to him, Sam and Carla pretend to be together at the wedding to make Nick jealous), and then Nick and Loretta leave.

In "An American Family" (1984), Loretta discovered that she will never be able to produce children. Therefore, Nick and Loretta attempt to retrieve custody of one of Carla's children - eldest son Anthony ( Timothy Williams) - without avail. Before marrying Nick, Loretta had dreamed of becoming a singer; she once described herself as a "taller, blonder, less Mormon Marie Osmond". Although she lacked talent, she performed with two groups: "The Grinning Americans" (described as an Up with People-type group), and The Lemon Sisters (deliberately named to be confused with The Lennon Sisters). In "If Ever I Would Leave You" (1985), Loretta kicks Nick out for not supporting her decision to join a singing group, so he goes to Cheers to work as a janitor to prove himself as a better man to Carla. Three weeks later, Loretta comes to the bar and then begs him to be still her husband. At first he refuses, but he realizes his mistake, prompting him to dump Carla again.

In "Save the Last Dance for Me" (1986), Nick and Loretta enter the dance competition against Sam and Carla, but both are disqualified during the contest. Nick and Carla dance for one time, and subsequently win the competition. At the bar, Nick begs Carla to be together with him again behind Loretta's back, but Carla, in retaliation, cracks an egg on his forehead.

Nick and Loretta appear in their own short-lived spin-off ''The Tortellis'', which lasted from January to May 1987. In "Spellbound" (1987), Loretta leaves Nick because she figures that Nick is not faithful to her. She then goes to Cheers to seek help from Carla and Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) for independence, such as becoming a singer. Nick arrives at the bar to woo Diane, Loretta, and then Carla with a violinist and dinner without success. Diane advises Nick to improve his marriage with Loretta, so he leaves the bar trying to go after Loretta.

In "Loathe and Marriage" (1993), Nick and Loretta come to his daughter Sarafina's ( Leah Remini) wedding with a retired police officer, located at the bar. Carla tries to throw him out, but Sarafina convinces her to let Nick stay. At the wedding reception, Loretta sings.

Lewis

Lewis (Sam Scarber), an African-American "large, athletic male" postal worker. In the episode "Cliff's Rocky Moment" (1984), Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger) attempts to have Lewis brawl with Victor (Peter Iacangelo) without avail. In fact, both Lewis and Victor cannot stand Cliff because of his know-it-all behavior, and Lewis leaves, resolving not to help Cliff. In his second and final episode "I Call Your Name" (1984), Lewis is fired from his job for stealing fragrance samples from people's mail (unbeknownst to him, Cliff had reported him). Lewis wants to find out the identity of the person who reported him to physically attack him, but ultimately he decides not to do so, having already found another job.

In the book ''The Sitcom Reader'', Robert S. Brown called him a stereotype of African Americans.

Steve

Steve (Steve Giannelli), a bar patron. His first episode is "Norman's Conquest" (1984); his final is " One for the Road" (1993), the series finale. Steve has a very cocky personality and is often seen goading his fellow barflies. In "Loverboyd" (1990), Steve receives a punishment of getting tied to a clothes rack after picking the Yankees to win the division over the Red Sox. Gianelli previously appeared as unnamed customer in "No Help Wanted" (1984).

Al

Al (Al Rosen) was an elderly male bar patron. Over the series until the actor's death in 1990, Al was sometimes involved in bar dialogue, especially cold openings. He has a distinct, gravelly voice and often unexpectedly interjected with a comedic one-liner relevant to what the characters are discussing, often leaving them speechless momentarily. In his first credited episode "Fortune and Men's Weight" (1984), when Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) asks men who the all-time "bigwig" is, Al declares " Sinatra" as an answer, bemusing patrons. In "Cheers: The Motion Picture" (1987), Al sends Woody Boyd's (Woody Harrelson) father a philosophical phrase that convinces him to let Woody stay in Boston rather than take him back to his hometown. In "Bar Wars" (1988), he attends Gary's Olde Towne Tavern, the bar that is Cheers' rival. His last credited episode is "The Improbable Dream: Part 2" (season 8, episode 2; 1989). In the '' Frasier'' episode "Cheerful Goodbyes" (2002), Cliff mistakenly refers to Phil as Al; Phil corrects him by saying that Al died "fourteen years" earlier, i.e. 1988, contradicting Al Rosen's death in 1990 and last credited appearance.

Introduced in season 3

Larry

Larry (Larry Harpel) is a bar patron. Larry's first episode is "Diane Meets Mom" (1984); his last is "One Last Fling" (1987). He is a balding, nondescript man who sits to Norm's left but sometimes get on Norm's nerves. Actor Harpel previously appeared in the season premiere "Rebound" (1984) as an unnamed customer.

Tim

Tim ( Tim Cunningham) is a bar patron. He is one of boys in "The Heart Is the Lonely Snipe Hunter" (1985) who abandon Frasier Crane ( Kelsey Grammer), who has been playing a snipe hunting game in the woods. Actor Tim Cunningham previously appeared as Chuck in the first season and Greg in the second. Chuck works at a lab that creates mutated viruses. Whenever he visits and then exits the bar, people in the bar sanitizes everything to eliminate viruses, including ones that Chuck touches.

Walt Twitchell

Walter Q. "Walt" Twitchell ( Raye Birk) is a postal carrier and rival of Cliff Clavin. In his first episode "Executive's Executioner Hines" (1985), Walt attempts to mail Cliff Clavin's (John Ratzenberger) letter that contains insults to Cliff's noisy neighbors, but Cliff retrieves it and rips it to shreds. In "A Diminished Rebecca with a Suspended Cliff" (1992), he and his brother, posing as a postal inspector named Henderson, trick Cliff into believing that all postal employees must wear a new uniform. Years later, he appears in the '' Frasier'' episode "Cheerful Goodbyes" (Season 9), at Cliff's retirement party, where he and Cliff make up.

Introduced in season 4

Beth Curtis

Beth Curtis ( Amanda Wyss) is an old-time girlfriend of Woody Boyd's (Woody Harrelson) from Indiana. In "Woody Goes Belly Up" (1985), Beth and Woody are reunited. During high school, both Woody and Beth were overweight, a problem which seemed to become resolved once they were separated; however, after their reunion, they end up overeating and people unsuccessfully attempt to help them overcome it. Fortunately, Frasier Crane ( Kelsey Grammer) tells Beth that she and Woody substitute overeating for premarital sex due to religious backgrounds. Although Sam Malone (Ted Danson) and Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) take the couple to dinner to help them control their eating habits, Woody and Beth end up taking Frasier's psychological advice seriously and make plans to have sex.

In her second and last episode "The Book of Samuel" (1986), Beth ends up engaged to her fiancé Leonard Twilley (John Brace), much to Woody's disappointment. Beth confesses that she and Woody are two different people who are not meant for each other: Woody is adventurous, while she wants to settle down into commitment.

Anthony and Annie Tortelli

Anthony Tortelli ( Timothy Williams) is the eldest son of Nick (Dan Hedaya) and Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman), and Annie (Mandy Ingber) is his wife. In "The Groom Wore Clearasil" (1985), teenagers Anthony and Annie want to be married with his mother Carla's permission, but Carla refuses and tries to keep them apart without avail because she assumes that Anthony resembles his deadbeat father Nick. Suddenly, Annie's cousin Gabrielle ( Sherilyn Fenn) walks into the bar, and Anthony becomes attracted to her, much to Annie's dismay. Anthony and Annie also appear as regular characters in the short-lived spin-off ''The Tortellis'' (1987) and live with Nick and his wife Loretta (Jean Kasem).

After the spin-off ended, in two-part episode "Little Carla, Happy at Last" (1987), married Anthony and Annie were kicked out by Nick and then decide to live with Carla. At the bar, they meet pregnant Carla's new husband Eddie LeBec (Jay Thomas) and then openly disdain him for getting Carla pregnant. In "Tale of Two Cuties" (1988), Annie finds her husband Anthony lazy because he has no job. Therefore, she works as a temporary waitress and then tries to flirt with the bartender Sam Malone (Ted Danson) repeatedly to no avail. To try and win her back, Anthony finds a job at a burger joint. At the end, he walks in the bar with his work uniform to prove himself to Annie, winning her back in the process.

In "Slumber Party Massacred" (1988), Anthony impregnated Annie and then announces it to Carla at dinner. Outraged and horrified that the Annie is pregnant at such a young age (and at the prospect of becoming a grandmother), Carla kicks them out and neither are seen ever again, destroying the couple's plans to live with Carla and Eddie after their baby arrived. Neither Anthony or Annie appeared in season eleven for Anthony's sister Serafina's ( Leah Remini) wedding, but in Season 10's "Unplanned Parenthood", Gino (Josh Lozoff) mentions that Anthony is in prison.

Gary

Gary (rotatingly Joel Polis and Robert Desiderio) is a bartender and an owner of his own pub Gary's Olde Town Tavern. After the rivalry between Gary's and Cheers was established in season four, beginning in season six one episode per year — generally called "Bar Wars" – featured a contest between the two drinking holes for customers. The Cheers gang almost invariably loses each contest to Gary. Nevertheless, in his first episode "From Beer to Eternity" (1985), Diane Chambers's (Shelley Long) strike in bowling helps the Cheers team win the game. In his final episode "Bar Wars VII: The Naked Prey" (1993), Gary has his bar demolished by Harry the Hat (Harry Anderson), who uses a fake name, for millions of dollars. However, Gary realizes that Harry is a fake when Harry's check bounces, leaving Gary without money and the bar.

Paul Krapence

Paul Krapence (Paul Willson) is a bar patron. His first episode is "Fools and Their Money" (1985), and his last is the series finale " One for the Road". He generally hangs around with Norm and Cliff in the hopes of being included in their activities. Most often he is excluded from the Cheers gang's activities, something that upsets him deeply, except for some, which "he insisted" on participating in. In "It's Lonely on the Top" (1993), Paul had sex with a drunk Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) offscreen, which she regrets, while he takes pride in it. However, Sam Malone (Ted Danson) orders him not to tell anyone about this for everyone's sake. In the season 10 episode "The Norm Who Came to Dinner", Norm explains that Paul (years earlier) had been an athlete who had been brought into the bar to try to get him and Cliff into shape, implying that Paul instead conformed to become the frumpy, smoking bar patron we see throughout the show's run. It is later revealed that Paul works as a toll booth operator. Actor Paul Willson appeared previously in ''Cheers'' as Glen (although credited as "Gregg") in " Someone Single, Single Blue" (1983) and as Tom in "Little Sister, Don't Cha" (1983).

As discovered in "The Show Where Sam Shows Up", an episode of the spin-off '' Frasier'', Paul slept with Sam's fiancée Sheila ( Téa Leoni). However, Sam becomes angrier when he finds out about her and Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger), which ends Sam's relationship with her. Paul's only ''Frasier'' episode that he appears in is "Cheerful Goodbyes" (2002), where he attends Cliff's retirement party only because he lives in the hotel where it is held.

139th Street Quartet

139th Street Quartet is a barbershop quartet consisting of tenor Doug Anderson, bass Jim Kline, baritone Peter Neushel, and a fourth member. The fourth member is lead Larry Wright in "Dark Imaginings" in 1986. By the time of the next episode, John Sherburn sang lead ("The Stork Brings a Crane" (1989)). In the cold open of "Dark Imaginings", the bass quits after one of quartet members chides him for costing them their chance to win a championship. Norm tries out the quartet to fulfill his lifelong dream only to then abandon it immediately. In "The Stork Brings a Crane", the quartet performs all day on Cheers's centennial anniversary party, much to bar patrons' annoyance, until Sam chokes one of them off-screen.

Phil

Phil (Philip Perlman) is a regular bar patron who appears throughout the series beginning in the fourth season. He is an older gentleman with large glasses who would make an occasional acerbic comment. Phil often sat in the rear of the bar next to Al before Al's death. Perlman was the father of ''Cheers'' cast member Rhea Perlman.

Corinne

Corinne ( Doris Grau), an elderly waitress, is hired by Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson) in her first episode "Diane Chambers Day" (1986). As discovered, she also works as a waitress at Norm Peterson's (George Wendt) favorite restaurant, The Hungry Heifer. Her last episode is "Cheers: The Motion Picture" (1987). Corinne told Norm that all the waitresses at The Hungry Heifer had a nickname for him: "The Guy Who Comes Back". While covering for Diane, Corinne manages to catch the eye of barfly Al (Al Rosen). Portrayer Doris Grau was also a script supervisor of ''Cheers''.

Introduced in season 5

Esther Clavin

Esther "Ma" Clavin ( Frances Sternhagen) is the mother of Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger).

Before her physical appearances, a lot is learnt about her, mainly through her son. As learned in "Sam Turns the Other Cheek" (1984), her husband Cliff Sr (Dick O'Neill) left her and their son behind. In the episode "Just Three Friends", when Cliff and Norm Peterson (George Wendt) make a prank call to her. It is first mentioned in the third season that Cliff lives with her, for which the other barflies mocked him. In the episode "Coach in Love Part 2", Cliff's mother is heard in a voice-over. When she asked if she could stop by and meet the gang, Cliff whispered under his breath "When Hell freezes over".

Regardless, Esther ultimately appears in "Money Dearest" (1986), and becomes engaged to a wealthy man Duncan Fitzgerald ( Richard Erdman) upon Cliff's urging. Cliff tries to persuade Esther to break off the engagement when Esther makes Duncan donate half his fortune to charity, but Duncan dies hours later, leaving her heartbroken. In season six, it was revealed that Cliff, contrary to his usual know-it-all personality at the bar, is actually quiet at home and his mother is actually "the real yapper in the family". Esther's appearances at the bar gives an insight into Cliff's know-it-all personality, as Esther spouts even more useless facts than Cliff; Frasier Crane ( Kelsey Grammer) remarks that, after meeting Esther, he sees Cliff as "almost heroically" well-adjusted.

One of Esther's pastimes is making pretzels in unintentionally unusual shapes, which Cliff brings them into the bar in "Second Time Around" (1986). Patrons find them awful tasting, but are unable to tell him without hurting Esther's feelings. Therefore, Cliff brings them again in other episodes. In "The Last Angry Mailman" (1987), Esther sells their house, only to have it bulldozed and then replaced by a convenience store. Since then, they live in an apartment together, which first appears in "My Fair Clavin" (1987). In "Look Before You Sleep" (1993), witnessed by Sam Malone (Ted Danson), Cliff and Esther argue over their lives together, including how dateless Cliff is, but then apologize, which stuns Sam.

In her "Rebecca Gaines, Rebecca Loses" (1993), Cliff sends Esther to a senior center but then regrets it - until he discovers she is actually enjoying living there. However, when Cliff receives the first bill for her care, he quickly takes her back to the apartment.

Vera Peterson

Vera Peterson (née Kreitzer) (Bernadette Birkett) is the wife of Norm Peterson (George Wendt)

Most of Vera's appearances were uncredited voiceovers, although her body is seen in the fifth season episode "Thanksgiving Orphans"; her face is covered by filling from a pie Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) threw at Sam. In the ninth season episode "It's A Wonderful Wife" her legs can be seen through the bar's front window as she sits crying on the steps after being fired from her job at Melville's as a hat-check girl. Birkett's only credited appearance is in Season 11's "Look Before You Sleep".

Vera's background is briefly mentioned throughout the series: she and Norm were high school sweethearts, Vera was a cheerleader, and they married soon after graduating. In "Truce or Consequences" (1982), the two celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary (which they celebrate by going for pizza, so Norm can "get back here he barby ten"), which means they married at some point in 1972.

Vera's family, who also remain unseen, frequently descend upon the Peterson household. Vera's (much) younger sister, Donna, is the most frequent visitor, and usually stays for extended periods of time. Norm claims to dread these visits because, while he considers her more attractive than Vera, she relentlessly hits on him; he claims to have once walked in on Donna while she was naked and she tried to cover herself up with an emery board. In "One Hugs, The Other Doesn't" (1992), Norm mentions that Vera has nieces and nephews, which means Vera must have at least one brother or another sister. While generally tolerating Donna and Vera's other relatives, Norm shows a dislike to her parents: when Vera's mother stays with them, Norm was assigned to take her to visit Bunker Hill, but he instead locked her in the car and went to the bar like normal. A conversation at the bar revealed that Norm doesn't know if Vera's father is alive or not; when he calls her and asks, she refuses to speak to him for several days (and the issue is never clarified).

Despite being the frequent butt of Norm's jokes, he professes a deep love for Vera. When they separate following Norm's inability to hold down a job, Norm slumps without her. When he learns that Vera is being wooed by former high school wrestling rival Wally Bodell (Walter Olkewicz) in "They Called Me Mayday" (1983), Norm challenged Wally to a wrestling match in order to win her back; when Vera learns of this, it leads to her reconciling with Norm. In "Love Thy Neighbour" (1985), Phyllis Henshaw ( Miriam Flynn) visits the bar, voicing her suspicions that her husband Ron is having an affair with Vera. Norm is subsequently distraught at the thought of Vera cheating on him and the prospect of him leaving her; despite that, he refuses to have an affair with Phyllis out of spite, still feeling a certain loyalty to Vera. In "Feeble Attraction" (1990), Norm's secretary Doris ( Cynthia Stevenson) reveals that she has developed feelings for Norm, which flusters him, although he is soon rid of the problem when he has to close the business down. In "Norm's Big Audit" (1993), when IRS agent Dot Carroll (Sharon Barr) offers to overlook Norm's tax evasion in exchange for sexual favors, Norm refuses to betray Vera (a decision that may have been influenced by his fear and disgust for Dot).

In "The Two Faces of Norm" (1989), Norm scares his employee Rudi (Eric Allen Kramer) by using an alternate personality, harsh-hearted Anton Kreitzer, to scare them into shape. When asked by Frasier where he came up with the name Kreitzer, Norm reveals that it was Vera's maiden name.

Hugh

Hugh ( Hugh Maguire) is a tall, balding (with a fringe of dark hair) bar patron wearing usually a beige or brown sport jacket and tie. His first episode is "Chambers vs. Malone" (1987), and his last is "Jumping Jerks" (1988). In the cold opening of "Chambers vs. Malone", Hugh sits with Pete and Mark at one table, forgetting who is the "designated driver" while intoxicated. Sam calls a taxicab company to take them home.

Pete

Pete (Peter Schreiner) is a friendly blonde man seen usually in casual clothing. His first episode is "Chambers vs. Malone" (1987), and his last is " One for the Road" (1993). In the cold opening of "Chambers vs. Malone", Pete sits with Hugh and Mark at one table, forgetting who is the "designated driver" while intoxicated. Sam calls a taxicab company to take them home. He loans Sam surveillance equipment in "Indoor Fun with Sammy and Robby" (1990), telling Frasier that he uses it to spy on his wife, who "sleeps around a lot."

Mark

Mark (Mark Arnott) is a man with a black hair wearing usually a suit. His first episode is "Chambers vs. Malone" (1987), and his last is "Indoor Fun with Sam and Robby" (1990). In the cold opening of "Chambers vs. Malone", Mark sits with Hugh and Pete at one table. Seeing them forget who is the "designated driver" while intoxicated, Hugh agrees with Sam calling them a taxicab ride home.

Eddie LeBec

In two-part episode "Never Love a Goalie" (1987), Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) meets the Boston Bruins ice hockey player, Guy "Eddie" LeBec (Jay Thomas), who has a long winning streak and a French Canadian background, and then begins to date him. However, because of their relationship, Eddie's streak unfortunately comes to an end. Since both are superstitious, they end their relationship in order to avoid ruining Eddie's ability to play. They nevertheless reconcile shortly thereafter and promise to break up repeatedly before every game to avoid the "curse". In " Home Is the Sailor", Carla is revealed to be several months pregnant with Eddie's twins (incorporated by another of Perlman's pregnancies). In the two-part episode "Little Carla, Happy at Last", Carla and Eddie wed. She almost quits her waitressing job because Eddie said that he would take care of her financially. However, the Bruins released him from his contract due to his age and declining athletic performance, and he could not find another team. In "Airport V" (1988), Eddie ends up as a penguin mascot for a traveling ice show in another state. Later in the 1987–88 season, Carla gives birth to their twin boys, named Elvis and Jesse, after Carla's idol Elvis Presley and his stillborn twin brother.

In "Death Takes a Holiday on Ice" (1989), Eddie is killed by an ice resurfacer when he saves the life of another member of the ice show. At the funeral, it was revealed that he had bigamously married another woman, Gloria (Anne De Salvo), and had twins with her as well. Carla changes her surname back to Tortelli to avoid being confused with the other "Mrs. LeBec".

The demise of Jay Thomas's character Eddie LeBec has been claimed to stem from Thomas's comments "about" Perlman in a radio show. However, Thomas denied this and declared that he was referring only to the Carla character. Despite Ken Levine's praise of Thomas's acting and the pairing of Eddie and Carla, Eddie was reportedly written out of the show because Perlman thought that the pairing would make her "not part of the people in the bar."

Introduced in season 6

Joanne

Joanne (Catherine MacNeal) is a local newscaster, appearing only when someone, usually Norm Peterson (George Wendt), is watching the bar's television. In "'I' on Sports" (1987), her short-time co-newsanchor Sam Malone (Ted Danson) flirts with her, but she resists and turns him down. In "Christmas Cheers" (1987), she reports a raging lunatic (presumably Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger)) throwing canned foods at an airplane. In her last episode "Where Nobody Knows Your Name" (1990), she reports that imprisoned millionaire Robin Colcord ( Roger Rees) cheated on Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley) with another woman.

Introduced in season 7

Father Barry

Father Barry (Eric Christmas) is a priest, who usually gives advice about sexuality and spirituality. His first episode is "Swear to God" (1988), and his last is "Achilles Hill" (1991). In "Death Takes a Holiday on Ice" (1990), he officiates at Eddie LeBec's (Jay Thomas) funeral, where Eddie's bigamy is revealed when Eddie's second wife appears, shocking the invited guests, including Eddie's widow Carla and Father Barry.

Mr. Sheridan

Mr. Sheridan ( Michael Currie) is corporate vice president for the Lilian Corporation, of which Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley) is a minor executive. In "Adventures in Housesitting" (1989), he assigns her to babysit his doberman