The show was created by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee, and was produced by Angell, Casey, and Lee (as Grub Street Productions) in association with Paramount Television. Angell, Casey and Lee had also written and produced Cheers and created Wings.
Psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane (Grammer) returns to his hometown of Seattle, Washington, following the break-up of his marriage and his life in Boston (which was covered in the series Cheers). His plans for his new life as a bachelor are complicated when he is forced to take in his father, retired police officer Martin Crane (Mahoney), who had been forced to retire from the police department and is unable to live by himself owing to an injury caused by being shot in the line of duty. Frasier and Martin are joined by Daphne Moon (Leeves), Martin's eccentric live-in British physical therapist, and Martin's dog Eddie (Moose). A frequent visitor to their apartment is Frasier's younger brother Niles (Pierce), a fellow psychiatrist who, like Frasier, is pompous, snobbish, and overly intellectual.
Frasier hosts a radio talk show in on KACL 780AM (named to honor the show's creators, Angell, Casey, and Lee). His producer is Roz Doyle (Gilpin), a woman with an active romantic life who, while decidedly different from Frasier in taste and temperament, nevertheless becomes a very close friend over the course of the series.
Numerous running jokes and themes are developed throughout the series. Chief amongst them is the class-and-familial conflict between Frasier, Niles, and Martin; possessing fine tastes, intellectual interests and rather high opinions of themselves, the two sons frequently clash with their more blue-collar, down-to-earth father, and a running theme in the early seasons in particular is Frasier and Martin's difficulty in reaching an accommodation with each other and in sharing an apartment. Despite being incredibly similar in personality, interests and sensibilities, the relationship between Frasier and Niles is no less turbulent; victims of intense sibling rivalry, many plots revolve around their jealousy of each other and petty attempts at one-upmanship, which frequently result in chaos. Other developing storylines include Niles' growing love for Daphne (of which Daphne remains unaware in the early seasons, despite its increasingly obvious nature) and the breakdown of his marriage to the never-seen Maris, Frasier's search for love in his own life, and the various attempts of the two brothers to enter higher levels of Seattle's elite.
Kelsey Grammer as Dr. Frasier Crane. Grammer was asked to shave the beard he had had during the final season of Cheers because the producers felt he didn't look young enough to be John Mahoney's son. Mahoney is only 15 years older. Grammer sang the song that appears during the closing credits, "Tossed salad and scrambled eggs", by Bruce Miller and Daryl Phinessee.
John Mahoney as Martin Crane. In a final-season interview, Mahoney said the first offer he received to play Martin Crane consisted of a phone call from Grammer in which he asked, "Will you be my Dad?"
David Hyde Pierce as Dr. Niles Crane. The show was originally written with Frasier as an only child (references had already been made to this in Cheers, but one of the producers saw a headshot of Pierce and commented that he looked exactly like Kelsey Grammer did when he first appeared on Cheers. In Season's 2's "The Show Where Sam Shows Up", one of the first things Sam Malone says when he first meets Niles is how he looks exactly like Frasier did when he first knew him back in Boston. The second choice for the role of Niles was Peter MacNicol.
"Moose" and "Enzo" as Eddie the dog. Eddie received more fan mail than any other cast member in Frasier. He is also reputed to have earned $10,000 per episode.
Dan Butler as Bob "Bulldog" Briscoe, the obnoxious host of a radio sports show. Butler was made a series regular for seasons four and five.
Edward Hibbert as Gil Chesterton, food critic at the radio station.
Bebe Neuwirth as Lilith Sternin, Frasier's ex-wife (also on Cheers). Neuwirth was offered a regular role as Lilith, but turned it down so she could return to the Broadway stage.
Trevor Einhorn as Frederick Gaylord Crane, Frasier's son. The character was first played in Season 3 by child actor Luke Tarsitano. The following season, Einhorn took over for the rest of the series. The writers had Frasier say that he missed Frederick in the pilot episode so that the audience wouldn't view him as deserting his son.
Jane Adams as Mel Karnofsky, Niles's one-time girlfriend
Millicent Martin as Gertrude Moon, Daphne's mother. Although not noticed by the average American viewer, aside from her mother, none of Daphne’s relatives nor her ex-boyfriend have Manchester accents, despite supposedly being from there. They mostly have Southern English accents (i.e. London). Her brother Nigel's accent is Cockney. Ironically, John Mahoney actually is from Manchester.
The series won 39 prime time Emmys during its 11 year run, breaking the record long held by The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Grammer and Pierce each won four, including one each for the final season. The series holds the record as of 2004 for the most consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series, winning five from 1994 to 1998.
Grammer played Frasier for twenty years, tying the James Arness portrayal of Marshall Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke in terms of character longevity in primetime American television. The record for all of television is held by Helen Wagner, for her portrayal of matriarch Nancy Hughes on the soap operaAs the World Turns. Ms. Wagner has been playing the role since the show's first episode in 1956.
Grammer was briefly the highest-paid TV star in history, reaching a salary of $1.6 million per episode for the last two seasons; his record was surpassed by Ray Romano within a year.
Editing: Ron Volk (1994, 1996, 1998, 1999 with Scott Maisano, 2001-04)
Sound Mixing (1996, 2002, 2004)
Art Direction (2004)
Grammer has been Emmy-nominated for playing the same character on three different shows: Cheers, Frasier and a guest appearance on Wings.
Critical reaction
In a retrospective review in The Radio Times Guide to Television Comedy, Mark Lewisohn called the show a "comedy masterpiece", noting the following (although the first bullet point is correct for the quote, more locations were eventually included in the show such as Niles Cranes' apartment):[1]
From just three studio-bound locations - Frasier's fine apartment 1901 in Elliott Bay Towers, with its panoramic view of Seattle; the KACL studio; and the perfectly named Café Nervosa, where Frasier, Niles and the others meet for coffee - truly great comedy was wrought.
[T]he producers remained determined to keep Frasier adult and sophisticated: the scripts were literate, the plots tight and the one-liners extremely funny and incisive. The writers were never afraid to use classical references in the lines or make jokes about subjects that many of the viewers wouldn't have experienced.
In Season 5, the show pays homage to a letter the writers received from a renowned British T.V. critic, Sam Bates (of T.V. Quick! fame). The letter included the words "Ruddy Ace!", which Kelsey Grammer liked so much he insisted it be used in the show. Bates later claimed to be the biggest Frasier fan ever, having drunk three bottles of Cherry Lambrini. This claim has been widely discredited, as Bates has also claimed numerous times that his favourite programme is the British drama series Doctors. The letter appears to have been written with Bates' best friend, Kelvin MacKenzie, former editor of The Sun.
Frasier was voted by sitcom writers, producers and actors as the greatest sitcom of all time in the Channel 4 (UK) show The Ultimate Sitcom, aired on January 22006.
The season 4 episode "Head Game" only featured Frasier for the first few minutes, with the rest of the episode centered around Niles. This role was written for Frasier, but Grammer was being treated for his addiction problems, so it was re-written for Niles instead. This is also the reason why Niles fills in for Frasier on his radio show, because the show is integral to the plot.
In the premiere episode of the sixth season, the show took over the time slot previously occupied by Seinfeld. The episode opens with Frasier auditioning for a TV show after being fired from his radio show, and his opening speech is a reference to the acquisition of Seinfeld's slot: "Before we begin, I'd like to say how honored I am to be taking over this slot. Obviously, I have some rather big shoes to fill - my predecessor here was much beloved. But I have never been one to shrink from a challenge and I'm sure we'll enjoy many happy years here together in my new home."
During season 8, Jane Leeves's pregnancy was disguised by a storyline involving a severe over-eating disorder; later, her pregnancy leave was accounted for by having Daphne go to a health spa to cope with her weight problem. Daphne lost 9 lbs 12 oz at the spa, an inside joke referring to the fact that Leeves' daughter Isabella's birth weight was 9 lbs 12 oz.
Production
The show is set in Seattle, Washington, but only one episode, "The 1000th Show", was filmed there.[2] The remainder was filmed on Stage 25, Paramount Studios, and at various locations in and around Los Angeles.
The view from Frasier's apartment is impossible to achieve; no building or apartment in the city really has that view. It was done so that the Space Needle would appear more prominently. According to the season 1 DVD bonus features, the photograph was taken from atop a cliff (possibly the ledge at Kerry Park, a frequent photography location). Only once was there an exterior shot facing Frasier's apartment building, in a Season 4 episode, The Impossible Dream.
The radio station callers' lines were spoken by anonymous voiceover actors while filming the show in front of a live audience. This gave the cast something to react to. During postproduction, the lines were replaced by celebrities, who literally phoned in their parts without having to come into the studio. The end credits of season finales would show headshots of all the celebrities who had "called in" that season.
TV Rating
TV-PG
Cheers connections
Every regular cast member of Cheers appeared in at least one episode, except for Kirstie Alley (Rebecca Howe) and the late Nicholas Colasanto (Coach). Alley was alleged to have turned down an appearance because she is a Scientologist (Scientologists reject psychiatry/psychology).
Kelsey Grammer has said that "The Show Where Diane Comes Back" is one of his favorite episodes. On Cheers (1982), Shelley Long didn't like the Frasier character and lobbied hard to get Grammer removed from the show. The producers disagreed, noting that the audience liked him. When Long's character, Diane Chambers, appeared on this show, Grammer said it was an opportunity for he and Long to make peace with each other.
In "The Harassed" (2003), Frasier and Julia Wilcox have a heated argument, during which Frasier asks Julia "Are you as turned on as I am?" In the Cheers (1982) episode "Showdown - Part 2" Sam and Diane are having a similarly big argument. During this argument, Sam asks the exact same question, to which Diane replies "More!" and they kiss. The episode aired in 1983, and as an in-joke Bulldog later criticizes Frasier's rather dated choice of line by saying that no one has used the term "turned on" for 20 years.
John Mahoney appeared in an episode of Cheers, as Si Phlembeck, an over-the-hill advertising executive hired by Rebecca to write a jingle for the bar. Grammer and Mahoney shared a few lines. The plot of an episode of Frasier is somewhat similar to the Cheers episode.
In the eighth season Cheers episode "Two Girls for Every Boyd", Frasier tells Sam Malone (Ted Danson) that his research scientist father had died. In the Season 2 episode "The One Where Sam Shows Up", when Sam meets Martin, he brings up the discrepancies. In an example of retconning, Frasier explains it away by saying he had just had a fight with his father on the phone and he was very angry with him at the time.
The second choice for Frasier's father was Robert Prosky. Prosky had previously played the father of Cheers regular Rebecca. Prosky appeared in Season 4, as a J.D. Salinger-like writer who strikes up a friendship with Martin.
Peri Gilpin was in a Cheers episode, playing a reporter who interviews Woody when he runs for office.
Niles' wife Maris is never seen (at least her face) or heard from. The same device was used for Vera, Norm Petersen's wife in Cheers. This method is used again when Martin meets the woman he has been watching from across the street via his telescope.
After Cheers had finished filming, the bar was taken down and the sets for this show were built over it. The producers made certain there were no stools in the coffee shop to distance it visually from the Cheers bar.
Trivia
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In an eerie case of life imitating art, in Season 4, Episode 23 "Odd Man Out" (aired in the US and UK in 1997), a stranger named Laura calls Frasier's answering machine to say that she will be flying into Seattle on American Airlines Flight 11. Tragically, this is the flight on which series creator David Angell and his wife perished, when it hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Niles and Daphne's baby, born in the final episode, is named David, after Angell.
Frasier's first wife, Nanny G. (a children's show host), was played by two different actresses: Emma Thompson on Cheers, and Laurie Metcalf (Jackie on "Roseanne") on Frasier.
The actor playing the deliveryman who wheels in Martin's chair in the first episode reprised his role in the final episode, and wheeled Martin's chair out of Frasier's apartment.
Niles Crane's whippet was named "Girl". In a nod towards Niles' profession as a psychiatrist, Girl required nerve medication. (Episode #67 "Chess Pains")
Frasier's radio station, KACL 780 AM, is named after the show's three executive producers (David Angell, Peter Casey and David Lee).
Frasier, Niles, and Martin deliver a cab driver's baby. The cab number, 804, is the same as the one in which Alex (Judd Hirsch) delivered a baby on an episode of "Taxi".
In the premiere episode of season 8, Niles takes a mobile phone call. After a pause, he says, "No, there is no Wendell Vaughn here." Wendell Vaughn is the real name of the Marvel Comics superhero Quasar.
David Hyde Pierce's Niles Crane is a stuffy milquetoast with a mad passion for his father's live-in therapist. In his previous series, The Powers That Be, he played a stuffy milquetoast with a mad passion for the maid.
Frasier's radio producer Roz Doyle is named after Roz Doyle, a producer of NBC's "Wings" (1990), a Cheers-like show which shares show creators with Frasier.
David Hyde Pierce has said that, prior to this series, he had no strong interest in either wine or opera. Ironically, he was introduced to both by John Mahoney, whose Martin Crane character eschews anything cultured.
2003 was the first year that Kelsey Grammer didn't receive an Emmy nomination for this series. David Hyde Pierce's streak remains unbroken.
In the series finale, three of Daphne's brothers visit from England, however, none of the actors playing them are English. They were Anthony LaPaglia (Australia), Richard E. Grant (Swaziland) and Robbie Coltrane (Scotland).
As the series progresses, it is revealed that Frasier and Niles were named after two lab rats their mother was using in an experiment (psychology?) when she was pregnant with Frasier. Frasier (the rat) had already died when Frasier (the human) was born.
Niles's alma mater is Yale, which is David Hyde Pierce's real alma mater.
When Frasier violates his code of ethics, his stomach turns. When Niles violates his code of ethics, his nose bleeds.
When playing their younger selves in "Crock Tales", the cast had to use various hairpieces, hair dyes etc. to resemble their younger selves in flashback sequences. David Hyde Pierce also wore a hairpiece for the same reason in "The Return of Martin Crane".
In one episode, after a night at the opera watching "Rigoletto" by Verdi, Frasier remarks to his date that the finest soprano to sing the role of "Gilda" was "The great Mathilde DeCagney". Mathilde DeCagney is the animal trainer who owns Moose, the dog who plays Eddie.
DVD Releases
As of 2007, Paramount Home Entertainment has released Seasons 1-8 & 11 on Region 1 DVD, with Season 9 set for Region 1 DVD release on May 15, 2007. Season 10 is also expected in 2007.
The first four seasons have been released on VHS along with a series of 'Best Of' tapes. These tapes consist of four episodes taken from seasons 1-4. No more video releases have been announced.
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