Watch: Footage from 1993 documents the wild party Boston threw when Cheers ended

Fans got to hobnob with Boston TV icons and athletes.

In 1993, the 11-season saga of sidling up to the bar at Cheers ended. In the city of Boston, no TV show before had come close to tapping into the city's exact heart the way Cheers did. In a town where baseball is king, even a fictional bar owned by a fictional former Red Sox relief pitcher is the kind of place a Bostonian can really dig their heels in to become a repeat visitor, as characters like Cliff and Norm proved, and it's no surprise that through its depiction of a small pub off Beacon Street, Cheers became a symbol of whiling away nights in Boston.

So to celebrate the conclusion of this show that the city had formed such a deep attachment to, they did what communities do everywhere to celebrate their city: They got together for a big party. At The Bull & Finch Pub that the Cheers pub was modeled after, fans and Cheers stars got together to screen the final installment of the three-part series finale, a party where The Tonight Show did a special live taping.

It's fun to watch the actors bustle about the party, when we know them so well as characters like Sam, Carla, Norm, Woody, Frasier, Cliff, Norm and even Harry the Hat (a welcome flashback considering the recent loss of Harry Anderson). Describing Boston fans, both Kelsey Grammer and Ted Danson credit locals with keeping the show going so strong season after season. At one point Danson drank in the fans' delight at the party and said, "You are a passionate group of people." In an atmosphere described as "like New Year's," the party continued all day on what was proclaimed by the city as Cheers Day.

You can watch archived footage from that wild event below. Just try not to sing along when the whole crowd breaks out into the Cheers theme song:

Feel like returning to the place where everybody knows your name? Stream full episodes of Cheers online here.

Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
Close

0 Comments

Be the first to leave a comment!
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?