Give Me a Ring Sometime
"Give Me a Ring Sometime" | |
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Cheers episode | |
Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 1 |
Directed by | James Burrows |
Written by | Glen and Les Charles |
Production code | 001 |
Original air date | September 30, 1982 |
Running time | 24:56 |
Guest appearance | |
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"Give Me a Ring Sometime" is the
In the original script, the employees were the principal characters, and Norm and Cliff were not included. Later revisions added Norm and Cliff, and scenes were restructured and rewritten. Originally, Cheers' set would be a hotel, but it was ultimately changed to a bar. Ratings were low when the episode first aired, but they were moderately successful in reruns. It has been critically praised over the years, and earned its writers awards for Best Writing in 1983.
Plot
As owner Sam Malone opens the Cheers bar in Boston at the beginning of the series, a professor, Sumner Sloane, and his Boston University student fiancée, Diane Chambers, are the first customers of the day. They plan to go to Barbados to be married but do not have a wedding ring; Sumner leaves to retrieve the ring from his ex-wife. Sumner returns a few hours later, telling Diane that he could not obtain his ex-wife's ring. His ex-wife calls the bar with a change of heart, so Sumner leaves Diane again. Sam pointedly tells her that Sumner is probably on a plane with his ex-wife. Diane calls the airport to change their flight reservation, and finds out that "Mr. and Mrs. Sloane" have already used it. Heartbroken, she prepares to go home before realizing that her job as Sumner's teaching assistant is gone. Out of pity, Sam offers her a job at Cheers as a waitress. Despite being highly educated, Diane reluctantly accepts the offer when she remembers a number of orders (including special requests) from a table. The following day, Diane's first customer is an international tourist, asking for his lost luggage.
Casting
The pilot introduces employees of the bar, Cheers, in Boston, Massachusetts in order of appearance:
- Sam Malone (Ted Danson) is a recovering alcoholic, a former baseball player, a bartender and the owner of Cheers.[note 1]
- Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) is a graduate student and "bar misfit"[2] who is abandoned by her fiancé, Sumner Sloane. She becomes a waitress at the end of the episode.
- Ernie Pantusso (Nicholas Colasanto) is a "forgetful",[2] "gravelly-voiced bartender",[3] nicknamed "Coach" because he was Sam's coach during his career as a relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.
- Carla Tortelli (Nick,[note 2]abandons her and her four children.
The creators rejected the idea of casting a star such as Mary Tyler Moore, and sought actors who were previously unknown to the public. They interviewed almost 1,000 people for the four principal roles: Sam Malone, Diane Chambers, Carla Tortelli, and "Coach" Ernie Pantusso.[3] Steve Kolzak (credited as Stephen Kolzak)[4] cast the original characters.[5] According to Danson, Rhea Perlman was the first to be cast.[6] Former umpire Ron Luciano auditioned for Coach; however, the producers "wanted an experienced actor".[7] Robert Prosky, who later appeared as Rebecca Howe's (Kirstie Alley) Navy father in the 1992 Cheers episode "Daddy's Little Middle-Aged Girl" and an author in the 1996 Frasier episode "A Crane's Critique", turned down the role of Coach.[8][9] Actor-director Nicholas Colasanto won the role.[3]
Auditions were held for Sam and Diane.[10] Three pairs were tested: William Devane and Lisa Eichhorn, Fred Dryer and Julia Duffy, and Ted Danson and Shelley Long.[11] Before the show premiered Danson appeared in 1979's The Onion Field;[12] Long appeared in 1982's Night Shift, starring Henry Winkler of Happy Days.[13] Fred Dryer later appeared as Dave Richards, a sportscaster friend of Sam's, in "Sam at Eleven" in 1982.[14] Sam Malone was originally "a former wide receiver for the New England Patriots",[11] and Fred Dryer was considered for the role because he was a football player.[15] However, NBC executives liked test scenes with Danson and Long so the creators chose them instead,[16] making Sam a former relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.[11] Ed O'Neill also auditioned for the role of Sam Malone.[17]
We had some surprises. Some actors were terrific by themselves but not in concert with others. Each actor read the same scene. Everyone got the same chance. We were looking for actors who could make us laugh by being loyal to the characters. Then we matched them up.[3]
— Les Charles, to United Press International, July 11, 1982
Two customers were introduced:
- Norm Peterson (George Wendt), recognized by everyone in the bar, enters for a quick drink.[2]
- Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger) appears for a conversation with other male patrons about bar trivia.[2][note 3]
George Wendt and John Ratzenberger originally auditioned for the role of "George", and Wendt was cast.[18][19] In the original script, George was Diane's first customer at the end of the episode. Annoyed with Diane's long-winded explanation of how she became a waitress, he delivered his one-word line: "Beer!"[18] After Wendt was cast, the writers revised the script; his role evolved into Norm Peterson, the first onscreen customer to enter the bar and "[badgering] Diane rather than the other way around".[20] After Wendt was cast, Ratzenberger suggested to the producers that a know-it-all character be added; this led to the creation of another character, Cliff Clavin.[19]
One character who was cut from the pilot episode was an unpleasant, racist old woman in a wheelchair named Mrs. Littlefield, supposedly a regular customer of Cheers, who was intended to be a recurring character. Her lines were filmed as part of a rough cut of the pilot. However, the producers decided to cut the character out of the episode, as they found her character did not mesh with other characters or with the overall tone of the show. Nevertheless, the uncredited actress who played her can still be seen as a background performer in a few scenes. Some sources credit this actress as
Three other bar patrons have speaking roles in the completed episode:
Production
The creators of Cheers (and the crew of
Jokes from earlier scripts were used. In one scene, Carla Tortelli orders a phone caller to do something about their unruly children. When one of the bartenders suggests hiring a babysitter, Carla replied that the caller was the babysitter. The cast did not know the ending of the pilot episode during production,[29] since the final draft of the script was dated April 16, 1982.[30]
Reception
Ratings
The NBC premiere lineup on September 30, 1982 consisted of (beginning at 8:00 pm Eastern and Pacific Time)
Critical reaction
When the episode originally aired in 1982, Fred Rothenberg of the
In 2009, Lex Walker on the Just Press Play website found this episode "sadder and more sentimental" than funny; the episode focuses "less on character development and more on" Diane restarting her life as a waitress after the loss of love, and he said it contradicts "what [Cheers] will grow to be". Nevertheless, he called the episode a true introduction to the series and considered the intertwining stories of Sam and his friends the series' premise.[39] In 2010, Robin Raven from Yahoo! Voices called it one of her top five Cheers episodes.[40] In 2011, Austin Lugar from The Film Yap website called it the "best".[41] IGN ranked it number nine of the top ten Cheers episodes.[42]
Joseph J. and Kate Darowski in their 2019 book Cheers: A Cultural History rated the episode all four stars.[43]
Awards
At the
Home media
The first home media release of the episode was a
See also
Notes
- ^ Sam Malone is described as a divorced Lothario in the next episode, "Sam's Women".[1]
- Nick Tortelli first appears onscreen in Season 2 episode "Battle of the Exes" (1984), and is portrayed by Dan Hedaya.
- ^ Actor John Ratzenberger appears as Cliff Clavin and is always credited in the closing credits of every episode of Season 1, including this episode, instead of opening. Moreover, Norm and Cliff were not established as "best friends" until Season 2.
- ^ "The Boys in the Bar" and "Diane's Perfect Date" were also nominated for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series.[44][45]
References
- ^ Bjorklund, p. 263.
- ^ a b c d e f Rothenberg, Fred. "`Cheers': Viewers May Leave Favorite Pubs for This Tavern on the Tube." Boca Raton News [Boca, FL] 30 September 1982: 6B. Google News. Web. April 5, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Scott, Vernon. "Series Producers Working Now to Get `Cheers'." Telegraph Herald [Dubuque, IA] July 11, 1982: 20. Google News. Web. April 5, 2012.
- ^ Bjorklund, p. 281
- Ken Levine. October 2, 2012.
- ^ Danson, Ted (2003). "Setting the Bar: A Conversation with Ted Danson". Cheers: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Pictures.
- ^ Woodley, Richard (July 12, 1982). "'I've Been Wearing a Mask All My Life,' Says Ron Luciano, but Now the Umpire Strikes Back". People. 18 (2).
- ^ Simonson, Robert (December 9, 2008). "Robert Prosky, Seasoned Actor of Stage, Film and Television, Dies at 77". Playbill. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ Rozen, Leah. "The Stage Is His Usual Beat, but Robert Prosky Copped a Prime-Time Job as Hill Street's New Sarge." People October 22, 1984. Web. April 6, 2012.
- ^ "Ted Danson, On Life (And 'Death') After 'Cheers'". NPR. 17 September 2009.
- ^ a b c Meade, Peter (29 April 1984). "We'll Cry In Our Beers As Sam, Diane Split". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. p. 14. Editions of April 27–29, 1984, are bundled in the webpage. Article is located at page 85 in Google.
- The Prescott Courieralong with other newspapers.
- Afro-American. August 14, 1982. p. 11. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
- ^ Bjorklund e-Book, "Season One: 1982–83", p. 284.
- ISBN 1-86105-874-8.
- ^ Carter, Bill (May 9, 1993). "Why 'Cheers' Proved So Intoxicating". The New York Times. p. 6. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
- ^ Gliatto, Tom; Griffiths, John (December 3, 1990). "At Last, Ed O'Neill Knows...Sort Of...What It's Like to Be Ryan O'Neal". People. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
- ^ a b Wendt, p. 112.
- ^ a b Wendt, pp. 113–114. John Ratzenberger auditioned for the role George, as well.
- ^ Wendt, p. 113.
- ^ "By Ken Levine: Friday Questions". 29 April 2016.
- ^ Charles, Glen (1982). "Cheers' Pilot Episode Script" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on November 2, 2019. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
- ^ Levine, Ken (January 3, 2014). "Friday Questions". BlogSpot. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
- ISBN 9780307739766. Retrieved August 23, 2015 – via Google Books.
- ^ Bjorklund, p. 262.
- ).
- ^ Ferdinand, Pamela, from The Washington Post (September 1, 2001). "'Cheers' pub reincarnated". Bangor Daily News. p. G2. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) Google News. - ^ Meade, Peter (29 April 1984). "We'll Cry In Our Beers As Sam, Diane Split". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. p. 14. Editions of April 27–29, 1984, are bundled in the webpage. Article is located at page 85 in Google.
- ^ Goldstein, Patrick (September 30, 1982). "Cheers, the New NBC Sitcom Has Is Cheerleaders, Chief Among Them Shelley Long". Los Angeles Times. p. 1, Part VI (Calendar).
- OCLC 17605276– via Worldcat.
- ^ "Television Schedule". Los Angeles Times (microfilm) (Library ed.). September 30, 1982. Calendar section (Part VI). The September 26, 1982, Sunday edition has titles of television episodes.
- ^ "CBS Finishes Atop Ratings". The Post. Palm Beach, Florida. October 7, 1982. p. B9. Retrieved November 18, 2014. Love, Sidney (NBC), World's Greatest Escape Artist (ABC), The Devlin Connection (NBC), and Voyagers! (NBC) were other lowest-rated shows in the week of September 27–October 3, 1982.
- ^ "Television Ratings." Los Angeles Times 6 October 1982, Library ed. Print. Part VI (Calendar section), p. 11. In 1982, ratings were based on 83.3 million households that have at least one television set. Magnum, P.I. scored a 23.1 rating, and Too Close for Comfort scored 21.5.
- ^ "Television (Thursday)". Anchorage Daily News. October 14, 1982.
- ^ "Television Schedule—Thursday, December 23, 1982." Los Angeles Times: Television Times 19 December 1982, Library ed. Print. The December 23, 1982, edition does not display the summary of this episode.
- ^ "Television Ratings." Los Angeles Times. December 30, 1982, Library ed. Print. Part VI (Calendar Section), p. 10.
- ^ Drew, Mike (September 30, 1983). "Drink a toast to Cheers". p. 13. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
- ]
- ^ Walker, Lex (May 27, 2009). "TV Sets: Forever Funny Review". Just Press Play. Retrieved April 5, 2012.
- ^ Raven, Robin (March 1, 2010). "Top 5 episodes of Cheers". Yahoo! Voices. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
- ^ Lugar, Austin (August 21, 2011). "Week Five TV Contest Results". The Film Yap. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
- ^ Wheatley, Cliff (May 30, 2014). "Top 10 Cheers Episodes". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
- LCCN 2018056821.
- ^ Emmys, 2012. Web. April 5, 2012.
- ^ a b c Bjorklund, p. 421.
- ^ "The Writers Guild Foundation Library Catalog". Writers Guild of America. 2010. Archived from the original on January 3, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
- ^ "Outstanding Art Direction for a Series 1983". Emmys.com. 1983. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
- ^ Ryan, Richard T. (September 26, 1993). "Aladdin due Tuesday originally set for Friday release". Staten Island Advance. New York. p. G4. Record number MERLIN_107903 from NewsBank.
- ^ Bovberg, Jason (May 28, 2003). "Cheers: The Complete First Season". DVD Talk. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
- ^ Hartel, Nick (April 8, 2012). "Fan Favorites: The Best of Cheers". DVD Talk. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
Bibliography
- Bjorklund, Dennis A. Toasting Cheers: An Episode Guide, 1982–1993. Praetorian Publishing, 1997. Google Books. Web. April 4, 2012. .
- ISBN 978-1-4391-4958-4.
Further reading
- Michaels, Randolph. Flashbacks to Happiness: Eighties Music Revisited. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse, 2005. 146. Google Books. Web. April 5, 2012.
External links
- "Give Me a Ring Sometime" at IMDb
- "Give Me a Ring Sometime" at The A.V. Club
- "Give Me a Ring Sometime" at the Paley Center for Media
- Trivia by Cliff Clavin Archived 2012-06-15 at the Wayback Machine from this episode