Home Is the Sailor (Cheers)

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"Home Is the Sailor"
Les Charles
Original air dateSeptember 24, 1987 (1987-09-24)[1][2]
Running time24:44 minutes
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
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"Home Is the Sailor" is the sixth-season premiere of the American television sitcom Cheers. It originally aired on September 24, 1987, on NBC.[1][2] It is also the first episode including the fictional character Rebecca Howe, portrayed by Kirstie Alley, as the permanent female lead. It follows "I Do, Adieu", which was Shelley Long's last of her regular appearances as the female lead, Diane Chambers, who also left Boston on the show.[3][4]

Plot

Six months after he sold the bar to a corporation, Sam returns only to see Cheers having catered to a more upscale clientele.

Eddie LeBec turns up and is surprised when Carla Tortelli tells him she is pregnant (incorporated due to actress Rhea Perlman's real-life pregnancy[5]). Sam Malone then returns to the bar after his attempt to sail around the world failed at the first hurdle when his sailboat ran ashore in the Caribbean. Though Cheers has new management, Woody Boyd and Carla are still employed at the bar, but they're now required to wear uniforms, much to their chagrin. Sam then also needs a job, but the bar already has two bartenders, Woody and a new employee, Wayne (Jonathan Stark). Diane Chambers
' attempts at writing her novel are said to have failed, which led to her leaving Boston to write in Hollywood.

Sam then meets

no balls".[6]

Production

Kirstie Alley debuted as Rebecca Howe in this episode after Shelley Long left the series as Diane Chambers in 1987.

The producers intended Cheers to be a comedy about a comedy itself set in the Boston bar, but, as Burrows claimed, the "

Les Charles observed, Sam was a "straight man" to Diane; with Diane gone, they made him more "carefree" and a "goof-off."[4]

In seeking a new female lead,

People magazine that "we thought of the part as a martinet, a bitch. Then we met [Alley] and there was this vulnerability, so we made her the neurotic woman of the 1980s."[10] When Long decided to leave the show, the creators knew they wanted a new female lead who was unknown to television viewers, would not have blonde hair and resemble Long. Kirstie Alley was one of the first actresses to audition for the role of Rebecca Howe. Although she met all the criteria, the producers continued to audition actresses, but none improved on Alley's portrayal of the character. Following which brunette-haired Alley debuted as Rebecca Howe.[4]

Alan Koss are credited for their appearances.[1]

Reception

"Home Is the Sailor" scored a 28.4 rating and was third placed in the list of top ten shows that were tuned-in by households on the week of September 21–27, 1987.

TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.[13] In 2014, IGN ranked it as number two of the top ten Cheers episodes.[14] In 2019, Joseph J. and Kate Darowski in their book Cheers: A Cultural History rated the episode all four stars.[15]

Screaming Viking

"Screaming Viking", a fictional made-up cocktail seen in this episode, became an actual cocktail. According to a

lime juice, celery stalk, and [garnished] cucumber spear".[17] Food & Wine magazine offers different ingredients for the cocktail recipe: seedless cucumber, "garnish[ed]" cucumber slice, mint leaves, gin, and tonic water.[18]

References

  1. ^ a b c Bjorklund, pp. 334-35.
  2. ^
    Ocala Star-Banner
    . September 24, 1987. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
  3. ^ "Serve it yourself, Sam: Diane on her way out from Cheers". The Gazette. December 17, 1986.
  4. ^ a b c Harmetz, Aljean (September 23, 1987). "Changes on 'tap' at 'Cheers'". The Ledger. Lakeland, Florida. p. 1C. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  5. ^ "Cheers starts 6th season with new co-star". Fort Scott Tribune. Fort Scott, Kansas. August 17, 1987. p. 5.
  6. ^ "Cheers: Home Is the Sailor Synopsis – Plot Summary". Fandango.com. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
  7. ^ "Crowd at 'Cheers' toasts new season with new boss". The Register-Guard. TV Week. p. 13.
  8. ^ Baker, Kathryn (September 5, 1987). "Long's departure has 'Cheers' cast on edge". Times-News (Hendersonville, North Carolina).
  9. The Vindicator
    . p. 12.
  10. ^ "Kirstie Alley "Cheers" Rebecca Howe". Classictvbeauties.com. Retrieved April 25, 2012.
  11. ^ Baker, Kathryn (September 30, 1987). "Some new shows rank low in Nielsens". The Daily Union. Junction City, Kansas. p. 10. Retrieved May 27, 2012.
  12. ^ "Cheers - Home Is The Sailor". The Writers Guild Foundation. 2010. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
  13. ^ "Special Collector's Issue: 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time". TV Guide (June 28 – July 4). 1997.
  14. ^ Wheatley, Cliff (May 30, 2014). "Top 10 Cheers Episodes". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  15. LCCN 2018056821
    .
  16. ISBN 9780762745142. Retrieved November 2, 2015 – via Google Books
    .
  17. About.com. Archived from the original on January 30, 2012. Retrieved May 20, 2012. Current version at The Spruce Eats
    .
  18. ^ "Recipe: Screaming Viking". Food & Wine. Archived from the original on May 2, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2019.

Further reading

External links
Screaming Viking
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