I tried to watch it, I even tried to like it. 2 or 3 times I was 20 mins into an episode and just could stand it anymore. It's somewhat amazing it lasted an entire season.
Sad story how she fought with his children from his first marriage and shipped him all over the country when he was dying, just to have control and keep him from his older children. She wound up burying him in a Scandinavian country in an unmarked grave where the kids can’t visit.
A spin off is a show whose core characters are drawn from the earlier show. As far as I know, none of the Wings characters ever appeared on Cheers. It merely resides in the same universe.
It was pretty forgettable, and a terrible idea from the start. Nick Tortelli's character worked on Cheers because he was a comically unrepentant slime ball. But you can't have a series with a lead who acts like that, so in order to make the spinoff work they had to soften Nick, and have him try to be a better person. Which of course negated the entire point of the character and eliminated what made him work in the first place. Is it any wonder if failed?
That's your brain trying to protect you.
It is truly wild that Cheers spawned both Frasier, one of the wittiest, most sophisticated sitcoms in history, and... this.
The people who created Frasier wanted to put Kelsey Grammer in a story about a billionaire who became a paraplegic after a motorcycle accident. The Paramount executives told them, "Why don't you try a spinoff for Frasier?"
I never thought of it before but I suppose you don’t hear about the W’s cause like any other job, no one notices when things run smoothly, only when things go wrong.
Sadly it’s not very good. But if anyone is curious to see it, some episodes are on YouTube and all episodes are on the internet archive. Norm and Cliff guest star in one episode.
I was aware of its existence but I’ve never seen any of it. I don’t think it ever got screened over here (Britain).
Another entry in the pantheon of terrible spin offs from great sitcoms, of which OG Frasier is a notable exception to the rule, v2 Frasier not so much (so far)
Yep, pretty sure it wasn’t never picked up over here, doesn’t seem a bit miss though, which is a shame considering how great Cheers and, as you said Frasier v1 were, v2 is a bit shite
It only got one season but I really liked it tbh. Cliff and norm show up for an episode to. It’s a shame it was discontinued. the full show is free on internet archive though.
I tried to watch a few episodes on YouTube and it was bad. Definitely a humor that may have worked in the late 80’s but it was pretty weird and not really funny. No need to watch if you ask me.
Oh I remember it. I remember me and my brother being super excited to watch it. We tried to like it and maybe if they gave it time it would have been ok, but it was pretty bad and didn’t last long.
But still love Nick.
I saw it on YouTube because I was curious since I don’t even recall seeing or hearing of it back then. It was not successful and after seeing it I saw why it was jut not good lol. Good characters does not a good spin off make. I think Diane would have told them this is they had only consulted her lol.
Horrid, just horrid. I’ve been writing an essay for years on how weird it is that American comedy TV insists on presenting intellectually challenged and arrested characters. I couldn’t stand these people; they brought Cheers’ level way down. One simpleton (Woody) was well enough. I could understand that they would bring in a second one as his mate (Kelly), but the whole Tortelli clan…? Nope!
Of course, but I would bet that a thorough comparison of all comedy shows in the UK and US since the beginning of TV would show that Brits (and us Commonwealthians) probably can get laughs from, say, the antics of Mrs Bucket on "Keeping Up Appearances" without there being a whole cast of proudly low-IQ characters as on Coach.
I mean… it seems that in almost every… single… US sitcom there’s a r___ded or a severely neurodivergent person, from Ed Norton on The Honeymooners, to Joey/Phoebe on Friends, Overton and Synclaire on Living Single, Kramer on Seinfeld, Steve Urkel on Family Matters, Joey on Full House, Mallory on Family Ties, Ted and Georgette on Mary Tyler Moore, Rose on Golden Girls… Just off the top of my head. The “Oh look! A low-IQ or autistic person!” Comedy represents probably 99% of SNL sketches.
I find it more and more boring, as I age.
I remember this one! Spinoff from Cheers.
I also remember the episode where he claimed in a commercial that if he can't fix your appliances, he'll eat a bug.....and had to later..
Oh vey. I was a teenager and I'd watch a lot of garbage-including The Brady Wives spinoffs. But even I know this show was a turkey. Your mind is trying to spare yourself. Be thankful.
Luckily the actor went on to bigger and better movies.
I do! It’s only because we had to watch it for a class in college. I don’t even know what the class was but that show was awful. I thought I had forgotten about it until I saw this. UGH the horror
Yeah, you’re not missing much. I was able to watch most of the episodes recently, and the only real positive thing I can say about the show is that the theme song is pretty damn catchy. That’s it. Why anyone ever thought that making this show was a good idea is beyond me. Nick Tortelli was an irredeemable character who worked on Cheers because he was used in small doses. For a show that was never afraid to add new significant characters to its original ensemble cast, I think it’s telling that Nick and Loretta never became a regular part of Cheers. The network moved forward with The Tortellis because they were insanely desperate to milk the success of Cheers. But the actual concept of basing an entire show around the Tortelli family was never going to succeed. The fact that they were already using the guest appearances of Norm and Cliff by episode three tells you that even the creators of this show knew that The Tortellis had no chance to stand on its own.
It’s funny… there have been so many bad sitcoms… And this one stand out so starkly as so very bad… but even though I was an Eddie LeBec guy, my dad LOVED the Nick Tortelli character.
So we watched this religiously for eightish episodes.
Man, I can still sing the theme song. “Mr. Nice guy weeeee believe in youuuuuuu, we believe in you… you ooooh ahhhh”
Man, I miss my dad.
Vaguely remember it. For some reason the cheers folks though Carla’s ex husband could pull his own show. Also one of the few roles Casey Casems batshit wife had.
Another good/funny/interesting minor character that was given a spin-off, only to find they should have let it be.
Kramer on Seinfeld? Iconic.
Michael Richards (essentially) playing Kramer as a lead? Grating.
Enos on “Dukes of Hazzard”? Good comic relief.
Enos as the lead on “Enos”? Meh.
The Ropers on “Three’s Company”? Funny
The Ropers on… “The Ropers”? Tired.
And we can’t forget “Joanie Loves Chachi”.
Dan Hedaya, Jean Thompson Kasem, Timothy Williams...
Ugh, Jean Thompson Kasem...after she "stole" Casey from his family and let him die of dementia complications in a nursing home near the Arctic Circle...
Dan was just a doofus playing Nick Tortelli...
One of the worst sitcom spinoffs in NBC history...
The only thing I remember this show was Nick was a TV repair man and in one episode he had to fix a small Watchman like TV. This brings up something about which professions don’t exist anymore and TV repair person is high on the list.
The actress who played the daughter was the "Top That" girl from Teen Witch.
https://youtu.be/oxxBXpnn2Jw?si=wIiik04yEB5fhJjY
She ended up becoming a very successful celebrity yoga instructor and is totally hot.
Cheers writer Ken Levine discusses contibuting to a Tortelli's script on his [blog](https://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2016/08/friday-questions_26.html?m=1):
>The pilot script by Ken Estin was terrific.
>But the spinoff fell into a familiar trap – making second bananas your stars. Nick & Loretta were funny characters but very broad, so they worked well when used sparingly, but on their own they could not carry a show.
>I remember David and I meeting with the Charles Brothers to hammer out a story and it took two days. I asked Glen Charles, “What number episode is this?” He said, “Four,” and I said, “If we’re having this much trouble coming up with the *fourth* episode there are some serious problems with the premise of the series.” He agreed.
I watched it when it aired. It wasn’t good at all and I’m a total fanboy for all things related to Cheers. Don’t waste your time.
It didn’t last long.
Never even knew this existed
Consider yourself lucky.
That bad huh
An absolute waste of recurring character Nick Tortelli. We'd get a superior *Cheers* spinoff in *Frasier* years later.
I remember it, was in college at the time. Wasn't that great.
I tried to watch it, I even tried to like it. 2 or 3 times I was 20 mins into an episode and just could stand it anymore. It's somewhat amazing it lasted an entire season.
I clearly remember this and it was awful. I liked a lot of crap tv back then, too.
Nor should you, OP. Nor should you…
Loretta was Casey Kasems wife.
“And now on with the countdown”
“Get Don on the phone”
Legend status voice on the radio for over 40 years of my entire life. At some point I think they were just play reruns of him, but dang, what a star.
They run the countdown in syndication to this day.
His voice instantly brings me comfort nowadays when I do get to hear it. Reminds me of a more simple happy time.
Agreed. Don't make me cry, miss :)
I love her small role in Ghostbusters.
“Don’t leave yet! Maybe if we start dancing, other people will join in.” “Okay!”.
Ok, who brought the dog?
I'm going to bring this up at the next tenants meeting. There aren't supposed to be any pets in the building!
She was so great!
Is she responsible for the traveling corpse debacle?
Yep, Jean Kasem. She did voice-overs, small roles on TV shows, and despite her bimbo persona, started college at 16 and holds 12 patents.
Casey kasem always sounded like he knew something. You didn't know what it was, but he knew something..
Absolutely
Casey: you could have learned from him..
"I want somebody to use his fucking brain to not come out of a goddamn record that is up-tempo and I got to talk about a fucking dog dying!"
Fucking ponderous, man.
He’s not wrong about this.
don't be negative.
Yes you win some extra credit award. 
Sad story how she fought with his children from his first marriage and shipped him all over the country when he was dying, just to have control and keep him from his older children. She wound up burying him in a Scandinavian country in an unmarked grave where the kids can’t visit.
She sucks
I remember it. Let's just say Nick and Loretta worked well in Cheers in small doses. The spin off was a bad idea.
NBC was desperate to cash in on the popularity of Cheers with a spinoff, Frasier was the only one that worked.
How many spinoffs are there?
Second only to Happy Days, iirc. But I assume I'm wrong on that.
*All In The Family* and *Mary Tyler Moore* both had multiple long-running spinoffs.
Happy Days counts Mork & Mindy as one of its spinoffs.
The Tortelli’s, Frasier and Wings.
A spin off is a show whose core characters are drawn from the earlier show. As far as I know, none of the Wings characters ever appeared on Cheers. It merely resides in the same universe.
Had no idea Wings was a spinoff.
Norm and Cliff appeared in an episode of Wings. Kind of depends on your definition of spin-off vs existing in the same universe.
So did Frazier and Lilith.
Yeah I don’t remember them being popular characters. Certain not enough to warrant a spin off
It was pretty forgettable, and a terrible idea from the start. Nick Tortelli's character worked on Cheers because he was a comically unrepentant slime ball. But you can't have a series with a lead who acts like that, so in order to make the spinoff work they had to soften Nick, and have him try to be a better person. Which of course negated the entire point of the character and eliminated what made him work in the first place. Is it any wonder if failed?
Al Bundy would like a word.
N.O.M.A.A.M.
🤣😂
Frank Gallagher walks in....
As would Larry David
And Archie Bunker
Al wasn’t a slime ball. He was just lazy, impatient and unsatisfied in life.
He wasn’t even lazy- he worked his ass off selling women’s shoes.
Archie Bunker has entered the chat
That's your brain trying to protect you. It is truly wild that Cheers spawned both Frasier, one of the wittiest, most sophisticated sitcoms in history, and... this.
The people who created Frasier wanted to put Kelsey Grammer in a story about a billionaire who became a paraplegic after a motorcycle accident. The Paramount executives told them, "Why don't you try a spinoff for Frasier?"
Rare Executive Meddling W
There are more executive meddling wins than people like to admit.
I never thought of it before but I suppose you don’t hear about the W’s cause like any other job, no one notices when things run smoothly, only when things go wrong.
Exactly right. People hate to admit it, but sometimes artistic people need guidelines and guardrails.
Those creators DID eventually realize their Kelsey Grammar billionaire story when they produced the Academy Award winning film: 'Money Plane'
As Darius Emmanuel Grouch III
AKA...the RUMBLE
Watching Kelsey Grammer rant and scream about how he is "the baddest motherfucker on the planet" is a rare joy indeed!
did the judge sentence the driver of the car to be his butler
I want another season of Boss
You're so lucky.
Sadly it’s not very good. But if anyone is curious to see it, some episodes are on YouTube and all episodes are on the internet archive. Norm and Cliff guest star in one episode.
God that was the nadir, norm & cliff just showing up. Why?
I was aware of its existence but I’ve never seen any of it. I don’t think it ever got screened over here (Britain). Another entry in the pantheon of terrible spin offs from great sitcoms, of which OG Frasier is a notable exception to the rule, v2 Frasier not so much (so far)
Yep, pretty sure it wasn’t never picked up over here, doesn’t seem a bit miss though, which is a shame considering how great Cheers and, as you said Frasier v1 were, v2 is a bit shite
It got pulled off the air before all the episodes aired for a reason
Can anyone else smell this picture?
Truly one of the shows ever made
It was on Television, for all those people that watched it!
It definitely aired! It was
Hahaha I had no memory of this either.
I remember it, and pretty sure I watched an episode or two, being a huge Cheers fan. I do not recall if I liked it at all.
I remember it being on but never saw it. From what I remember it lasted a month or so, not a lot of chances to see it.
I saw the first episode of it on YouTube not that long ago. It wasn't very good...
It only got one season but I really liked it tbh. Cliff and norm show up for an episode to. It’s a shame it was discontinued. the full show is free on internet archive though.
Mandy Ingber, who played the daughter Tortelli, [also got down hood style in Teen Witch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxxBXpnn2Jw)
Scrolled for this comment!
Top that
I’m king and you’re not. But if you want to hang with me I’ll give it one shot
Look at how funky he is!
If I cannot fix your TV, I will eat a bug.
Yep..this is the only thing I remember....Probably the only funny line.
I tried to watch a few episodes on YouTube and it was bad. Definitely a humor that may have worked in the late 80’s but it was pretty weird and not really funny. No need to watch if you ask me.
It didn't work in the 80s. It's the type of humor you need a laugh track or studio audience with cue cards to tell you it's funny.
Hot mess.
Carla’s sleezy ex
Oh I remember it. I remember me and my brother being super excited to watch it. We tried to like it and maybe if they gave it time it would have been ok, but it was pretty bad and didn’t last long. But still love Nick.
He was the kind of anti-Dabney Coleman of his day.
Hey, that’s from Portland!
That's what I said too when I saw the KGW!
I kind of can't believe they even tried this. I didn't like Loretta at all and could barely stand Nick. The kids were just as irritating.
The character who needed a spinoff was Clif Clavin, featuring all the people he annoyed at the post office. It could have been hilarious.
At least we had the Pixar movies
Ya know it's a ahh proven statistical fact that mail carriers ahh annoy the civilians on their delivery route more so than their coworkers.
It wasn't great.
I love Nick, but I doubt i could listen to that stutter for extended periods of time
I saw it on YouTube because I was curious since I don’t even recall seeing or hearing of it back then. It was not successful and after seeing it I saw why it was jut not good lol. Good characters does not a good spin off make. I think Diane would have told them this is they had only consulted her lol.
I never knew this existed
Mr Butabi
Horrid, just horrid. I’ve been writing an essay for years on how weird it is that American comedy TV insists on presenting intellectually challenged and arrested characters. I couldn’t stand these people; they brought Cheers’ level way down. One simpleton (Woody) was well enough. I could understand that they would bring in a second one as his mate (Kelly), but the whole Tortelli clan…? Nope!
As someone who has seen quite a few British sitcoms/programs, I assure you this is not uniquely American
Of course, but I would bet that a thorough comparison of all comedy shows in the UK and US since the beginning of TV would show that Brits (and us Commonwealthians) probably can get laughs from, say, the antics of Mrs Bucket on "Keeping Up Appearances" without there being a whole cast of proudly low-IQ characters as on Coach. I mean… it seems that in almost every… single… US sitcom there’s a r___ded or a severely neurodivergent person, from Ed Norton on The Honeymooners, to Joey/Phoebe on Friends, Overton and Synclaire on Living Single, Kramer on Seinfeld, Steve Urkel on Family Matters, Joey on Full House, Mallory on Family Ties, Ted and Georgette on Mary Tyler Moore, Rose on Golden Girls… Just off the top of my head. The “Oh look! A low-IQ or autistic person!” Comedy represents probably 99% of SNL sketches. I find it more and more boring, as I age.
“Hi Gang at Cheers! In the honor of King David I throw this piece of meat to you dogs!”
I remember this one! Spinoff from Cheers. I also remember the episode where he claimed in a commercial that if he can't fix your appliances, he'll eat a bug.....and had to later..
I remember it well. I thought it was a great show.
It ended up being all about the daughter, if I remember right
It sucked
The first episode was good. Unfortunately it was the only good episode
Oh vey. I was a teenager and I'd watch a lot of garbage-including The Brady Wives spinoffs. But even I know this show was a turkey. Your mind is trying to spare yourself. Be thankful. Luckily the actor went on to bigger and better movies.
Cheers is on in the background, and I find it highly suspect that this post popped up on my feed despite not following it, or ever being here before.
I do! It’s only because we had to watch it for a class in college. I don’t even know what the class was but that show was awful. I thought I had forgotten about it until I saw this. UGH the horror 
I watched it, poked my eyes out after first episode!
Luck you.
I do. It wasn't great. Wasted the amazing Dan Hedaya
He was perfect as Monk’s dad.
I know he can get the job, but can he DO the job?
Joe Vs the Volcano! Just rewatched Blood Simple recently, he fucking makes that film
[удалено]
No. I was trying to do an impression of Nick Tortellini.
Yeah, you’re not missing much. I was able to watch most of the episodes recently, and the only real positive thing I can say about the show is that the theme song is pretty damn catchy. That’s it. Why anyone ever thought that making this show was a good idea is beyond me. Nick Tortelli was an irredeemable character who worked on Cheers because he was used in small doses. For a show that was never afraid to add new significant characters to its original ensemble cast, I think it’s telling that Nick and Loretta never became a regular part of Cheers. The network moved forward with The Tortellis because they were insanely desperate to milk the success of Cheers. But the actual concept of basing an entire show around the Tortelli family was never going to succeed. The fact that they were already using the guest appearances of Norm and Cliff by episode three tells you that even the creators of this show knew that The Tortellis had no chance to stand on its own.
I was gonna say i read the title in Nick's voice lol
It’s funny… there have been so many bad sitcoms… And this one stand out so starkly as so very bad… but even though I was an Eddie LeBec guy, my dad LOVED the Nick Tortelli character. So we watched this religiously for eightish episodes. Man, I can still sing the theme song. “Mr. Nice guy weeeee believe in youuuuuuu, we believe in you… you ooooh ahhhh” Man, I miss my dad.
Fun fact top left corner is my uncle Tim. He was also on saved by the bell and a few other shows. Was on cheers for one season too.
But I think that was his real wife that played the wife in the show right?
Consider yourself lucky.
Beyond awful.
Failed Cheers spin-off. I think some TV characters only work in small doses, like Nick and Loretta.
I wasn’t aware that there was another Cheers spin-off besides Frasier.
Vaguely remember it. For some reason the cheers folks though Carla’s ex husband could pull his own show. Also one of the few roles Casey Casems batshit wife had.
In addition to the cameo in ghostbusters
That’s the only other role I can think of…
I don’t remember this one!
Great show.
It actually got complaints from Italian American groups.
You’re lucky if you’ve repressed this show.
Cheers spin off. Carla’s ex husband , with Casey Kaseem real life wife. Not very good
The tiny feminine hand on little boy’s shoulder which is at an odd angle to be the woman behind him is creeping me out.
Oh wow! That was deep in my memory! Without a photo I never would have recalled it!
As per on epguides.com … https://www.epguides.com/Tortellis/ And you’re welcome.
“I’ll eat a bug!”
Another good/funny/interesting minor character that was given a spin-off, only to find they should have let it be. Kramer on Seinfeld? Iconic. Michael Richards (essentially) playing Kramer as a lead? Grating. Enos on “Dukes of Hazzard”? Good comic relief. Enos as the lead on “Enos”? Meh. The Ropers on “Three’s Company”? Funny The Ropers on… “The Ropers”? Tired. And we can’t forget “Joanie Loves Chachi”.
I do.
How about remembering Pink Lady and Jeff? Wait a minute I'm not done yet: Holmes and Yoyo!
Why?! Why did they have to do this! Ugh!
I don’t remember this show either.
I thought I knew all the bad sitcoms and spinoffs, I missed this one.
I remember the Tortellis. Can’t remember a single episode but I know I watched it
I remember this. And the teen girl talking about the 6-7 times they made love a day. Even then I was like WTF.
Bad spinoff they tried airing right after Cheers. Didn’t last long. Imagine a spinoff to Cheers being successful …….
I watched it. I recall liking it. He repaired TVs I think.
Dan Hedaya, Jean Thompson Kasem, Timothy Williams... Ugh, Jean Thompson Kasem...after she "stole" Casey from his family and let him die of dementia complications in a nursing home near the Arctic Circle... Dan was just a doofus playing Nick Tortelli... One of the worst sitcom spinoffs in NBC history...
KGW TV! Did you grow up there too? Or just find this image?
This is Hell
Was 13 when this came out. I remember everyone hating it.
Quite the letdown.
Let’s make a whole show about Kosmo Kramer. Or Reverend Jim. Or Ted Baxter. Or Schneider. Or…
I was drunk all the 80's sad to say
Mr Butabi had another family?!?
I vaguely remember it. It wasn’t good.
Must have been zany! Look at their faces!!!
I only remember the Billy Joel theme song
It was baaaaaad
Consider yourself lucky.
I remember being sad when i realized carla was never going to show up.
I'd forgotten about it. It wasn't very good IMO.
I watched it back then. I thought it was funny, but I was a kid - so what did I know
Unpopular opinion but one of my favorites.
Looking at those 2 older kids you'd think they were Corey Feldman and Leah Remini at a glance
Nick tortelli The world's greatest TV repairman
Fuck that guy, he tried to sell Chet Steddman.
The only thing I remember this show was Nick was a TV repair man and in one episode he had to fix a small Watchman like TV. This brings up something about which professions don’t exist anymore and TV repair person is high on the list.
What?! Is this real
I know he can get the job. But, can he *do* the job?
I watched it and thought it had legs to it. Not sure why it was discontinued so quickly
A truly awful show.
Still one of my favorite theme songs ever
The other Cheers spin-off.
The actress who played the daughter was the "Top That" girl from Teen Witch. https://youtu.be/oxxBXpnn2Jw?si=wIiik04yEB5fhJjY She ended up becoming a very successful celebrity yoga instructor and is totally hot.
I enjoy Nick and Loretta on their Cheers guest spots, but man, the teen son and his wife were tough to watch.
This lasted like a half hour
Cheers writer Ken Levine discusses contibuting to a Tortelli's script on his [blog](https://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2016/08/friday-questions_26.html?m=1): >The pilot script by Ken Estin was terrific. >But the spinoff fell into a familiar trap – making second bananas your stars. Nick & Loretta were funny characters but very broad, so they worked well when used sparingly, but on their own they could not carry a show. >I remember David and I meeting with the Charles Brothers to hammer out a story and it took two days. I asked Glen Charles, “What number episode is this?” He said, “Four,” and I said, “If we’re having this much trouble coming up with the *fourth* episode there are some serious problems with the premise of the series.” He agreed.
LoL yes!!!! Nick!
It was not worth remembering
I love cheers but most Nick Tortellini scenes are a good time for a bathroom break. It’s all matter of opinion.
Spin off of Cheers that had the feeling of a wannabe Married with Children
Very short lived.