The Kelsey Grammer-starring Frasier is one of TV’s most acclaimed sitcoms, but the creators’ original pitch would never have worked nearly as well. The sitcom is a spinoff of Cheers and ran for an impressive 11 seasons, from 1993-2004. Frasier remains one of the wittiest comedies ever made, boasting an exceptional ensemble. However, the original plan was very different and could have aged terribly.
Frasier sees Grammer’s lovelorn psychiatrist reinvent himself after a divorce by relocating from the Cheers-set Boston to his native Seattle. He revels in his newfound celebrity as the host of a radio call-in show, providing mental health advice to his devoted listeners. Frasier Crane also reconnects with his equally snobbish brother, Niles (David Hyde Pierce), and their ex-police officer father, Martin (John Mahoney), moves into Frasier’s luxury apartment.
The critically acclaimed Frasier won 37 Emmys, however, it’s unlikely the creators’ original plan would have come close to achieving this feat. Co-creator Peter Casey discussed how Frasier originated from a rejected pitch for a completely different show. Although Grammer wanted to reunite with Cheers writers Casey, David Angell and David Lee, none of them were thrilled by the idea of revisiting Frasier Crane. Instead, their original plan involved a disabled millionaire and his Hispanic nurse, only to scrap the idea and mine their personal experiences to create a pivotal Frasier character. (via Ken Levine)
Grammer wanted to headline his own show, but he and Frasier’s creators were concerned a spinoff could never match Cheers. Although the writers believed Kelsey Grammer’s Frasier “was the most interesting and complex” of Cheers’ characters, they feared the network would demand constant crossover episodes that would cheapen Frasier. Therefore, a far stranger pitch was devised: “Kelsey would play this very high-brow, eccentric millionaire publisher… in New York who was paralyzed from the waist down in a motorcycle accident.” The protagonist was to operate his business from his Manhattan penthouse, aided by a “street smart” Hispanic live-in nurse who would “bring out the humanity in him.” The premise is rather precarious. It’s unclear from where most of the show’s humor would be derived, and the characters would have required a great level of sensitivity in their depiction. The original plan risked creating caricatures that could have dated the show terribly; minority characters and disabled characters were written at that time with even less sensitivity than they often are now. Understandably, the pitch was not well-received. Casey recalls, “Paramount hated it.”
Grammer was convinced to capitalize on Cheers’ popularity and reprise Frasier, ultimately for 11 seasons. With their star onboard, the writers reluctantly formed a new plan for Frasier. To avoid crossover demands, they deliberately set the show far away from Boston. Denver was their original choice until Colorado passed a discriminatory law against the LGBTQ+ community. Therefore, Frasier Crane relocated even farther west, which worked in the writers’ favor. As Casey states, “Seattle was pretty cutting edge at the time.” He notes how the city’s art scene, coffee houses, and restaurants made it the perfect choice. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine Frasier being set anywhere else. Seattle also made it very inconvenient for regular visits from the Cheers cast, although some did return in Frasier. This allowed the spinoff to effectively form its own identity. The disability aspect of Frasier‘s original plan was also modified to moving effect via Martin’s gunshot wound. Casey states the idea of Frasier caring for an aging parent came from David Lee’s personal life and “was something many people Frasier’s age were facing.”
Meanwhile, Frasier’s father needed a conflicting personality as a consistent source of humor. Casey’s own father and grandfather were police officers, which contributed to Martin’s entirely empathetic depiction. His hip injury is a vast improvement over Frasier‘s original plan, and his down-to-earth attitude perfectly contrasts with Frasier and Niles’ pompous nature. Although the creators’ spinoff fears were perfectly reasonable, Frasier was undoubtedly boosted by its connection to Cheers, successfully expanding that show’s universe without coasting on frequent cameos.
