A Grip on Sports: There seems to be a Norm in every sports bar but there will really only be one thanks to George Wendt’s portrayal in ‘Cheers’
A GRIP ON SPORTS • What is it Tom Waits wrote so many years ago? “… six in the morning, gave me no warning, I had to be on my way.” Six in the morning always gives no warning when someone who seemed so much like a member of the family passes on their way.
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• Yes, this is a sports column. At its heart. And that’s why I have to say goodbye today to the actor who played my favorite character on my favorite sports-centric TV show. George Wendt. Norm … “Norman” … in “Cheers.” Wendt died Tuesday at 76.
There is a rite of passage for those of us who played sports growing up. It is the journey from participant to observer. The trek the show’s lead character, bar owner Sam Malone, had already made when the show began back in the 1980s. From alcoholic Red Sox pitcher to sober ex-athlete pouring beer in a Boston bar.
The sports connection was obvious. In your face. Constant. Heck, even one of Sam’s employees was his former mentor and Sox coach, Ernie Pantusso.
But every adult watering hole has its consistent denizens. And their subject of choice is sports. No show ever caught this better than “Cheers.”
At the center of the sitcom’s customer solar system sat Norm Peterson, a role Wendt grabbed from the show’s opening moments to its last seconds. Made his own. Not a role model but a role modeled upon someone all of us knew. Maybe even a role a friend filled at the Maxwell House or Park Inn or Sullivan Scoreboard.
And like a baseball season, “Cheers’ ” long run – 11 years – allowed the producers and writers – one of which, Ken Levine, went on to a couple stints with the Seattle Mariners’ broadcast crew – to cover a variety of topics, from birth to death and everything in between. Mainly, sports. The Sox. The Bruins. Softball rivalries. Gambling. In the middle, always, sat Norm.
The everyman. The everyfan. Beer in hand – always – he sat on the same stool for decades – there was a great scene about a guy who came in to Cheers after 25 years away, pointed out all the changes, including the paneling over there “behind Norm” – and made the same magnificent entrance every time.
With a different one liner to finish it off.
It may come as no surprise that the man behind the second-greatest sports-based sitcom, Jason Sudekis, is Wendt’s nephew. His “Ted Lasso” may have been set in England, but the pub that showed up in the show often – The Crown & Anchor – was actually more of a sports-fans’ bar than Cheers.
Heck, Sudekis even paid tribute to “Cheers” in what was slated to be the final episode of his show.
On “Cheers’ ” finale, Wendt’s Norm gives Ted Danson’s Sam Malone some advice before exiting the bar. Danson then walks slowly toward the back. He pauses. Looks to the wall. Hanging there is a piece of “flair.” A famous print of Geronimo (hung on the Cheers’ wall after Nicholas Colasanto, who played Coach, died). It’s crooked. Danson walks over. Gently straightens it. Then slowly walks away. The show ends.
Fast forward 30 years – and one day. “Ted Lasso” is ending. There is a final scene in The Crown & Anchor. The owner, Mae, helps Ted with some advice. Walks through the bar. Stops. Turns. Straightens a print of Geronimo. Walks off.
An homage to the greatest show about sports ever made. As this is an homage to most-relatable character on that show – and the man who portrayed him.
Wendt, who popped up in movies and TV after “Cheers” ended in 1993, was never better. He played a person who found his place within the family that lived in Cheers. And his optimistically-pessimistic attitude about sports, and life, mirrored so well the attitude of those who watched at home. The Sox were going to blow the game. The Bruins’ goalie was going to blow his big chance. His best friend, Cliff Clavin, was going to blow an impossible-to-blow lead on “Jeopardy.”
Wendt played the role to perfection, tie constantly askew, too short by half. His belt doing way too much heavy lifting. His wit always sharp, with himself as a main target. His over-the-top fondness for food and beer only matched by his loyalty to those he called friends.
He brought it all to life. A professional playing another pro. Playing it just right.
Years ago, the S-R features’ section did a story on “Cheers.” Our illustrator, Anne Heitner, painted a water color of Norm on his stool. After she died, the paper held an auction of her originals, raising money for her children. I bought many pieces, but only one hangs on the wall in my office. The painting of Norman. A sports fan. A character. And, in a way, a stand-in for all the friends I’ve ever sat with, shared a beverage with and argued with about whatever sport was in season.
Goodbye George. Thanks for Norm.
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WSU: OK, back to the real reason we are here. News. Sports news. Like Jaylen Wells, once a Washington State standout, earning All-NBA Rookie first-team honors. What a ride. Greg Woods covers it all in this story. … Speaking of another Cougar on his way to the NBA, CBS Sports highlights Cedric Coward’s rise in the NBA’s estimation after the league combine. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, it’s the Big 12’s turn in Jon Wilner’s Mercury News crosshairs today. He has his thoughts on the football race. … There are other thoughts on that race as well. … The CFP is headed to 16 teams. That seems to be a given. … Whatever the Power Four decide to do to enforce the House settlement’s financial commitments will be challenged in court. That also seems to be a given. … USC, reportedly guided by the opinion of an indifferent Lincoln Riley, is headed for a disaster, PR-wise, with its fans. The school seems to about to drop its more than 100-year series with Notre Dame. … Oregon State athletic director Scott Barnes talked about Pac-12 expansion once more. … Colorado has brought in a lot of football transfers this spring. … Ashton Jeanty is already going through the you-have-to-change-this part of NFL rookie orientation. … In basketball news, the nonconference game between Arizona and UCLA this season will feature a tribute to Bill Walton. … In baseball news, the best West Coast program this season may be Oregon. Or Oregon State. Or, stay with me here, my alma mater, UC Irvine. We find the rare UCI baseball story and we link it. … We mentioned women’s golf yesterday. One Pac-12 legacy school, Stanford, earned a spot in the NCAA team final. Another, Oregon, laid an egg in the semis against Northwestern, a Big Ten foe the Ducks had handled all season.
Gonzaga: The NBA playoffs are going on, with three Zags still participating in the league’s Final Four: OKC’s Chet Holmgren, the Knicks’ Anton Watson and Indiana’s Andrew Nembhard. It’s the last, and younger brother Ryan, who is at the center of this Theo Lawson story on a recent trip GU assistant Stephen Gentry took through the Midwest. … The Bulldogs didn’t win the WCC’s regular-season baseball title this year. But they did finish second and that was enough to help Mikey Bell win player of the year honors. … The Zags’ spot in this CBS preseason power ranking has not changed, though there has been a huge shift near the top.
EWU: Veteran receiver Kendrick Bourne leads a trio of local players with New England as offseason workouts roll on. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, the new Sacramento State basketball facility is getting closer.
Idaho: We were not sure where to handle this bit of news from Theo. It has to do with Mead High’s Addison Wells Morrison announcing Tuesday her plans to play basketball for the Vandals. We settled on giving it its solo spot in an Idaho section.
Preps: Jim Meehan covers all the happenings from the State golf tournaments on Tuesday and believe me, there was a lot going on. … Cheryl Nichols handles the roundup of the State baseball playoffs.
Indians: Dave Nichols spent his afternoon at Avista Stadium, covering the opener of Spokane’s six-game series with Tri-City. The Dust Devils won 3-2 as the Indians’ bid to tie in the bottom of the ninth with a squeeze bunt went awry.
Seahawks: NFL players will be allowed to try out for their countries’ Olympic flag football teams if they want. The owners voted to work out a deal with the players’ union about the sport in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. … The Hawks officially gained quarterback Jalen Milroe’s signature on a contract.
Mariners: Speaking of offenses going awry, we give you the Seattle Mariners on a rainy Tuesday evening on the road in Chicago. The M’s were shutout and lost 1-0. They had few opportunities and wasted those they did generate. … We linked this story on Cal Raleigh and, oops, Bryan Woo, yesterday when it ran in the Times, though we did mislabel it. It ran in the S-R today. … We also linked this story on Angie Mentink that ran in the S-R today when it was in the Times a couple weeks ago. … Love the graphic that goes with this Athletic story on which MLB teams are actually trying. The best part of the graphic? It shows the M’s at, basically, winning at a 54% rate.
Kraken: Where does Seattle stand in its coaching search?
Auto racing: The Indy 500 is this weekend. So is another NASCAR race. And another attempt to win them both on the same day.
Media: We linked this Athletic story (and others) about the end of “Around the Horn” yesterday. It is on the S-R site today.
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• Our favorite Norm entrance line? Sam asks “What’s happening, Norm?” Norm’s response: “Well, it’s a dog-eat-dog world, Sammy, and I’m wearing Milk-Bone underwear.” Man, there were a lot of days back then when I felt that way. Though, if you are wondering, I never filled the Norm role anywhere. I was always more of a Cliff. I know you are not surprised. Until later …