By Dan Murphy
Passersby wrote tribute messages to late actor George Wendy on this sign (shown above) posted outside Hampshire House.
One week after his death at age 76, George Wendt, the late actor best known for his portrayal of beloved bar regular Norm Peterson on the classic TV sitcom ‘Cheers,’ was remembered on Tuesday, May 27, during an intimate gathering upstairs at Hampshire House.
Markus Ripperger, president, CEO, and corporate chef of Hampshire House Corporation, and Tom Kershaw, chairman of Hampshire House Corporation (right), are seen alongside a photo of actor George Wendt and former Speaker of the House Tip O’Neil from the first season of ‘Cheers.’
Wendt earned six Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for playing Peterson on ‘Cheers,’ which aired on NBC for 11 seasons between 1982 and 1993.
“When you talk about the heart and soul of ‘Cheers,’ it was George Wendt,” said Tom Kershaw, chairman of the Hampshire House Corporation, adding that Wendt appeared in all 275 episodes of the series.
As others in attendance noted, Wendt died on May 20 – exactly 32 years after the ‘Cheers’ series finale, ‘One for the Road’ aired on May 20, 1993. (The memorial in Wendt’s honor at Hampshire House took its name from that episode as well.)
The origins of ‘Cheers’ date back to 1981, when the creative team behind another classic TV sitcom, ‘Taxi,’ was looking for a new project. This team included director and producer Jim Burrows, whose father, Abe Burrows, had been a scriptwriter for ‘Duffy’s Tavern,’ a situation comedy set in a neighborhood bar and broadcast on American radio from 1941 to 1951. Through a stroke of luck, they discovered the Bull & Finch (as the Cheers bar at Hampshire House was known until 2001) during a scouting trip to Boston. The Bull & Finch would become the inspiration for their next sitcom project, ‘Cheers’ as Kershaw first learned himself from reading about it in The Boston Globe.
While ‘Cheers’ would go on to be one of the most popular and acclaimed TV series in history, earning 28 Primetime Emmy Awards from a record of 117 nominations, it wasn’t an immediate hit.
In fact, during its first season, ‘Cheers’ was teetering on cancellation until a well-placed phone call, which came as a favor to a young staffer on series, prompted then-Speaker of the House Tip O’Neil to make a cameo on the series.
“Everybody tuned in,” said Kershaw, recalling how the hype surrounding O’Neil’s appearance, which saw him sitting at the bar and bantering with Norm, drew the attention of the media and soon helped transform the struggling series into a success.
Kershaw told this reporter he first met Wendt in Hollywood in August of 1982 during the filming of one of the first episodes, before the series even hit the air on Sept. 30 of that year. Somewhat predictably, Kershaw and Wendt enjoyed a few beers out together afterwards.
“He was a wonderful person, friendly, and a good guy to be around,” Kershaw said of Wendt.
Wendt, along with others ‘Cheers’ cast members, visited Boston and Hampshire House a number of times over the series’ run to film lead-in sequences, and to commemorate the airing of the final episode of the sitcom, Jay Leno brought ‘The Tonight Show’ and the ‘Cheers’ cast to the Bull & Finch on May 20, 1993, for a rare remote filming.
After the initial broadcast run of ‘Cheers’ ended, Wendt visited Kershaw in Boston several times. Wendt was even on hand for the grand opening of Cheers at Faneuil Hall Marketplace in 2000. (That bar closed in 2020 amid the pandemic.)
A diehard ‘Cheers’ fan, Joe Aiello of Wethersfield, Conn., was among those on hand at Hampshire House to honor Wendt’s memory.
When he graduated from Wethersfield High School in 1993, Aiello quoted one of Norm Peterson’s memorable barroom quips from the TV show in his yearbook (“Women can’t live with ‘em – pass the beer nuts.”). With more than 30 years hindsight, Aiello now readily acknowledges the joke hasn’t necessarily aged well, however.
Aiello spent his 21st birthday in 1995 at the Bull & Finch and also still proudly carries a VIP card he received from the bar soon afterwards when he was living in Boston. These long-since-discontinued cards, which were only available to those with a valid Boston mailing address, allowed holders and their guests to skip the line to enter the establishment, as well as to secure the first available table once inside.
But perhaps the biggest testament to Aiello’s ‘Cheers’ fandom is the replica of the wood bar door from the TV series, adorned with a panel window emblazoned with the distinct bar logo in cursive lettering, which adorns his basement bar at home.
Aiello, who reluctantly took to the podium at the gathering, said afterwards that hearing others share their own personal memories of watching Wendt on ‘Cheers’ help create a common bond between those in attendance.
“It was nice to embrace people who also love the show,” Aiello told this reporter in a phone call after the event.
Following the gathering, Aiello and other attendees retired downstairs at Hampshire House to the Cheers bar, where they all raised a glass in Wendt’s honor.
“Norm goes with having a beer,” said Aiello.