I believe Abe Burrows, Jimmy’s Father, wrote on a radio show called Duffy’s Tavern. The beauty of having set the show in a bar meant when the door opened, the story started, and any story could walk in that door…. Some pretty strange people came in that door.
—Bob Broder, quoted in Top of the Rock by Warren Littlefield and T. R. Pearson
Broder here is talking about a precursor to the classic TV show Cheers. One of the most famous barflies to belly up to the bar at Cheers was Norm Peterson, who always got a resounding, “Norm!” when he walked through the door and was ready with a quip on the way to his stool. Norm was played by George Wendt, who passed away this week at the age of 76.
If you’re not familiar with Wendt’s (and one of TV’s) most famous character, here are all of his entrances:
Last week: Albrecht Dürer on extracting art.
Next week: John Steinbeck on the hard work of simplicity.
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