NBC’s Must-See TV comedy lineup in the 1980s almost went through a Crazytown blender before it even got started. If the network had gotten its way, the lead bartender in the classic sitcom Cheers would have been played by criminal mixologist Bill Cosby.
NBC had already inked a sitcom deal with Cos. Now all the comic needed was a project. “So,” co-creator Les Charles told Hollywood Reporter in 2018, “he was offered to us as the bartender.”
Cosby as Sam Malone? Maybe it wasn’t as crazy an idea as it sounded. In the 1980s, Cosby had a sterling reputation, both as a comedian and an upstanding human being. (He was more than happy to lecture up-and-comers like Eddie Murphy about their use of foul language.) “People will talk to a bartender in a way they wouldn’t any other stranger,” said Les’s brother, co-creator Glen Charles. “There’s an immediate opening up and frankness.”
Who better to talk to than America’s Dad, AKA 1980s Cosby?
But the Charles brothers weren’t interested. The comedian’s involvement would have violated two rules that they’d established for their new show, says Les: “No known names and no characters’ name as the title of the show.”
Cosby was certainly a known name. Two years later, his monster sitcom (in more ways than one) would feature Cosby in the title. Casting the comedian would have destroyed the ensemble that the brothers were trying to create.
It’s the same reason they turned down Sid Caesar, who’d expressed interest in playing Coach. “That would have overweighed the show towards one character,” said Glen.
Cheers made Ted Danson a star, and in hindsight, it’s hard to imagine anyone else in the role. “What we liked about him most was he looks like a leading man, but he’s a character actor,” said Les. “He could play a lot of colors. Sam had a dark side with his drinking problem and womanizing. It made writing more challenging and fun.”
What’s not hard to imagine is Cheers disappearing from cable outlets and streaming services if Bill Cosby had played Sam Malone. How could we have ever watched Cos mix a drink on Cheers, knowing what we eventually found out? It’s why it’s so difficult to watch clips from The Cosby Show in which Bill concocts a special barbecue sauce to get everyone in a romantic mood …
Or why we cringe listening to old routines about Cosby trying to score the alleged aphrodisiac Spanish Fly on an album called It’s True! It’s True!
Now imagine an entire show devoted to Cosby stirring cocktails for the women he’s hitting on. The actor was better off behind bars, not working one in downtown Boston.
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