One of George Wendt’s final public appearances before his death was definitely a wholesome one.

In August 2024, the actor, who died at age 76, reunited with his Cheers co-stars Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson for an episode of the Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast. During their conversation, the trio looked back on the NBC sitcom, which ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993.

“My agent called and said, ‘You know, honey, they want you to do this Cheers,’” Wendt said of his casting process for Cheers. “‘Now you’re not available,’ because I had this other show [Making the Grade] at Paramount for CBS. Then they go, ‘But they want you to come in anyway, and it’s really small, though. I go, ‘Oh, Ok.’”

Wendt recalled initially auditioning to say just one word in the pilot, which was “beer.” After describing the scene with Shelley Long’s Diane Chambers to Danson and Harrelson,...