'Cheers' Ends With Fanfare, Mourning

Tragedy struck some Harvard students last night as they faced the dire prospect of a "Cheerless" existence.

The final episode of "Cheers" aired last night on NBC. The Thursday night sit-com, which has been running since 1982, was expected to attract over 100 million viewers for its last hurrah, more than one in three Americans.

To celebrate, or, for some, mourn the event, restaurants and students alike threw "Cheers" parties.

The Hong Kong's "Farewell to Cheers Bash" started showing old episodes at 5 p.m. to lead into the 9:00 finale. Patrons viewed the broadcast on a big-screen TV. Afterwards, they held a "Cheers" trivia contest and a karaoke sing-a-long.

Many students caught in the midst of finals could care less what happened to Sam Malone (Ted Danson) or the rest of the "Cheers" regulars. Other so-called "Cheers junkies" though, felt its loss more deeply.

Jeremy D. Horowitz '94 had a "Cheers party/wake" in Winthrop House with about 10 friends. "For me 'Cheers' has always been more like a religion than a TV show," said Horowitz, "So I'm crushed."

"I've already started counseling, so it should be OK," said Horowitz about his ability to cope with this traumatic loss.

"I could tell it was time for the show to end, though," said Horowitz. "It was sort of like Old Yeller, you knew he had to get shot, but you hated to see it happen anyway."

Christiana Campbell '95 had similar sentiments. "I think it was time for it to end. It would have been sad if it kept going and got stale."

The ending of the two-hour farewell episode had been kept a secret. NBC went as far as to film the final minutes without a studio audience.

Robert M. Broggi '94 wanted Diane and Sam to get married. Horowitz had his own plan: "Woody's elected President; Sam, Diane, and Rebecca all go off to a desert island together, and Norm gets bronzed in his bar stool."

Broggi, who is from the Boston area said, "It's probably the biggest show the city's ever had; everyone in Boston loves it.

Robert M. Broggi '94 wanted Diane and Sam to get married. Horowitz had his own plan: "Woody's elected President; Sam, Diane, and Rebecca all go off to a desert island together, and Norm gets bronzed in his bar stool."

Broggi, who is from the Boston area said, "It's probably the biggest show the city's ever had; everyone in Boston loves it.