George Wendt’s Wild Cheers Days: Spitballs, Mushroom Trips, and Shotgun Gifts

The passing of George Wendt, the beloved Norm Peterson from Cheers, at age 76 has uncorked a flood of memories from the sitcom’s wild, irreverent days. Far from the mild-mannered accountant he played, Wendt was at the heart of the cast’s legendary antics, as revealed in a recent podcast with co-stars Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson. From spitball ambushes to a drunken Tonight Show appearance, their tales paint a picture of a set as lively as the bar it portrayed.

Wendt’s Norm became a 1980s TV icon with a single-word audition: beer. His subtle humor and authenticity anchored the show, but off-screen, the cast’s camaraderie fueled chaos. Danson recalled targeting a struggling actor with spitballs during filming, one famously landing in Wendt’s hairline. Wendt, unfazed, boasted of nailing Danson’s uvula with a well-aimed shot, calling it a Zen moment.

The pranks didn’t stop there. When Kirstie Alley joined as Rebecca Howe, Wendt and John Ratzenberger welcomed her with a shotgun from a Hollywood sporting goods store, a gift that horrified the cast but delighted Alley. Another time, Wendt and Ratzenberger pantsed Danson, who later found himself exposed in a shower prank orchestrated by Wendt and Alley, with a Polaroid immortalizing the moment at the wrap party.

The cast’s mischief hit a high note when Wendt, Danson, and Harrelson played hooky during a female-led episode, sneaking off to Ratzenberger’s new boat. Already stoned, Danson tried mushrooms for the first time, only to panic as hurricane swells rocked the vessel. Wendt, seasick but sober, played lifesaver, poking Danson to breathe through the ordeal. The next day, producers chewed them out, though Danson quipped they’d have allowed the trip if it wasn’t proper hooky.

Yet, amid the hijinks, sentimentality shone through. After Nicholas Colasanto (Coach) died, the cast ritualistically touched a set wall inscribed with his line, It’s almost as if he’s still here with us, until painters carelessly covered it, sparking outrage. A Geronimo photo from Colasanto’s dressing room was hung in his memory, a quiet nod to their bond.

Danson’s tribute to Wendt, shared after his death, captures the loss: I am devastated... I love you, Georgie. The stories of Cheers endure, a testament to a cast that lived as vibrantly as they laughed.