Samurai Sword Scare: 'Cheers' Actor Recalls Fan Encounter

John Ratzenberger, best known as Cliff Clavin from the iconic sitcom "Cheers," recently shared a rather unsettling fan story from his time on the show.

Ratzenberger recounted noticing a particular audience member during a taping who seemed a little too fixated on Shelley Long and Ted Danson. "Just wherever [Long and Danson] were, he was staring at them, but his eyes were just a little nuts," the 77-year-old actor said on the "Still Here Hollywood" podcast. He noticed the fan wasn't even watching the play, just staring at the actors.

Concerned, Ratzenberger alerted the head of security, asking, "That seem odd to you?" Turns out, his gut feeling was spot-on.

Security approached the fan and discovered he was concealing a samurai sword with, allegedly, Ted and Shelley's names inscribed on it. Seriously, a samurai sword? "It was creepy. So they got rid of him," Ratzenberger stated.

Despite the alarming nature of the incident, Ratzenberger claimed he "never heard anything else about" the audience member afterward. "But that was nuts because they came so close," the actor recalled. "But he just didn't seem right. Just, 'Something's wrong there.'"

"Cheers" was a television staple, starring Danson, Long, Woody Harrelson, Kirstie Alley, Rhea Pearlman, and Kelsey Grammer, and aired for eleven seasons, from 1982 to 1993.

Ratzenberger also touched on the less glamorous side of fame, noting that fan interactions can sometimes be "annoying." He mentioned having security at his home, though thankfully, he never had any unwanted visitors. "I always had dogs, anyway, hoping they'd show up," he joked.