Frasier (1993 – 2004): Mahoney vs. the Dog
Frasier, a Cheers spinoff centered on erudite psychiatrist Frasier Crane, moving the character to Seattle where he lived with his ‘regular-guy’ father Martin (John Mahoney) and his father’s caretaker Daphne (Jane Leeves), and his carbon-copy brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce). Tensions on Frasier weren’t the diva-esque nightmare endured on sets like Moonlighting, but the cast and crew had to contend with star Kelsey Grammar’s substance abuse, which led to a 1996 car crash. Writers created storylines featuring Frasier’s brother Niles, giving Grammar time to work on his recovery. Even so, the cast bonded to stage an intervention to help Grammar. Cast and crew relations were strong. But there was one cast member they didn’t care for: Jack Russell terrier Eddie, played by a dog named Moose. Moose would nip at Mahoney, who once refused to hold the dog on his lap, exclaiming, “The son of a b**ch always bites me!”
Where did we find this stuff? Readings and resources:
Dick York: The real reason he suddenly left ‘Bewitched.’ Colin Bertram, Biography, 8 October 2020.
John Amos reveals how departure from ‘Good Times’ went down. Okla Jones, Essence, 12 August 2021.
Pity the poor producers of TV series. Karl Fleming, New York Times, 31 August 1975.
Whether TV or true life, ‘mother’ role not easy. Phillip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 08 May 2020.