NBC would not let the crew take a break for the funeral so only Cliffy went? What bull *beep*
I researched this because while watching the series from he beginning recently, I was shocked at how they just swept him under the rug. "oh yeah, he died months ago." With no emotion or send off. The episode was more about Woody showing up and more Sam/Diane crap.
While I agree more than just Cliffie should've went to the funeral, you didn't need a whole episode about Colasanto's death. Life goes on as they say.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
You are right regarding the funeral. It particularly surprises me that Shelley didn't attend as she seemed closest to Coach.
But don't forget that they then hung his Geronimo picture on the set; that, I think, was a far more fitting tribute.
Because of the shooting schedule and the fact that his funeral was across the country, NBC did not allow the cast to go. They had John Ratzenberger go as a representative for the cast. I feel that they should have been able to go, but it was not their choice. The cast also had their own memorial for him when John Ratzenberger got back. Aside from hanging up his poster in the bar in his memory, he also had a habit of writing some of his lines on the set out of our sight to remember them. There was some written on the outside of the door. Cheers cast members always touched that as they were coming on set until it was later painted over.
"I'm sorry, if you were right I would agree with you." - Robin Williams
Aside from they were using him light that week, I wonder why Ratzenberger was sent?
RIP Gene Wilder. One of the funniest people of all time. RIP Matt Roberts. You were great.
One might argue that, as Barney Miller did when Jack Soo passed on, Nicholas Colasanto should have received a tribute episode.
shareDid you not read my post, grizz? I said that you didn't need a whole episode about Colasanto's death. Life goes on as they say.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
Sure, one could argue.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
It is strangely cold. Perhaps a result of a more complicated relationship with the actor. Maybe Collasanto was a a crank & the cast never really liked him but have respectfully never alluded to it in public.
shareColasanto was loved by the whole cast, Bos.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
I don't buy that for one second, Bos.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
From what I understand, the cast and crew held a ceremony to honor Colosanto, yet Ratzenberg was the only one to attend the actual funeral across the country. Let's not forget, these guys were only around the last few years of his life. Remember the episode when Coach made the same complaint about his recently departed ball-playing buddy? He said "Those guys only knew him the last few years of his life. Not the real T-Bone." Or something like that. Same applies here. Plus, with the age gap, it's highly doubtful they were all that sociable outside the set. If a coworker of mine passed away and their services were held thousands of miles away, I can't say I'd go either.
But Coach was consistently mentioned throughout the rest of the series, and once honored very nicely in the 5th season "Thanksgiving Orphans" episode. He wasn't just swept under the rug. Life does continue after someone dies, and we all are forced to adjust quickly. I thought Cheers represented this very well.
They should have went. Colosanto was phenomenal.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
Agreed, Tam. They mentioned Coach a ton of times.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
Maybe a bit more time devoted to it. But more than that I felt that they skipped over Coach's death to the detriment of the characters.
At the end of season 3, Diane told Coach to look out for Sam because she was worried that he'd fall off the wagon again. So I don't buy that she wouldn't have written or gone back to see him after she'd found he'd died even if she was trying to put their relationship behind her.
Either have Diane go back to see Sam because she'd heard about Coach, or do it the way they did but have Diane have not heard about it and Sam having to tell her.
The route they went didn't work for me.
Yeah well, history is gonna change
You didn't need a whole episode about Colasanto's death. Life goes on as they say.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
I can agree with that, Bud.
RIP Roger Rees. Movies in theater: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 10/10. Vacation 8/10
I agree 100%. They should have at least dedicated one whole entire episode to him where they had the cast sit around the bar in character reflecting on the memories of the Coach. They could have just had one of those retrospective type shows where they showed various clips of previous episodes involving the Coach...
~RIP Nicholas Colasanto (1924–1985)~
Nice to see you here, Mc. And Cheers wasn't a sentimental show like that. They gave a nice nod to him.
Theater: Psycho 10/10. The Intern 7/10. Halloween 10/10. Home Alone 10/10. The Night Before 5/10
Good to see you too, assuming that it's you. I still think they should of done something, but it's good that they did acknowledged him in the end of the episode...
shareAnd when Woody came too earlier. Oh it's me. Look at the date I joined. January 2005. Everyone else, my doppelgangers, joined within the last few months to a year.
Theater: The Intern 7/10. Halloween 10/10. Home Alone 10/10. The Night Before 5/10. Creed 9/10
After watching the The Jeffersons episodes, the ones after Zira Cully (Mother Jefferson) died, I can honestly say that Cheers definitely did a MUCH better job in handling Nicholas (Coach) Colasanto's passing. At least on Cheers, they had his name and the dates of his birth and death on the screen. The Jeffersons didn't do sh!t for Zara Cully...
Agreed, Mc.
RIP Tony Burton. RIP George Kennedy. RIP Doris Roberts. You were wonderful in ELR.
Did they have the dates? I'll have to see. On the first episode of the 4th Season, Mc?
RIP Tony Burton. RIP George Kennedy. RIP Doris Roberts. You were wonderful in ELR.
They might not of had the dates, but in the first episode of the fourth season at the end they did mention a "In Memory Of" which was a lot more than what Zara Cully got in Jeffersons...
shareI don't even remember that. Obviously they talked about Coach a couple times what with Woody being his pen pal, and Diane in the convent. Not too mention the Geronimo picture than Colasanto kept in his dressing room, was placed on the back wall in rememberence(sp).
RIP Tony Burton. RIP George Kennedy. RIP Doris Roberts. You were wonderful in ELR.
I recently caught a few of the reruns of s3, and noticed that in numerous eps leading up to the season finale, which is the last Coach was in, Coach was said to have been "traveling", as I recall.
Then he was back, in intros only, and then he factored in the finale.
Now... this was significantly out of order, if he died while shooting s3. However, if he died after s3 was in the can, why write him out of the eps? I can imagine two possibilities.
1) Colasanto was ill, prior to his death, and missed a few eps, but managed to come back to shoot the finale, plus a few openers, before he passed (this would presume s3 was entirely filmed prior to his death in February)
2) They filmed the season finale ahead of a number of other eps in the season. They had finished shooting some opening spots, a la Coach, before completing the eps they were to be attached to. During this period Colasanto died unexpectedly. So they took the opening spots, since it didn't matter which eps they introduced, and moved those to the end, making up the "Coach is away" story to fill in between, making it seem coach was alive and present before the season finale, as opposed to being "away", suddenly back, then dead the following season.
I tend to favor theory #2. Does anyone know for sure?
______
You spell God with a G, I spell Nature with an N. Capital. - Frank Lloyd Wright
The episodes in Season 3 were filmed totally out of order to accommodate Shelley Long's pregnancy. And Colasanto missed a lot of episodes because of his illness which worsened during the period. The last full episode he filmed was "Cheerio Cheers".
shareOK, so then it's more the other theory I mentioned, namely that he missed eps due to illness and it's not that he died suddenly in the middle.
______
You spell God with a G, I spell Nature with an N. Capital. - Frank Lloyd Wright
Indeed. I would've liked seeing Coach interact with Rebecca.
RIP Tony Burton. RIP George Kennedy. RIP Doris Roberts. You were wonderful in ELR.