MovieChat Forums > Major Dad (1989) Discussion > Did "Frasier" Copy "Major Dad"?

Did "Frasier" Copy "Major Dad"?

posted 9 years ago by prometheus1816
2 replies | jump to latest

I've recently been rewatching this show because of my love of Jon Cypher who played Commanding General Marcus Craig, and one thing that has me wondering. Did "Frasier" copy "Major Dad" in the whole Maris thing? We don't get to see Craig's wife Mimzy at all and all we get are descriptions of who she was and her foibles. This is exactly what happened with Niles Crane's first wife Maris. My feeling is they did. Too much alike to be coincidental. Considering that "Major Dad" and the second season and the introduction of Craig and his wife came a full two years before "Frasier" debuted.... As I said, too coincidental.

Sometimes my ruminations are too confusing for someone not inside my head. -Anon

[–] rspyke 9 years ago

Actually it was more following Norm's wife from Cheers.

[–] jarrodmcdonald-1 8 years ago

And this had also been done on MASH, where Colonel Potter talked about his wife Mildred all the time, and BJ talked about Peg. Of course, they were miles away from home in Korea...but a lot could be done with an off-screen spouse and leaving it up to the imaginations of the viewers.

Another one was Columbo mentioning his wife all the time. Later, there was a Mrs. Columbo spinoff, and she mentioned her off-screen husband!