Cheers 8.9: “Two Girls for Every Boyd”

Airdate: 11/23/89

Woody gets a big break: playing the starring role of George in Our Town at the community playhouse. His co-star, Emily, playing Emily, has noticed that he has trouble acting like he’s in love with her, so she tries getting him to open up. Hopelessly in love with Kelly, he backs off – but she catches him and Emily kissing in the pool room. After much explanation, Woody gets a crash course in method acting, but it’s the rear of getting fired from the play hat really gets his Stanislavski going. Equal plot: An unshaven Sam is the inspiration for the boys at he bar to have a beard-growing contest, judged by Carla. Cliff wins – but his fake beard may require a hospital stay to remove!

Emily is played by Lisa Kudrow, who of course would later star in James Burrows’ Cheers follow-up, Friends. Funny to see her here as a brunette, but she has the exact same voice and mannerisms as she would later exhibit as Phoebe. But for my money, the beard story is funnier, if for no other reason than the image of all the normally-clean shaven Cheers barflies with facial that turns them into everything from Freud to the Wolfman. It looks like the actually grew the beards themselves, even Cliff, whose beard is supposed to be fake!

Cold open: Frasier and Lilith celebrate a night out sans baby – with all baby-oriented activities. The boys wonder why his blonde au pair is not making Lilith jealous; it’s because she’s a he!

Norm’s opener: (Introducing his beard) Woody: “What can I get you, Mr. Peterson?” Norm: “Got any flea powder?” Get me a beer; I think I’ll drown the little suckers!”