Frasier Journal
It is what you think it is. A safe haven where my middle school self expressed my thoughts and feelings about the classic NBC sitcom starring Seattle’s most famous radio psychiatrist, Frasier Crane. The 5th season DVD set of Frasier entered my household at the tender age of 11. In this pre-streaming world, I had been introduced to a television show that matched my intellectual needs, a sitcom with… a sharp wit. The series transitioned me away from Disney Channel and Nickelodeon shows and dumped me into a more clever comedy scene. The gateway show into NBC’s Thursdays’ “Comedy Night Done Right” and countless other sitcoms, this show profoundly influenced my sense of humor and love of television.
After watching and re-watching and accidentally memorizing the show, my natural inclination to analyze this great work of art led me to buy an empty journal. The pages were soon filled with episode recaps, personal episode ratings, trivia, as well as a log of themes, recurring characters, and sherry drinking habits. Ye olde version of IMDb.
As the fourth member of the Frasier Crane Fan Club (as featured in Season 6, Episode 1), I of course proudly own memorabilia. A mug I bought while in Seattle and a TV Guide I found at a flea market. Of course I’ve also read the closest thing to a Frasier textbook, Frasier: A Cultural History. A Christmas tradition, my dad and I rewatch “Frasier Grinch,” “Mary Christmas,” and other holiday episodes every year. A real life father plopped in his old La-Z-Boy and his daughter laughing over the fictional antics of Martin and Frasier. To date we have scrutinized all 44 DVDs and streamed all 264 episodes dozens of times. Ironically, I now have something to talk about with a psychiatrist one day.
Lego Cheers
After becoming a Frasier Freak, I went back in time and watched his origin story in that other sitcom about him, Cheers (Young Frasier as I call it). I built the set of television’s most iconic bar out of Legos like any NORMal middle schooler would in 2008. In the most wholesome tribute to Cheers, my Lego craftsmanship included the stairs leading up to Melville’s, pretzel bowls on the bar, and Norm’s barstool. My organized pile of tiny bricks was constructed at a time when tweens didn’t have smartphones. So naturally I took pictures with my handheld camcorder. And naturally those pictures were temporarily lost. So you’ll have to take my word when I say: I Woody not Di(ane), but would jump off a Cliff to find even just a Lil(ith) bit of the pictures. Update! Found pictures!
