Boston: where everyone knows your name

World Travel Diary — By NikhilBhide on December 1, 2009 at 23:14

More than 55 million people visit the USA from abroad each year. That’s a lot of people. However, even those that have never ventured across the pond to the land of the free will feel like they’ve been three a thousand times, with the plethora of American movies and TV shows that are broadcast across the globe.

For some, growing up watching Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry movies will make them feel at one with sloping streets of San Francisco. Whilst others will harbour romantic notions of New York through hit TV shows such as Sex and the City and Friends; though the latter of these was actually filmed in LA.

Boston is another such city that is on the global ‘TV destination’ map, thanks in large to the popularity of Cheers, one of the most successful American sitcoms of all time.

The show ran for 11 seasons between 1982 and 1993 and it was set in the ‘Cheers’ bar, where a group of local characters met to drink, have fun and get merry. The theme song, ‘Where Everybody Knows Your Name’, has become famous the world over too, and is a very apt song for a show that is set in a bar where the staff and customers know each other well.

Besides helping to establish the likes of Woody Harrelson and Ted Danson as household names across the world, Cheers also produced arguably an even more popular spin-off series called Frasier, which starred one of the characters from Cheers, Dr Frasier Crane (actor Kelsey Grammer) and won 37 Emmy Awards, compared to the 26 that Cheers won.

Alas, it all started with the antics within the small Boston bar that is now a major tourist attraction in its own right. Although much of the interior shots were filmed in a studio, the exterior was filmed outside Boston’s ‘Bull & Finch’ pub and because of its association with the critically acclaimed sitcom, it went on to become one of America’s top 50 busiest outlets in the food and beverage industry.

Cheers-themed bars have since popped up across the world, with the first officially licensed theme pub opening in London’s Regent Street in 1997. However, the original in Boston is still the star attraction, drawing in around a million visitors each year.

Boston has also been the backdrop for many other popular TV shows over the years, such as Ally McBeal, Boston Legal, Crossing Jordan, St Elsewhere and some of the later seasons of Dawson’s Creek.

However, the city’s association with one of the most popular sitcoms of all time is perhaps the main reason that hotels in Boston are always in such high demand.

Furthermore, a combination of a fantastic public transport system and small, safe and friendly neighbourhoods has helped gain Boston the reputation as the most walker-friendly city in the whole country. Perfect for those on a tour of the city’s most iconic haunts!

Jonathan Wallace writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

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