Fans Flock to Boston’s Cheers to Say Goodbye to ‘Norm’

Actor and comedian George Wendt has died, taking one of the most legendary sitcom supporting characters in television history with him.

The long-suffering Norm Peterson occupied the corner stool at the far end of the bar at Cheers, the fictitious Boston bar where everyone knows your name, and they're always glad you came.

Wendt died in his sleep on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. He was 76.

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George Robert Wendt, Jr., was born in Chicago in 1948. Though he had other acting credits on his resume, Wendt will forever be Hilary Norman "Norm" Peterson (named for his grandfather), the barfly who could guzzle beer and crack one-liners with the best of them.

Norm appeared in all 275 episodes of Cheers from 1982 to 1993 and died on the 32nd anniversary of the show's final episode. He was nominated for six consecutive Outstanding Supporting Actor Emmys but never won.

Though Cheers produced some memorable characters during its run on NBC, Norm was the most identifiable, and the fans loved him.

The Bull & Finch Pub in the Hampshire House at 84 Beacon Street, Boston, founded by Thomas Kershaw in 1969, served as the exterior image for Cheers. The bar quickly became a top Boston tourist destination, and in 2002, Kershaw changed its name to Cheers Beacon Hill.

On May 20, 1993, when the final episode of Cheers aired on television, the cast, including George Wendt, attended a viewing party at the bar. Hundreds of fans watched the finale on two large-screen TVs outside.

Boston's WBZ-TV reported that a beer mug sits on the bar at Cheers next to a picture of George Wendt to mark his passing. The station reported fans have come by to "drink a beer for Norm."

On television, Norm was married to Vera, the unseen wife he sought refuge from at the bar. In his real life, Wendt had been married to Bernadette Birket since 1978. The couple had three children.