George Wendt, who has died aged 76, made his name in the American sitcom Cheers as the popular, beer-guzzling Norm Peterson. He appeared in all 275 episodes of the series, which ran from 1982 to 1993, starred Ted Danson as the Cheers bar owner, Sam Malone, and gained a worldwide following.
His character’s arrival was a running gag. He would swing through the doors, bidding the regulars a good evening (or afternoon), and they would yell back in unison: “Norm!” It chimed with the lyrics from the programme’s theme song: “Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name.”
