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The Frasier Scripts
Of the one hundred and fifty scripts written for Frasier over the last five years, executive producer Christopher Lloyd says that the 15 chosen for this book are those "that were just right ... something about each one—whether it was the particular story we were telling, or the way we were telling it—just struck a nerve with everyone".
Starting with "The Good Son", the pilot script for the show, "they all deliver on the promise to be funny first", says Lloyd, "but also to be true to the characters, to explore their wants and needs in ways that occasionally achieve something like poignancy. The scripts in this volume represent various approaches to that end". Among them are:
- Flat-out farce ("The Matchmaker", "The Ski Lodge")
- Old-fashioned romantic comedy ("Mixed Doubles")
- Swashbuckling ("An Affair to Forget")
- Dancing ("Moon Dance")
- Parody ("Slow Tango in South Seattle")
- Silent-movie-like ("Will You Be Mine?")
Ideal for the millions of Frasier fans, admirers of accomplished humor writing, as well as for students and professionals in the TV and film industries, this book, with background information and photos on the stars and characters, marks the first time that a Frasier script collection has been published in the U.S.
Starting with "The Good Son", the pilot script for the show, "they all deliver on the promise to be funny first", says Lloyd, "but also to be true to the characters, to explore their wants and needs in ways that occasionally achieve something like poignancy. The scripts in this volume represent various approaches to that end". Among them are:
- Flat-out farce ("The Matchmaker", "The Ski Lodge")
- Old-fashioned romantic comedy ("Mixed Doubles")
- Swashbuckling ("An Affair to Forget")
- Dancing ("Moon Dance")
- Parody ("Slow Tango in South Seattle")
- Silent-movie-like ("Will You Be Mine?")
Ideal for the millions of Frasier fans, admirers of accomplished humor writing, as well as for students and professionals in the TV and film industries, this book, with background information and photos on the stars and characters, marks the first time that a Frasier script collection has been published in the U.S.
- GenresHumorNonfiction
400 pages, Hardcover
First published September 17, 1999
67 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 4, 2025
The Frasier Scripts by David Angell and others
9 out of 10
I have just discovered this comedy series, airing on our local Comedy Central channel, which in America could well be offering the latest, 2023 season, which might arrive here some time later, albeit other shows are much quicker to get to us, such as The Gilded Age https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/20... only one day late here…
Kelsey Grammer is excellent as Doctor Frasier Crane, a psychiatrist that moves to Seattle, where he has a radio show, for which listeners call in for advice, which sometimes fails to produce the desired effects – in one episode, he gets acquainted with a ‘connected fellow’, who is something of a gangster, who helps Nelson
Nelson is the brother of the hero, who is also a psychiatrist and wants the mobster to help with a traffic penalty problem, but we know from The Godfather http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/08/t... how favors work with the mafia, those people ‘make offers you can’t refuse’
Doctor Crane talks to the lover of the gangster on his show, who says that they do not have sex, the man leaves very often, after a phone call, because he has to ‘work’, and the host ends up telling the caller to leave, run as fast as she can, later they meet, and it looks as if there will be an intimacy, but that would be unethical…
In another segment, we get to see the former Mrs. Crane, who has found a letter form Frasier, stating that he wants to be back together, and when she assumes it is a recent message, she comes visiting, to the chagrin of the father, the former police officer, Daphne, the physiotherapist, and maybe even Eddie
Eddie is the splendid, brilliant, fabulously trained (I mean the dog, or dogs they have used for the production) and so amusing, however much the main character complains about the hair, the habits – at one point, the dog has licked a doughnut, and when Nelson comes and their father is urging a restoration of good relations, Frasier is offering the licked sweet to his brother – he stares at characters in an absolutely delightful way
With Daphne I have a problem, for she detracts from the pleasure I have in watching this, the actress has decided, or has been told by the director to push her ‘Englishness’ to the point where it is irritating for yours truly, with an off-putting accent, manner of talking and over the top approach, but I could be, probably I am wrong
Roz aka Peri Gilpin, is the producer of the radio talk show, and she brings more value to the comedy, she is the one that handles the doctor in many circumstances, teaching him what to do, when he is new in the business, then asking for some advice for her rather shambolic love life, which is not very rewarding
When she goes out with an attractive news anchor (would that be the word they use at radio, they do it for television, so why not) he is in fact pretending to ask for a date, when in reality, he is one of those fundamentalists that use any chance to proselytize – and they vote for…the most diabolical, vicious, sinful, reprehensive, dangerous, loathsome man and the list could go on for several pages, or to infinity and beyond
The Economist has just made available The World in 2024 supplement and what is the most dangerous ghost we could see next year, well, the answer was given and it is the election of the foul, ghastly Trump, the one that has tried to destroy democracy, with his attack on Congress – it was his own supporters that carried that out, and we must stop here, before I lose it and write only about this…
Doctor Frasier Crane is amusing in his idiosyncrasies, he can be annoying, but there is also an exquisite charm, a good feeling when the actor appears on the screen – the opposite for this cinephile happens when Ashton Kutcher is on, I have an allergy there – even when he is asking for the impossible
Take his orders for coffee, which has to be with special ingredients, he keeps retuning it, until the waitress says ‘ a team of specialists is working on it’, the good doctor does have a pretentious style, precious, and preposterous, but that is to allow the audience to laugh, we could not do that, for the perfect protagonist
He reminds me of Basil Fawlty aka glorious John Cleese in Fawlty Towers http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/11/w... the best comedy series that I know of (allegedly, the creator is thinking of a new season) where Basil Fawlty is the co-owner of a hotel.
Mr. Fawlty aspires to have the most distinguished, elite clientele, which in his perception would be the aristocrats, he is such a snob in other words, but he will get punished for this flaw and we will laugh with tears…Doctor Crane has the same penchant for the sophisticated, the expensive wines, rare dishes
When he is ill, Daphne finds him almost impossible, because he asks for special treatment, various treats, permanent attention, a multitude of items, and he has nightmares, in which he is taken out of his spot, by his brother, conspiring with another host at the station, and for some crazy reason, it reminded me of Charlie’s pain in Two and a Half Men, when he dreams that during a surgical procedure, they have added breasts, and furthermore, he starts fondling them, because he is so crazy…
Now for a question, and invitation – maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/02/u... – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the befits from it, other than the exercise per se
As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/r...
Some favorite quotes from To The Heritage and other works
‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’
‚parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus’
“From Monty Python - The Meaning of Life...Well, it's nothing very special...Try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations.”
9 out of 10
I have just discovered this comedy series, airing on our local Comedy Central channel, which in America could well be offering the latest, 2023 season, which might arrive here some time later, albeit other shows are much quicker to get to us, such as The Gilded Age https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/20... only one day late here…
Kelsey Grammer is excellent as Doctor Frasier Crane, a psychiatrist that moves to Seattle, where he has a radio show, for which listeners call in for advice, which sometimes fails to produce the desired effects – in one episode, he gets acquainted with a ‘connected fellow’, who is something of a gangster, who helps Nelson
Nelson is the brother of the hero, who is also a psychiatrist and wants the mobster to help with a traffic penalty problem, but we know from The Godfather http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/08/t... how favors work with the mafia, those people ‘make offers you can’t refuse’
Doctor Crane talks to the lover of the gangster on his show, who says that they do not have sex, the man leaves very often, after a phone call, because he has to ‘work’, and the host ends up telling the caller to leave, run as fast as she can, later they meet, and it looks as if there will be an intimacy, but that would be unethical…
In another segment, we get to see the former Mrs. Crane, who has found a letter form Frasier, stating that he wants to be back together, and when she assumes it is a recent message, she comes visiting, to the chagrin of the father, the former police officer, Daphne, the physiotherapist, and maybe even Eddie
Eddie is the splendid, brilliant, fabulously trained (I mean the dog, or dogs they have used for the production) and so amusing, however much the main character complains about the hair, the habits – at one point, the dog has licked a doughnut, and when Nelson comes and their father is urging a restoration of good relations, Frasier is offering the licked sweet to his brother – he stares at characters in an absolutely delightful way
With Daphne I have a problem, for she detracts from the pleasure I have in watching this, the actress has decided, or has been told by the director to push her ‘Englishness’ to the point where it is irritating for yours truly, with an off-putting accent, manner of talking and over the top approach, but I could be, probably I am wrong
Roz aka Peri Gilpin, is the producer of the radio talk show, and she brings more value to the comedy, she is the one that handles the doctor in many circumstances, teaching him what to do, when he is new in the business, then asking for some advice for her rather shambolic love life, which is not very rewarding
When she goes out with an attractive news anchor (would that be the word they use at radio, they do it for television, so why not) he is in fact pretending to ask for a date, when in reality, he is one of those fundamentalists that use any chance to proselytize – and they vote for…the most diabolical, vicious, sinful, reprehensive, dangerous, loathsome man and the list could go on for several pages, or to infinity and beyond
The Economist has just made available The World in 2024 supplement and what is the most dangerous ghost we could see next year, well, the answer was given and it is the election of the foul, ghastly Trump, the one that has tried to destroy democracy, with his attack on Congress – it was his own supporters that carried that out, and we must stop here, before I lose it and write only about this…
Doctor Frasier Crane is amusing in his idiosyncrasies, he can be annoying, but there is also an exquisite charm, a good feeling when the actor appears on the screen – the opposite for this cinephile happens when Ashton Kutcher is on, I have an allergy there – even when he is asking for the impossible
Take his orders for coffee, which has to be with special ingredients, he keeps retuning it, until the waitress says ‘ a team of specialists is working on it’, the good doctor does have a pretentious style, precious, and preposterous, but that is to allow the audience to laugh, we could not do that, for the perfect protagonist
He reminds me of Basil Fawlty aka glorious John Cleese in Fawlty Towers http://realini.blogspot.com/2017/11/w... the best comedy series that I know of (allegedly, the creator is thinking of a new season) where Basil Fawlty is the co-owner of a hotel.
Mr. Fawlty aspires to have the most distinguished, elite clientele, which in his perception would be the aristocrats, he is such a snob in other words, but he will get punished for this flaw and we will laugh with tears…Doctor Crane has the same penchant for the sophisticated, the expensive wines, rare dishes
When he is ill, Daphne finds him almost impossible, because he asks for special treatment, various treats, permanent attention, a multitude of items, and he has nightmares, in which he is taken out of his spot, by his brother, conspiring with another host at the station, and for some crazy reason, it reminded me of Charlie’s pain in Two and a Half Men, when he dreams that during a surgical procedure, they have added breasts, and furthermore, he starts fondling them, because he is so crazy…
Now for a question, and invitation – maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/02/u... – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the befits from it, other than the exercise per se
As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/r...
Some favorite quotes from To The Heritage and other works
‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’
‚parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus’
“From Monty Python - The Meaning of Life...Well, it's nothing very special...Try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations.”
February 4, 2017
Frasier is the one and only sitcom that makes me laugh out loud. This book was fun to read to relive some of those episodes.
May 21, 2020
I watched on Cozi TV, but it is fun to read some of the stuff because a lot of the jokes are said so fast that I miss them.
June 22, 2009
Ahh...nearly four hundred pages of well written television comedy. Very smart, very sharp stuff. In particular, the writer Joe Keenan seems pretty impressive in my book with his highly theatrical sense of farce that is better than most farce plays I've read.
April 25, 2012
An entertaining way to study script writing for a successful, sophisticated sitcom.
February 25, 2013
Read a few of the episodes, it's really solid storytelling and structure
April 27, 2025
✒️ Taking God’s name in vain ad infinitum in every episode earns a one star. Too bad, because if not for that it would be a decent show.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews