Shelley Long was spotted out in Los Angeles the day after skipping the “Cheers” reunion at the 2024 Emmy Awards.
The 74-year-old actress, who starred as the intellectual graduate student-turned-waitress Diane Chambers on the hit sitcom, was seen walking her Chihuahua near her home in Pacific Palisades, California, last Tuesday.
The “Modern Family” alum strolled down the sidewalk alongside her dog.
Shelley Long was seen in Los Angeles after missing the “Cheers” reunion at the 2024 Emmys. (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)
Long was casually dressed in a turquoise turtleneck under a black peacoat with gray sweatpants and gray and white sneakers.
SHELLEY LONG SEEN OUT AND ABOUT AS ‘CHEERS’ CELEBRATES 40TH ANNIVERSARY
The Indiana native wore large black-framed eyeglasses and kept her hands in her pockets during her outing.
Long’s rare sighting comes after her absence from last Monday’s Emmys, which featured an onstage cast reunion of former “Cheers” co-stars Ted Danson, Kelsey Grammer, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger and George Wendt.
The actress was seen walking her dog on the day after the awards show. (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)
During the awards show, the cast appeared in a recreation of the “Cheers” bar set to present the Emmys for best directing for a comedy series and best writing in a comedy series, which were both won by the Hulu series “The Bear.”
“This feels really nice to be here in front of all of you,” Danson said.
Ratzenberger noted the gathering felt like a “long overdue class reunion,” while Grammer added, “Being together brings back memories of a show that we are all very proud of.”
Long starred as waitress Diane Chambers on the classic TV sitcom. (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)
Woody Harrelson, who played bartender Woody Boyd, was also notably missing from the reunion. In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Emmys Executive Producer Jesse Collins explained Harrelson’s absence.
“Woody Harrelson couldn’t make ‘Cheers’ because he’s in a play [‘Ulster American’ in London],” Collins said. “So, there were a few people where there were just logistical challenges. But we were lucky to get so many people who were willing to participate.”
The awards show also paid tribute to late “Cheers” actress Kirstie Alley, who died of cancer at the age of 71 in December 2022. Alley was honored during the In Memoriaum segment, which also included tributes to Norman Lear, Suzanne Somers, Barbara Walters and André Braugher, among others.
Long was casually dressed in a blue turtleneck, gray sweatpants and a black peacoat. (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)
Long starred on “Cheers” from 1982 to 1987 before leaving the show after its fifth season to spend more time with her family. During a 2007 appearance on the Australian show “Where Are They Now,” Long explained that she also believed that her storylines were becoming repetitive.
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“I didn’t want to keep doing the same episode over and over again and the same story,” she said. “It had been such a fresh and vital experience for me. I didn’t want it to become old and stale.”
In 1993, Long returned for the “Cheers” finale and earned an Emmy nomination for her final appearance. The actress received five Emmy nominations for her performance in “Cheers,” winning once in 1983. She also won Golden Globe Awards in 1982 and 1983.
Long also reprised her role a number of times in the Cheers” spin-off series “Frasier,” which starred Grammer. In 1996, she was nominated for an Emmy for outstanding guest actress in a comedy series after appearing in the “Frasier” episode “The Show Where Diane Comes Back.”
In “Cheers,” Long’s character Diane dated Grammer’s Frasier Crane for a year but jilted him at the altar.
During a recent appearance on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Grammer revealed he would like Long to return as Diane in the Paramount+ “Frasier” revival series.
Long’s “Cheers” co-star Kelsey Grammer recently said he would like her to appear on the “Frasier” revival series. (Gary Null/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
“I would like to see Diane come back,” Grammer said. “Just for one of those reasons, for Frasier to be able to put something to bed to end up with a nice thing between them.”
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Grammer explained that Frasier’s love for Diane was central to his portrayal of the psychiatrist. The actor played Frasier in “Cheers” from 1984 to 1993, in “Frasier” from 1993 to 2004 and in the 2023 revival.
“When I first got the role, the key to Frasier for me was that he loved her with his whole heart, that he loved with all of his being,” Grammer told Clarkson. “And that actually defined who he is.
Cast members who reunited for the awards show included Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, Kelsey Grammer, John Ratzenberger and George Wendt. (Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images)
“He’s been that way ever since. He just goes in wholeheartedly with everything — and that’s what makes him funny.”
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After “Cheers,” Long was featured on several other shows, including “8 Simple Rules,” “Yes Dear,” and “Switched at Birth.” She had a recurring role on “Modern Family” in which she played the ex-wife of Ed O’Neill’s character. Long last starred in the 2021 movie “The Cleaner.”
