Ted Danson

**Edward Bridge Danson III** (born December 29, 1947) is an American actor. He achieved stardom playing the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom *Cheers*, for which he received two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. He was nominated for more Emmy Awards for roles in the legal drama *Damages* (2007–2010) and the NBC dramedy *The Good Place* (2016–2020). He was awarded a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

Danson made his film debut in 1978 in the crime drama *The Onion Field*. His breakout role was as Jack Holden in the films *Three Men and a Baby* (1987) and *Three Men and a Little Lady* (1990). His other film roles include *Body Heat* (1981), *Dad* (1989), and *Saving Private Ryan* (1998).

Danson's other leading roles on television include the CBS sitcom *Becker*, CBS drama *CSI: Crime Scene Investigation* (2011–2015), and *CSI: Cyber* (2015–2016). In 2015, he starred in the second season of FX's anthology series *Fargo*. He has had comedic roles in the HBO project *Bored to Death* (2009–2011) and *Curb Your Enthusiasm* on HBO (2000–present), and the NBC sitcom *Mr. Mayor* (2021–2022).

Danson is also known for his longtime activism in ocean conservation. In March 2011, he published his first book, *Oceana: Our Endangered Oceans and What We Can Do to Save Them* which was written with journalist Michael D'Orso. He has been married to actress Mary Steenburgen since 1995.

## Early life and education

Danson was born in San Diego to Edward "Ned" Bridge Danson, Jr., (1916–2000), an archaeologist and director of the Museum of Northern Arizona from 1959 to 1975, and Jessica Harriet, née MacMaster (1916–2006). He has an older sister, Jessica Ann ("Jan") Haury. Ted Danson was raised in Flagstaff, Arizona. His ancestry is mostly English; his family is also part Scottish. Their ancestors lived in colonial New England and are descended from Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson, John Webster, and Roger Ludlow.

In 1961, Danson enrolled in the Kent School, a university-preparatory school in Connecticut; he was a star player on the basketball team. He became interested in drama while attending Stanford University; in search of a better acting program he transferred to Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He received a bachelor of fine arts in drama in 1972.

## Career

### Television

#### Early career

Danson began his television career as a contract player on the daytime soap opera *Somerset*. He played the role of Tom Conway from 1975 to 1976. In 1977, he played Dr. Mitchell Pierson on the daytime soap opera *The Doctors*, having also appeared earlier in 1975 as another character, Dr. Chuck Weldon. He was also in a number of commercials, most notably as the "Aramis man".

His guest appearances on television in the late 1970s and early 1980s include being on *Laverne & Shirley*, *B. J. and the Bear*, *Family*, *Benson*, *Taxi*, *Magnum, P.I.*, *The Amazing Spider-Man*, *Tucker's Witch*, and *Mrs. Columbo*.

#### Career breakthrough: *Cheers*

In 1982, Danson was cast as a former local legend baseball player and bartender Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom *Cheers*. On the show he has an on-and-off relationship with the college-educated, sophisticated Diane Chambers. Although the show finished last in the ratings in the first season, it was well received by critics. Ratings gradually improved in 1983, and by 1986 *Cheers* was one of the top-10 shows on TV. The show ran for 11 seasons and its finale (May 20, 1993) was watched by 80 million people, becoming the second-most watched finale in television history at that time. It won four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series and a Golden Globe for Best Series–Musical or Comedy. The show ran from 1982 to 1993; Danson received 11 consecutive Emmy nominations and 9 Golden Globe nominations winning two Emmys and two Golden Globes. In 2002, *TV Guide* named *Cheers* the 18th Greatest Show of All Time. It was included in *Time*'s 100 Greatest Shows of All Time.

Danson also appeared as Sam Malone in guest-starring roles on other sitcoms, such as *Cheers* spin-off *Frasier*, *The Jim Henson Hour*, and *The Simpsons*.

#### Later career

Although he was best known for his work in comedy, he also appeared in a drama, *Something About Amelia*, about a family devastated by the repercussions of incest, which co-starred his later co-star on *Damages*, Glenn Close. He won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie and was nominated for an Emmy Award. In 1996, three years after *Cheers* concluded, Danson starred in the short-lived CBS sitcom *Ink* with his real-life wife Mary Steenburgen. In the same year, they starred as Lemuel Gulliver and his wife in an acclaimed television miniseries of *Gulliver's Travels*.

Danson went on to star in the successful CBS sitcom *Becker* (produced by Paramount Television which also produced *Cheers*), which ran from 1998 to 2004. Danson also plays a fictionalized version of himself on *Curb Your Enthusiasm*. He reprised the role of Sam Malone in a second-season episode of *Frasier* and did the voice over for his character in *The Simpsons* episode "Fear of Flying".

In 1999, Danson was presented with a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

Danson returned to series television in the fall of 2006, playing a psychiatrist in the ABC sitcom *Help Me Help You*, which was cancelled at midseason due to low ratings.

In 2006, Danson received a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries for his role in *Knights of the South Bronx*.

In 2007, Danson starred in the FX Network drama *Damages* as a corrupt billionaire, Arthur Frobisher. The role earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, but he lost to co-star Željko Ivanek. During the second season Danson became a recurring character instead of one of the principal cast. He received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series but lost to Michael J. Fox for Fox's guest appearance in *Rescue Me*. In 2011, Danson appeared in the music video for "Make Some Noise" by the Beastie Boys. He is also mentioned in the song's lyrics.

Danson starred in the HBO sitcom *Bored to Death* as George Christopher, the laconic and sometime downright infantile editor of *Edition* magazine. Critics often praised Danson as being the highlight of the program, calling his character a "scene stealer".

In July 2011, CBS announced that Danson would star in its police drama *CSI: Crime Scene Investigation*. He played D.B. Russell, a new graveyard-shift supervisor who previously headed a crime lab in Seattle. Tony Shalhoub, Robin Williams, and John Lithgow were also considered for the role.

In March 2013, it was announced that Danson signed a deal to be on *CSI* for two more years. It was planned for the character he played to move to the third CSI spin-off, *CSI: Cyber* in the show's second season. *CSI:Cyber* was cancelled after two seasons.

In 2015, Danson appeared in the second season of the TV show *Fargo*. He portrays Sheriff Hank Larsson. From September 2016 to January 2020 Danson appeared opposite Kristen Bell as the character Michael in the NBC sitcom *The Good Place*. He has both been nominated for and won numerous awards for his performance as Michael.

In July 2019, Danson was cast as one of the main lead roles for the situation comedy *Mr. Mayor*, in which he plays a wealthy businessman who runs for mayor of Los Angeles for all the wrong reasons. NBC added the show to the 2020–2021 television season.

1. ↑ Petski, Denise (July 18, 2019). Ted Danson To Star In L.A. Mayor Comedy Series From Tina Fey & Robert Carlock At NBC.