Cheers

So much for everybody knowing your name...

"I always wanted to have a long name that could be shortened to a cool nickname. Like Samantha. I could've been an awesome Sam," lamented Hannah at lunch on the heels of a discussion about namesake juniors, seniors, and thirds.

"I actually wanted to name you Samantha!" Russ confided.

Hannah's eyes widened at this news. "Really?"

Zero effort was made to conceal my eye-roll, and I'm sure I probably sighed dramatically, too, before I offered my two cents on the situation. "I bet I know why he wanted to name you that, and probably why your mom shot it down, too," I told her.

Why?" All three kids leaned forward eagerly to hear why Hannah was not Samantha.

"Because," I announced definitively, "your father used to have a HUGE crush on Sam Malone."

"Who's Sam Malone?"

"A character from a popular TV show from the eighties," I explained.

"Hmm... that doesn't... I'm not sure... I don't think that was her last name," Russ said, taking out his phone to look it up.

He was right. The lovely Alyssa Milano, who played Sam on Who's the Boss, had the last name of Micelli on the show.

"Then who's Sam Malone?" the kids asked.

We looked it up.

Do you remember?

The show was Cheers.
The actor was Ted Danson.

Whoops.

Malone

Micelli

Malone

Micelli