Shelley Long, 74, Looks Downcast in First Sighting Since Skipping 'Cheers' Reunion at 2024 Emmys
Actress Shelley Long was spotted looking downcast while breaking cover for the first time since skipping a surprise "Cheers" reunion at this year’s Emmy Awards.
Jan. 22 2024, Published 9:10 a.m. ET
Actress Shelley Long was spotted looking downcast while breaking cover for the first time since skipping a surprise Cheers reunion at this year’s Emmy Awards, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The rare sighting of Long, 74, came over the weekend.
The rare sighting of Long, 74, came over the weekend.
According to photos obtained by Daily Mail, the Cheers actress was spotted walking her dog outside her Pacific Palisades home.
Long appeared downcast and lost in thought as she walked her pooch around the Los Angeles neighborhood with her head down while dressed in a turquoise turtleneck sweater, black peacoat, and sweatpants.
She appeared almost unrecognizable from her time starring as Diane Chambers in the hit sitcom that ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, the rare sighting of Long outside her Los Angeles home over the weekend marked the first sighting of the reclusive actress since her former Cheers co-stars appeared for a surprise reunion at the 75th Emmy Awards on January 15.
Cheers alums Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, Kelsey Grammer, John Ratzenberger, and George Wendt all appeared at the Emmy Awards during a surprise segment.
Cheers alums Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, Kelsey Grammer, John Ratzenberger, and George Wendt all appeared at the Emmy Awards during a surprise segment that featured a recreation of the famous sitcom set.
While it is still unclear why Long was mysteriously absent from the surprise reunion, she was not the only Cheers alum to not make the Emmy Awards segment. Woody Harrelson, who appeared in 200 episodes of the hit NBC comedy, also did not appear for the surprise gathering.
Long left Cheers at the end of the show’s fifth season in 1986. She was replaced by Kirstie Alley, who sadly passed away from colon cancer in December 2022, during the sitcom’s sixth season in 1987.
The beloved actress went on to play several prominent roles in popular projects beyond the character of Diane Chambers in Cheers – including roles on hit shows and movies such as The Brady Bunch Movie, The Money Pit, Hello Again, Troop Beverly Hills, and Night Shift.
It is still unclear why Long was mysteriously absent from the surprise reunion.
Cheers was nominated for 117 Emmys and won a whopping 28 during its 11-season run, and Long herself was nominated for five of the prestigious awards.
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She went on to win the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1983, as well as two Golden Globes for the role in 1983 and 1985.
Long ultimately reprised her role as Diane Chambers for the final episode of Cheers in 1993, as well as for three episodes of the Cheers spinoff Frasier starring Kelsey Grammer.
"The Cheers writers were the finest in television,” Long said during an interview years after departing Cheers.
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"The Cheers writers were the finest in television,” Long said during an interview years after departing Cheers. “But I felt like I was repeating myself; it bothered me a little bit. And I was getting movie offers.”
"But most people tended to understand, because I had a two-year-old baby, and I wanted to spend more time with my family, which was the other reason I left the show,” she continued. “It was a good decision."
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