Norm from "Cheers" at the tourist satellite branch of the famous Boston pub

SUBMITTED BY: Al Kaufman    LOCATION: Boston, Massachusetts

Ted Danson and Shelly Long could probably walk the streets of Boston unrecognized these days, but the city’s tourist district is still milking the dividends from “Cheers.”

I mean, hey, who wouldn’t want to share a beer with a cardboard cutout of George Wendt?

“I always wanted to have a beer with Norm,” explains Al. “His weight and pathetic life would have been good for my self-esteem. This is the closest I’m ever going to get.”

Lurking in the background, and occupying more high profile real estate in the bar, is tarnished Red Sox slugger David Ortiz.

Norm has a slightly bigger belly, but at least his substance abuse problem is all natural — and legal!

(Al Kaufman is a freelance music writer who has never been rejected by The New Yorker magazine.)