Ted Danson – how 'Cheers' almost wasn’t and falling in love again with his wife on ‘A Man on the Inside’

Summary

Dinner’s on Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson

Episode: Ted Danson – how 'Cheers' almost wasn’t and falling in love again with his wife on ‘A Man on the Inside’
Released: February 9, 2026

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Episode Overview

Jesse Tyler Ferguson sits down with legendary actor Ted Danson for a warm, witty conversation over breakfast at LA’s buzzy Max and Helen’s Diner. They dig into Ted’s humble beginnings, the precarious early days of Cheers, challenges of reinvention post-career-defining roles, and the joy and vulnerability of aging with purpose. The episode is full of endearing stories, honest reflection, and playful banter, focusing on their mutual experiences as actors and the power of meaningful connections on and off screen.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Overlap of Their Careers – Coincidence and Connection

• Shared Television DNA: Jesse reflects on how many of his career highlights overlap with Ted’s legacy, from working with James Burrows (Cheers director and Modern Family’s pilot director) to interactions with Shelley Long and casting director Jeff Greenberg.
  • Quote (Jesse, 06:08): “An eleven-year run of a show that I also had with Modern Family. It’s been interesting how much overlap there is.”
• Chance Encounters: The episode was sparked after they ran into each other in the bathroom line at Max and Helen’s—proof that LA’s “small world” still brings Hollywood greats together.
• Community in Comedy: Both express gratitude for being part of the “tribe” that gets to “chase the giggle in life.” (Ted, 06:24)

2. The Precarious Launch of Cheers

• Not an Instant Hit: Cheers’ now-iconic legacy almost never happened; it debuted as one of TV’s lowest-rated shows.
  • Quote (Ted, 10:59): “Critics loved us...But we were dead last. One week, we were like 75th out of 70.”
  • Quote (Ted, 11:25): “They later said, ‘Oh, no, no, we weren’t brilliant programmers. We had nothing to replace Cheers with, or we would have.’”
• Staying Positive in the Unknown: Ted recalls choosing optimism despite seeing “40 actors coming up the stairs” to audition (09:01).

3. The Pivotal Shelley Long Exit & Show Evolution

• Losing a “Dance Partner”: Ted explains how losing Shelley Long was a creative and emotional crossroads.
  • Quote (Ted, 13:03): “There was definitely one (thought) that was, ‘Oh, I just lost my dance partner.’ She was the magic of Cheers.”
• Seamless Transitions: Kirstie Alley’s arrival re-energized the show, as did Woody Harrelson’s replacing Coach—thanks to strong writing and their talent.
  • Quote (Ted, 14:51): “One of the great things about being successful when you’re in a show...is they tend to leave you alone.”
• Character-driven Comedy: Both agree that the success came from great character work over punchline-driven scripts.
  • Quote (Ted, 15:00): “Both our shows have something...You weren’t doing jokes. Nor were we. It was all character.”

4. Reinvention After Iconic Roles

• The Shadow of Sam Malone: Ted admits post-Cheers roles were often compared to Sam, making reinvention both necessary and difficult.
  • Quote (Ted, 21:53): “There are some hit and misses, because I think people wanted me to be Sam. But I was aging, and it no longer was funny.”
• Writing is Everything: Good writing enabled his successful transitions, notably with series like Becker.
• Jesse’s Parallel: Jesse shares his own struggles escaping the straightjacket of Mitch from Modern Family and having to “swing big” to show his range.

5. Humble Beginnings, Outsider Status, and New Mexico Roots

• From the Four Corners: Both grew up in the Southwest—Jesse in Albuquerque, Ted in Arizona/New Mexico—revealing a shared sense of “outsider” identity.
• Ted's Early Life: Raised by a museum director/archaeologist, Ted’s childhood was steeped in arts, crafts, and indigenous culture.
  • Quote (Ted, 24:09): “[Dad] was the director of a museum...to support, nurture the arts and crafts and culture of that Four Corners area.”
• No TV Childhood: Ted didn’t grow up with television and thus missed much of pop culture, which, ironically, became the world he inhabited as an actor.
  • Quote (Ted, 26:50): “(We) didn’t have a TV at home ...pop culture just went right over my head.”

6. Finding Acting by Accident

• A Fortunate Audition: Ted’s path to acting began when he followed a girl to a play’s audition at Stanford, fell in love with performing, and was encouraged to pursue it professionally at Carnegie Mellon.
  • Quote (Ted, 28:13): “To stay in the room, I had to do something, get on stage. I heard some people laugh...like a little teeny light bulb.”

7. On Vulnerability, Aging, and Purpose

• Celebrity as Social Armor: Ted confides how even at Cheers’ peak, he still felt on the outside.
  • Quote (Ted, 37:07): “It was as if I had to become famous, a celebrity, to have the right to walk in a door.”
• Changing Relationship to Social Interaction: He’s more comfortable now approaching people, but is naturally “a hit and run” at social events, always eager to return home to wife Mary Steenburgen.
• Purposeful Aging: Discussion on his new series A Man on the Inside and the importance of showing that life—and making a difference—doesn’t have a shelf life.
  • Quote (Ted, 40:27): “There’s no shelf life to my value in the world. I can keep going acting and making a difference in the world forever.”

8. Activism and Getting Arrested with Jane Fonda

• Intentional Friendship: Jane Fonda and Mary drive intentional, purposeful friendship and activism.
• The “Champagne of Arrests”: Ted humorously recounts joining Jane Fonda’s “Fire Drill Fridays” protests and being (gently) arrested for climate activism.
  • Quote (Ted, 46:20): “They’d come to you and say, ‘OK, this is the last time, Mr. Danson, that you will be warned...We will have to put handcuffs on you and arrest you.’ And I said, ‘Yes, please, I’m going to be arrested.’”
  • Quote (Ted, 47:14): “To say I was arrested is a little bit of a wank.”

9. Legacy, Ego, and What’s Next

• Career vs. ego: Even with awards and ongoing projects, Ted confesses to never feeling fully “arrived.”
  • Quote (Ted, 48:18): “I hate the word career...my ego is such that I go, 'No, I haven’t done it yet.’”
• Awards: Temporary Relief: Awards bring relaxation if won, but losing can trigger self-doubt.
  • Quote (Ted, 48:46): “If you win, the only good thing is you can relax. If you lose, you have to work your ass off being philosophical.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On the start of Cheers:

• Ted Danson (10:59): “We were dead last. One week in the ratings, Jimmy [Burrows] likes to say we were 75th out of 70. There were only 70 shows.”
  On Shelley Long leaving:
• Ted Danson (13:03): “There was definitely one [thought] that was, ‘Oh, I just lost my dance partner.’ She was the magic of Cheers.” On role reinvention:
• Ted Danson (21:53): “People wanted me to be Sam. But I was aging, and it no longer was funny.” On accidental activism:
• Ted Danson (46:20): “They’d come to you and say, ‘OK, this is the last time, Mr. Danson, we will have to put handcuffs on you and arrest you.’ And I said, ‘Yes, please, I’m going to be arrested.’” On awards and ego:
• Ted Danson (48:46): “If you win, the only good thing is you can relax. If you lose, you have to work your ass off being philosophical.”

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00–03:35 | Opening & diner setup
• 06:01 | Discussion of Shelley Long’s guest turns on Modern Family & role overlap
• 10:59 | Cheers’ rocky ratings debut
• 12:00–15:00 | Transition after Shelley Long left; Kirstie Alley’s arrival
• 21:13–22:45 | Jesse and Ted on escaping typecasting and reinvention
• 23:13–26:49 | Both growing up in Four Corners region; outsider feelings
• 26:49–28:13 | Ted’s no-TV childhood; accidental discovery of acting
• 37:07–38:19 | Ted’s vulnerability, discomfort with fame, and craving connection
• 40:14–43:09 | Discussion of A Man on the Inside, purposeful living, and aging
• 43:09–47:14 | Friendship, intentional activism, and getting arrested with Jane Fonda
• 48:00–49:13 | Thoughts on “career,” ego, and the elusive feeling of success
• 49:35 | Closing mutual admiration

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Tone & Style

The conversation is friendly, candid, and often self-deprecating, marked by Ted Danson’s gentle humility and Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s honest, enthusiastic curiosity. Humor, warmth, and heartfelt moments abound, balancing reflection on legacy with a zest for growth—and always, another bite of diner food.

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For listeners who value inside-Hollywood stories, comic vulnerability, and the wisdom of lasting showbiz figures, this episode is a generous meal with two of television’s most beloved actors.

Transcript

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

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Today on the show. You know him from the Good place. A man on the inside and my personal favorite. It will always be one of my favorites, the legendary sitcom Cheers. It is TV icon Ted Danson.

[Ted Danson]

They'd come to you and they'd say, okay, this is the last time, Mr. Danson, that you will be warned and if you don't leave now, we will have to put handcuffs on you and arrest.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

This is dinner's on me and I'm your host, Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

So I am on the busy and bustling street of Larchmont here in Los Angeles and I'm heading toward Max and Helen's Diner. If you are an Angelino and a foodie in any way, shape or form, you certainly know about Max and Helen's because people are going bonkers for this diner with good reason. I mean, the food is absolutely incredible. It's waffles, unbelievable. Nancy's omelette, incredible. The tuna mouth, to die for. And it all has that special touch from its founders, Nancy Silverton and Phil Rosenthal. Nancy, of course, is an award winning chef and baker here in Los Angeles, the founder of Moza, and Phil Rosenthal, the creator of Everybody Loves Raymond and the star of his own show. Somebody feed Phil. I saw Ted Danson here a few weeks ago. We were both waiting for the bathroom here at Max and Helen's and we said there in the bathroom line, you should do my podcast and we should do it here. So listen, you put things out into the world and sometimes these dreams come true. And I am very excited to have a conversation at Max and Helens with my idol, Ted Danson.

[Ted Danson]

Hey, this is really cool to be talking to you because I do admire you greatly as an actor. This is neat.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

It's really cool for me. I love how much overlap we have in our careers actually, and I'm excited.

To talk about that.

But I do need to tell you, you're quite an idol of Mine. I mean, I have looked up to you for a very long time. I mean, I watched you on Cheers.

[Ted Danson]

How old are you?

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I'm 50.

So I was, you know, it was.

Right around when I was watching television regularly. And it's one of those shows that's very seminal for me. And, like, I remember very specifically the last shot at the last episode and how I felt when that series ended. And I love how much overlap there is with kind of the important moments of your life and the important moments of my life. I mean, James Burroughs gave me my first big opportunity. It wasn't Modern Family, but, you know, he puts you in Cheers, and he directed almost every episode of Cheers. And the first sitcom I did was a show called the Class that he directed. And then watching you with Shelley Long and that incredible relationship that you created. And she late, many years, played my mother in Modern Family.

[Ted Danson]

That's right.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

She only did a handful of episodes, but she did about five episodes.

[Ted Danson]

And she.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And we had a very special relationship.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And you know, your relationship with Jeff Greenberg, who cast Cheers and who also cast Modern Family, there's a lot of, like, overlap and, you know, an 11 year run of a show that I also had with Modern Family. But, yeah, it's been interesting how much overlap there is. And so to get to sit down.

[Ted Danson]

With you and we both get to chase the giggle in life, I love being part of that tribe of people in and around. Funny.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

It's so funny because the last time I saw you was in the bathroom line here at Max and Helen's.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, right, right.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Just a few weeks ago.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, it was Sirius xm.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

And I wasn't even invited to that party. I was just needing to use the restroom.

You didn't know this?

I wasn't. I wasn't even supposed to be there.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, that's. I was walking.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I was walking. Did you see what I was wearing? I was wearing, like, sweatpants. I was walking on the streets, like, I'll just pop it to Max and Hounds. And there was, like, paparazzi outside.

Wow.

This place has really gotten very, very hot since I last came. And. And they were having a party that you were a guest of.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And went to the bathroom. And I saw you on the bathroom line.

Yeah.

And we said.

You said, I think I'm doing your podcast.

We should do it here.

[Ted Danson]

Yes.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And here we are.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

That's great. Are you hungry? I am, literally, actually, I'm starving hungry. Oh, gosh. They're potatoes. Your potatoes are amazing.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Hello.

[Abby (Server)]

Aren't they incredible, the home fries?

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

How are you?

[Abby (Server)]

How are we doing today?

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Good.

How are you?

[Abby (Server)]

I'm doing okay, thank you. I'm Abby. I'll be your server.

[Ted Danson]

Thanks, Abby.

[Abby (Server)]

Can I send in any orders for you?

[Ted Danson]

Yes, for sure. Is the French omelette? Is that a Nancy's omelette or whatever?

[Abby (Server)]

The Nancy's omelette.

[Ted Danson]

What is in there? It's just.

[Abby (Server)]

That's farmer's cheese in there, and it is so delicious. It's farmer's cheese and herbs.

[Ted Danson]

Can you just do omelette? Forget about the herbs and the cheese? Sure. I know it won't be as good.

[Abby (Server)]

Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

But I like that. And you have. And the potatoes. Yeah, perfect.

[Abby (Server)]

The home fries.

[Ted Danson]

Yes.

[Abby (Server)]

And those come with sour cream on tops. Is that okay with you?

[Ted Danson]

No. Okay.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

What do you want to drink?

[Ted Danson]

Are you.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Oh, do you need a coffee or something?

[Ted Danson]

Coffee? Yeah. Well, caffeinated? No, thank you.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Okay.

I'm gonna have a coffee as well. I will have some cream, and I'm also gonna get a lemonade. And I'm desperate to have the tuna melt.

[Abby (Server)]

Okay. Very good choice. My favorite thing on the menu. And can I get you some tallow fries with that?

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, perfect. Okay.

[Abby (Server)]

Anything else, guys?

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I think that's good for now.

[Abby (Server)]

I'll take these out of your way.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Thank you so much.

[Ted Danson]

Thank you.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Where was your life when Sher's Hat came along?

[Ted Danson]

I was in North Hollywood. Just had our first daughter, previous marriage. I'm now married to Mary Steenburgen, who, you know.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Iconically.

[Ted Danson]

Iconically, yes. And so I did Laverne and Shirley, and I think some people remembered me. Jimmy Burroughs had auditioned me for True West. And then I was called in at the last minute to replace or something on Taxi, which was Paramount, which is where Les and Glenn, Charles and Jimmy were putting just the beginning cast together, talking about casting, cheers. So all of that kind of came together. And I went and met Jimmy, Les, and Glenn during lunch, and during that week, met with him two or three times. And they said, okay, don't take any job until you check with us first. And I went, so are you saying that this is mine? They went, no, no, no, no, no. Just check with us. And I went out. There was kind of a long office, had a back door this way and a front door this way. And I went out the back, and I looked down the hallway, and there was kind of like 40 actors coming up the stairs, you know, to audition. But it was one of those first times that I had Just gone. I'm going to stay positive. I didn't. I love these mugs.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I do, too. They're so fantastic. You probably sell these, right?

[Abby (Server)]

In theory, we do. We have been out for many weeks.

[Ted Danson]

Okay, so Max and Helen's. That's where we're eating.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Phil.

This is Phil's mother and father.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, Max and Helen. So to Max and Helen.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

To Max and Helen.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. Cheers. Cheers, Modern Family. In all fairness, I was like.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And I'll say, oh, you already did it. I see what happened. What I always find fascinating, and this is the case with a lot of shows that I think end up becoming monster hits, was that out of the gate? Cheers was not something that was considered.

A hit at all.

[Ted Danson]

Critics loved us. Everyone around us, Paramount, the writers, everybody was so positive. Don't pay attention, just keep doing it. Kind of feedback, which was lovely. But we were dead last. One week in the ratings. We were like. Jimmy likes to say we were 75th out of 70. There were only. There were only 70 shows.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You were 75th. Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

They later said, oh, no, no, we weren't brilliant programmers. We had nothing to replace Cheers with or we would have. Oh, my God.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Well, thank God.

[Ted Danson]

I know.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I mean, I feel like people forget because it was such a white hot hit by the end. And, you know, I almost wanted to ask Shelley Long about this when she was on Modern Family, but, you know, I mean, she left at the height of Cheers.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, she did five years and then.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Five years and then she left. And she had, I mean, quite a successful film career. But I always was so. I was just so surprised at that, you know, she chose to leave, you know, when the show was such a huge success. And I've always wanted to ask you because, I mean, that relationship was so iconic and, well, they want the relationship. I mean, this show really felt like it was built so much on the success of that, the chemistry that you all had, but really specifically you and Shelly, I mean. And, you know, I asked Jeff Greenberg, our. The casting director of Cheers, who also cast, ironically, Modern Family and won an Emmy for casting Modern Family. I said, give me some stories about that time. And he talks about how nervous everyone was about what to do when Shelley left and, you know, and then Christie Alley coming in, and, I mean, obviously it worked out brilliantly and Christie brought in a whole other energy to the show. But I'd love to hear, like, what you. What was going through your head, if you can remember.

[Ted Danson]

There were many kind of thoughts, but there was definitely one that was, oh, I just lost My dance partner. And was she. Because she was the magic of Cheers. The first couple of. First year, she put us on the mat. Her character is so well defined. All the characters well defined, but she was so. I don't think anyone had seen since, you know, Lucille Ball, that kind of character. So beautifully played. I think we all found our, you know, step after that, all the characters, but I was worried, like, uh, oh, this will be embarrassing. But then they hired Kirstie, and Kirstie walked in, kind of like the same way Woody Harrelson walked in, replacing the coach, Nick Collisano. The writing is so good, and they're such great actors that I don't think we even broke stride. Kirsty was she. She was funny. She was the woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Yeah. In every second.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

But not known for being funny. Like, she hadn't done a lot of comedy.

[Ted Danson]

She was hysterical.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

But, you know, sometimes people forget that these shows are not always. They're not in the hands of the people who create them. The network has so much say, and sometimes the people who run the network aren't necessarily thinking creatively and aren't willing to take risks. So if they don't see that someone has a history of being hilarious, they're gonna shy away from them. And I think there was a bit of a. It made a lot of people nervous to cast someone who didn't necessarily have a comedy track record.

[Ted Danson]

One of the great things about being successful when you're in a show, which you discovered, too, is they tend to leave you alone.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yes.

[Ted Danson]

And you can get their notes and be polite and sweet and keep doing what you know is right. And both our shows have something. Your show. Brilliant. You're brilliant. Everybody in it was spectacular. And you weren't doing. Nor were we. Jokes. Funny. Unbelievably funny. But they weren't like, it was all character. Yeah. Yeah. That, to me, is delicious. And that allows you to go off and keep working and doing other things, because you're not just a stereotype that people love that won't let you move on from that. We were all very lucky to have such good writing.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Now for a quick break, but don't go away. When we come back, Ted and I talk about our humble beginnings growing up in the Four Corners area. And Ted tells me about how a.

Date with a girl got him into.

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I guess. I mean, I'm a little closer to the end of Modern Family than you are to the end of Cheers, but I'm still feeling sometimes the pressure or.

[Ted Danson]

The.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Straight jacket of that character and, you know, constantly looking for ways to reinvent myself. And sometimes I have to do big swings to show people that I can do something different because I'm not necessarily being given those opportunities. Did you feel coming out of Cheers that there was. I mean, it doesn't seem like there was much of this for you, but like it seemed like you were able to kind of pick up and Move into other roles pretty fluidly. There.

[Ted Danson]

There are some hit and misses because I think people wanted me to be Sam. Like.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Or at least that energy or whatever. But I was aging, and it no longer was funny. You know, Good news. Or I could make the Nancy's omelet nunches.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yes.

[Abby (Server)]

Just for you. Tuna melt.

[Ted Danson]

Oh, my God. Did you hear that?

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

All right. That does look astoundingly good. This is comedic timing. When you ask a really good question and then you get a riot. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think it's up to you. It's up to you. And it's up to you finding great writing. Yeah. Because whenever I was allowed to do something else, it was because the writing was really good. Becker was really beautifully written and totally different.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

This is actually very good. I'm finally gonna. Finally get to try this. The thing about this place is I don't understand how they make all these sort of classics that you would get at any diner. They don't do anything fancy with this. But it's the best version of home fries or an omelette or, yes, a tuna melt that you could possibly get.

[Ted Danson]

It is, I don't know, Diner out of the 50s.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

Even the menu. Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I.

We also. Another overlap is that we both grew up in the Four Corners area.

[Ted Danson]

Yes.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You in Arizona.

[Ted Danson]

Albuquerque.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Me and Albuquerque.

[Ted Danson]

You had a tougher.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You had a tougher road, I would say.

[Ted Danson]

So New Mexico is. I mean. Yeah. New Mexico.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

New Mexico.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. New Mexico. Yeah. Is an unbelievably beautiful state.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Absolutely.

[Ted Danson]

You have the Pueblo tribe, tough little town.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Albuquerque is a tough little. Have you. You haven't shot there?

[Ted Danson]

No, Mary has. So I visited and I used to do something with the Hopi, Navajo, Zuni, Pueblo tribes called Futures for Children, and it was located in Albuquerque. So I was there a lot doing that. And, yeah, that was a big part of my life.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Your dad is an archaeologist and worked a lot with the indigenous tribes.

[Ted Danson]

Right. He was the director of a museum later in life, after being a professor. And one of the mandates, it was a natural history museum, was to support, nurture the arts and crafts and culture of that Four Corners area. And my friends growing up, my best friend was Raymond Coyne Popey. Father was an amazing. He worked at the museum, but he was an amazing silver artist jewelry. And I had a Navajo friend and a rancher friend. We lived outside of town. So I know you had a little bit different, but there was an outsider feeling for you. Yeah. More unfortunate than mine because you said, I heard this Morning. Listening to a podcast about you, about the bullying and feeling a little bit isolated.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah, I know it was rough.

[Ted Danson]

It was rough.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

But I always felt like an outsider. I wasn't. I had my little clan of three people, but I was never a townie. Then I went away to a prep school in Connecticut, which was like a different world. It gave me an amazing education. I had huge fondness for Kent's School for Boys, but woof. Very different. It was Catcher in the Rye versus some little kid running around the Hopi, you know, villager, watching Katrina dances. And just such an innocent. No pop culture, no tv, you know.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

How did you decide.

How did you decide you wanted to be an actor without that exposure to, like, Hollywood and television?

[Ted Danson]

And whenever I went to my cousins in Pasadena, which we did every Christmas and every summer for like a week or two here, Pasadena from Tucson and then later from Flagstaff, they had a tv. Oh, I would read TV Guide magazine, which y' all don't remember. It's a shame. Like a book. Yeah, I'd read it. I'd read everything listed in America. The Little Virgin. It was just thrilled me. And then we'd watch Cheyenne or Bonanza. My father would watch with us. And it was like, thrilling, but it was not in our house.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You didn't have a TV at home?

[Ted Danson]

No. And didn't have it at Kent School for Boys. We didn't have any of that. So pop culture just went. Went right over my head. I cannot tell you about lyrics. Beatles lyric.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Really?

[Ted Danson]

I know I've heard them all, but they don't land and stick in me. Pop culture just like, whoosh.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Some music as well.

[Ted Danson]

Like you weren't listening, sadly. I know I listened, but I couldn't. It didn't. I didn't study it or I let it wash over me. Enjoyed it. Can I do a little quick? Here's me at Stanford for two years, which is where I fell in love with acting. So I'll get back to that.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

This is me driving in my 1954 Buick convertible to the Monterey Pop Festival. Look at my watch go. This is taking away the too long. Turned my car around and didn't go. I missed the 60s. I missed everything. Yeah, Literally. And not because I was stoned or doing drugs, just because I was looking the other way. Thank God there's a description called acting. There's nothing else I could do. I fantasized my way through life and daydreamed my way through life.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And so you found. You found.

[Ted Danson]

I went to Stanford, played Basketball at Kent. It was my life saved. It was my passion. And no one could tell me what to do except the basketball coach. And I would just. If I got into trouble, they'd have him talk to me. Coach would. And you were good at Jim Wood. Good enough for this little 300 boy school. Any decent sized high school would have trampled us. But my friend and I, who was a really good athlete, Dwayne Retta, we both went to Stanford. Don't ask me how I got in. Went there and decided to go out for basketball. You know, he walked onto the court. I went and looked and was like, oh, just a different game, a different league. Lou Alcinder was a freshman at UCLA the year I was a freshman at Stanford. It was just so sad. Just my dream. And about a few months later, maybe the second year I was there, I found acting through the plays there. Yes, I silly. Following a girl that I wanted to ask out. She said, yes, I'll have coffee. And then first sip she went. Either because she didn't want to be with me or just it happened to be true. She remembered saying it all. Auditioned for a Bertolt Brecht play called Ma' Am East. Man. And I said, can I come with you? And she went, I guess. But to stay in the room, I had to do something. I had to get on stage and I made something up. I heard some people laugh and it was like little teeny light bulb got the smallest part, you know, second right rifle carrier from the left kind of part. But, man, I started taking an acting class. Drove my station wagon to the back of the theater. Just slept in the back of my station wagon, really, and didn't leave. And people said, you seem serious. You should go back east. Went to Carnegie Mellon. Great school. Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Now, let's take a quick break, but don't go anywhere. When we return, Ted tells me a story about how he got arrested with Jane Fonda. Okay, be right back.

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Global director of Vogue Runway and Vogue Business and host of the Run through podcast. Every Tuesday, join me for the latest fashion news like the shakeups of Balenciaga and Dior and what's trending in Paris and Milan. You'll also hear interviews with top designers from Marc Jacobs and Rick Owens to Daniel Roseberry, Sarah Burton and many more. On Thursdays, Chloe Maul, editor of Vogue.com and Choma Nadi, head of editorial content at British Vogue, take you behind the scenes at Vogue and share their thoughts on fashion through the lens of culture. You'll hear interviews with some of your favorite stars like Julianne Moore, Pharrell Williams and celebrity stylist La Roach. Join us to get your fashion and culture news twice a week. Listen to the Run through with Vogue every Tuesday and Thursday, wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

And we're back with more dinners on me.

[Ted Danson]

It's funny, I think acting gave me, I remember at Kent School going back to reunion, I guess, 20 years later, 25 years later, something, whenever it was I was the height of cheers. It was very rock and roll. I was a big deal. You know, everyone was talking and around me and da da da da da. For the first, it was a two day thing. For the first day, half day, I was just mobbed by my whatever classmates that wore off rightfully so very quickly when they realized I was the same, yeah, nincompoop. I always was. But I found myself a moment where I was walking behind a crowd of my friends and I was about 20ft behind, walking by myself and they were all paired up chatting, talking. And I had this realization that it was as if I had to become famous, a celebrity to have the right to walk in a door. I never felt I had the right to really, really just walk in the door. I was always terrified, whatever, new or insecure or less than or not worthy or something along those lines. And it was like, oh Lord, wow. To this day I don't know that I would call you or anybody else and say, hey Jesse, let's go have a beer and talk. I'm loving talking to you, Jesse, right now because it has a format that is familiar. It's a work format. We're both working, we're both the team, we're both playing. And I love that. But I wouldn't be the guy. Woody, my fellow co host, sometimes, you know, genuinely has swarms of people in the world, all over the world who Love him and he loves them and they hang out with he and Laura and they're always hanging out. I don't hang out. This is lovely. I say goodbye and I will get in the car and drive home to Mary as fast as I can.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I get it.

[Ted Danson]

Because that's where my. For many reasons, but that's what I love about doing podcasts. I get to hang with people. I might not at a party.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

I'd be embarrassed. I'd be saying, oh, hey, or what? Whatever.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Do you get embarrassed?

[Ted Danson]

Like, do you.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Are you nervous to say hi to people? Like, when we're at that event a few weeks ago?

[Ted Danson]

Less so. Less so. I'm. The fact that I have been around long enough, and I do have some degree of value in our community, and I'm 78. There's something that happens at a certain age. Yeah. If you're still working, it's like, he might break. So let's honor him. Right. He might trip.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

This could be it.

[Ted Danson]

So you get a lot of Mr. Dance, and you get a lot of that. You wonder whether it's earned or just, you know, whatever. So I do go out up to people, but I won't hang. It'll be a hit and run. Right, Right. So I love this. I love Jesse getting to know you a little bit.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I just had Mary Elizabeth on the podcast, actually. Her episode just dropped this week. So lovely.

So smart.

So smart. Had such wonderful things to say about you.

But how.

How are you. You feeling with this moment in your life with man on the Inside? And, like, what I love so much about the show, and I had a bit of a discussion with Kathy Bates about this, and she's, you know, on Matlock right now and her sort of relationship with that show and the themes of that show being, you know, an older person who people kind of forget about and don't take quite as seriously. And like, you know, a lot of times these old. Her character feels like she's disappeared because she's not taken seriously because of her age. And those themes are somewhat, I think, present in your show as well. I mean, like, you know, you're an undercover investigator. And, you know, I loved the first season, you know, in the nursing home. My mom was, in the last few years of her life was staying in a nursing home. So I was like, I had a very specific relationship with, like, the culture of what a nursing home is. And so I found it really fun to sort of watch that being, you know, played out on a television show. But it's a show about so many other things. It's really blossomed and really a lovely character study. And I just, I love the themes of this show and I.

[Ted Danson]

Me too.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

It's.

It feels very. It feels fresh in a way that I don't know if, like, if you told me the log line of the show, I would think that it would feel fresh.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah, I, Mike Schur.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

The creator.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. Mike Shore, I've worked with now for six years for A Good Place, which is about how to live a purposeful life, an ethical life, try to be a little better every day. And then this was about, you know, can you stop grieving the death of your wife and isolating and get out into the community and give your life purpose again? You know, it was about, it was a message to all of us, to younger people as well. You know, you are, as a, as a 78 year old, you know, Jane Fonda, she's my hero and my wife mary. But Jane's 85 and she is full steam ahead, making a huge difference in the world. So young girls can look at Jane Fonda and go, oh, there's no shelf life to my value in the world. I can keep going acting and making a difference in the world forever. That's an amazing message. So she's not just telling people her age. Keep going. Come on, let's go. Keep going. Which is of value. And I think our show did that. You know, I thought that was the message of our show. Come on. You know, yes, we are dying and all of that, but until then, keep living, keep making a difference, keep contributing. So that's kind of as much as I hate, because I love pretending that I'm 78, but I am 78. So it's getting a little close to the bone here. Yeah, but that is my job now. My podcast is a little bit about that. You know, it's about the other people. But what I care about, you know, is how's your heart? How are you doing? This is a tough time. How are you navigating all of this? How do you make a difference in the world? So I feel like my. The podcast has a purpose. Keep putting out hope, love, joy, happiness, silliness, funny, whatever, but keep putting that out. If I get to do another year of a man on the inside, it'll be that kind of purposefulness. Mary and I are now kind of recognized as a couple. You know, you never want to toot that horn too loud because you'll be, you know, in handcuffs coming out of something.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

But you were arrested With Jane Fonda. Yes.

Yes.

Okay, tell me about that. I do want to know what the situation was.

[Ted Danson]

I assume you're pretty sure she wanted Mary. She was only using me to get to Mary. She and Mary are great friends. Yeah, yeah. We had her over for dinner early on. They were making a film, the book club, a couple of book club films. But the first one, she came out the door at the end of the evening and turned to Mary and said, are we going to be friends? You know, And Mary, who knew her, but not really, really well, and we're all enthralled by Jane, said yes. Okay. We need to be intentional. We're of a certain age. We need to be intentional about this relationship. So they are. They're really great friends and they stay in communication and we show up when she beckons and all that. So she wanted Mary to go get a rest with her, but Mary was working, so I was the second choice. But that was very cool because she was doing fire drill Fridays. And it was about climate change, which.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Is also something you're very passionate about.

[Ted Danson]

Yes. I mean, it's just so not doom and gloom. But here we are dealing with all of these sad, very controversial, some of them very mean spirited, next door to wicked issues that are piled onto us daily. And it's so hard, you know, if you say in the middle of a. What's going on? And rightfully so, what's going on in Minneapolis? If you start talking about climate change, you know, it'll be a shame on you. This is real life. These are people for real. And it is all of those things. It's true. In the meantime, climate change is just doing that and that's science. So, yes, I do care about it. And there'll be so much more immigration, there'll be so many people there already are fleeing countries because you can't grow crops because the cloud. Climate change has changed so much. You know, there'd be so many things. So yeah, I care about it a lot. And Jane Fonda, she would educate the night before, she would have these informational podcasting, zooms, whatever, out into the world saying, this is how it's affecting women, this is how it's affecting social justice, how, you know, poor people, people get more impacted. This is how. So it was an educational moment. Then there'd be speeches out in on the steps of Washington somewhere. And then you would go gently, with permission or heads up, you would go break the law by. For us, we crossed an intersection and blocked an intersection and that was against the law. But it was all worked out with the place police. This was the champagne of arrest.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You knew that you were going to.

[Ted Danson]

Be getting arrested and they would come to you. It was, it was a show.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

So you put a die. Like, what do you, how do you, what, how does one prepare to get arrested? Well, they do tell you, I would do depends.

[Ted Danson]

Nice.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I would do. That's a, I just as long as I have a pair of depends, I think it'd be good.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. You don't drink a lot of liquids beforehand. You're right.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Before getting arrested. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ted Danson]

But it, but it was one of the things they'd come to you and they'd say, okay, this is the last time, Mr. Danson, that you will be warned and if you don't leave now, we will have to put handcuffs on you and arrest not, well, arrest you. Yeah. And I said, yes, please. I, I, I'm going to be arrested. And then they start bringing out the cuffs of the, the, what do you call them, the straps. But it was, it was also. Excuse me, but I have a really bad shoulder. Can you cuff me in the front? Oh, yes, Mr. Danson, you know, so to say that I was arrested is a little bit of a wank.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

But you do get taken away and you do with a bunch of people you don't really know and you don't get to move and do things that you may want to at a certain point. And you do have to wait to pee and you do have to. And they do slow walk you through the process. So we were there, you know, you can pay your fine and leave theoretically right away. Jane went to real jail, not that night. But you got to do these performative arrests. Yeah. I think twice. The third time they say, okay, now you're going to jail. You're going to spend the night in a real jail. Right. And she did. And just, she's astounding.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

She's remarkable.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

You have a career that I, I'm very, I admire so much. It's one that I, I hope to have even just a glimmer of.

But you are so far so good.

[Ted Danson]

Well, that'll do.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

I hate the word career, cuz my ego is such that I go, no, I haven't done it yet. I haven't really done it, you know, give me another.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Is there something that you.

[Ted Danson]

Baby boomer too, Right, right. Pass the baton. No, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

No.

Is there something that you feel like, okay, now if, that, if this happens, I will have made it. Is it like An Oscar nomination. Is it like, is there something that you feel like hasn't happened that awards.

Right.

Don't they. With your always.

[Ted Danson]

Yes. And no matter how enlightened you are humble, or it's the work or it's just an honor to be nominated, in that moment, you're just pummeled by your ego. Yeah. And if you win, the only good thing about winning is you can relax. It's relaxing to win. If you lose, you have to work your ass off being philosophical.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Ted Danson]

And checking your career and going, well, I do suck. Yeah. Of course I didn't win. You know, it's horrible.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Oh, my God.

[Ted Danson]

I've so loved this.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

I have. I'm thrilled that this worked out. I'm glad I ran into you in the bathroom.

[Ted Danson]

Me too.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

A few weeks ago. I'm glad we planned this. Yeah. Yeah. Thank you for doing this. I adore you.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. Back at you. You're such a lovely guy.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Thank you.

[Ted Danson]

Yeah. You really are.

[Jesse Tyler Ferguson]

Thank you.

This episode of Dinner's on Me was recorded at Max and Helen's in Larchmont Village, Los Angeles. Next week on Dinners on Me. You know her from Scrubs, Roseanne and Firefly Lane.

It's Sarah Chalk.

We'll get into her iconic run as Dr. Elliot Reid on Scrubs and hear all about the much anticipated Scrubs revival. Plus, we gotta ask her about sharing the role of Becky on Roseanne. Ooh, so bewitched of her.

And if you don't want to wait until next week to listen, you can download that episode right now by subscribing to Dinners On Me. Plus, as a subscriber, not only do you get access to new episodes one.

Week early, you'll also be able to.

Listen completely ad free. Just click try free at the top of the Dinners on Me show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial today. Dinners on Me is a production of Sony Music Entertainment and a kid named Beckett Productions. It's hosted by me, Jesse Tyler Ferguson. It's executive produced by me and Jonathan Hirsch. Our showrunner is Joanna Clay. Our associate producer is Alyssa Midcalf. Sam Baer engineered this episode. Hans Dale, she composed our theme music. Our head of production is Sammy Allison. Special thanks to Tameka Balance Kolasny and Justin Makita. That I'm Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Join me next week.

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