Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz

Last updated
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz"
Frasier episode
Episode no.Season 6
Episode 10
Directed by Kelsey Grammer
Written by Jay Kogen
Production code131
Original air dateDecember 17, 1998 (1998-12-17)
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
 Previous
"Roz, a Loan"
Next 
"Good Samaritan"
Frasier (season 6)
List of episodes

"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz" is the tenth episode of Frasier 's sixth season. It first aired on NBC in the United States on December 17, 1998. In the episode, Frasier, while shopping for Christmas gifts meets a stylish Jewish woman, Helen Moskowitz, who asks him to take her daughter Faye on a blind date. This leads to a deepening relationship between the two. Helen on Christmas Eve makes a stop by Frasier's apartment, unaware that he is not Jewish and so he and the family must pretend that they are to survive the visit.

Contents

The episode was directed by Kelsey Grammer and was written by Jay Kogen. Amy Brenneman and Carole Shelley guest star in the episode as Faye and Helen respectively. Since airing, the episode has received many positive reviews from television critics and fans.

Plot

Christmas is approaching, and while out shopping with Roz and looking for a Menorah for his son, Frasier makes a covert attempt to purchase a sweater for Roz. Just before she realises, another woman steps in and rescues Frasier by pretending that she is buying it. She recognises him from the radio, and when he offers his thanks and asks if he can return the kindness, she suggests a date with her daughter, Faye. Frasier accepts, and is pleasantly surprised when he meets her, although she is embarrassed at being fixed up by her mother. Things go well for a while between them, and Faye visits Frasier's apartment with Helen one day on their way to catch a plane to Florida. It is at this point that Frasier discovers that Faye was under the impression that he was Jewish, and although this is not a problem for her, she is worried what her mother will think. He agrees to hide the Christmas decorations and play along, also getting Niles and Martin on side. The deception proves tricky to sustain, as Eddie appears dressed in a Santa Claus costume, someone calls round trying to deliver a Christmas tree, and Daphne is busy organising a holiday revue downstairs (from which Niles appears dressed as Jesus Christ).

Reception

In its original broadcast, "Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz" finished second in ratings for the week of December 14, 1998, with a Nielsen rating of 16.9, translating to approximately 16.9 million viewers. It was the second highest rated show on NBC that week, behind ER . [1] The ratings for "Merry Christmas, Mrs. Moskowitz" went up 1.2 from the previous week's episode, "Roz, a Loan". [2] In the following year, the episode earned writer Jay Kogen a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series at the 51st Primetime Emmy Awards, in addition to a Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Episodic Comedy. [3] [4] It also earned Kelsey Grammer a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series nomination. [5] The episode was in the season which earned David Hyde Pierce his third Primetime Emmy Award for his portrayal of Niles Crane.

Related Research Articles

<i>Frasier</i> American television sitcom (1993–2004)

Frasier is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It aired from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee, in association with Grammnet (2004) and Paramount Network Television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelsey Grammer</span> American actor (born 1955)

Allen Kelsey Grammer is an American actor. He gained fame for his role as psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the NBC sitcom Cheers (1984–1993) and its spin-off Frasier. At 20 years on-air, this is one of the longest-running roles played by a single live-action actor in television history. He has received numerous accolades including a total of six Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Tony Award. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frasier Crane</span> Fictional character in the television series Frasier and Cheers

Dr. Frasier Winslow Crane is a fictional character who is both a supporting character on the American television sitcom Cheers and the titular protagonist of its spin-off Frasier and the latter’s 2023 sequel. In all three series, he is portrayed by Kelsey Grammer. The character debuted in the Cheers third-season premiere, "Rebound " (1984), as Diane Chambers's love interest, part of the Sam and Diane story arc. Intended to appear for only a few episodes, Grammer's performance in the role was praised by producers, prompting them to expand his role and increase his prominence. Later in Cheers, Frasier marries Lilith Sternin and has a son, Frederick. After Cheers ended, the character moved to a spin-off series, Frasier, the span of his overall television appearances totaling 20 years. In the spin-off, Frasier moves back to his birthplace, Seattle, after his divorce from Lilith, who retained custody of Frederick in Boston, and is reunited with a newly created family: his estranged father, Martin, and brother, Niles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Hyde Pierce</span> American actor (born 1959)

David Hyde Pierce is an American actor. For his portrayal of psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier from 1993 to 2004, he received four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series as well as two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He also received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Lieutenant Frank Cioffi in the Broadway musical Curtains (2007).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peri Gilpin</span> American actress

Peri Gilpin is an American actress who portrayed Roz Doyle in the NBC sitcom Frasier and Kim Keeler in the ABC Family drama series Make It or Break It.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Leeves</span> English actress

Jane Elizabeth Leeves is an English actress, best known for her role as Daphne Moon on the NBC sitcom Frasier (1993–2004), for which she was nominated for an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award. She also played Joy Scroggs on TV Land's sitcom Hot in Cleveland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Brenneman</span> American actress (born 1964)

Amy Frederica Brenneman is an American actress and producer. She worked extensively in television, coming to prominence as Detective Janice Licalsi in the ABC police drama series NYPD Blue (1993–1994). Brenneman next co-created and starred as Judge Amy Gray in the CBS drama series Judging Amy (1999–2005). She received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations for these roles.

The Good Son (<i>Frasier</i>) Pilot episode of Frasier

"The Good Son" is the pilot episode of the television sitcom Frasier. It premiered on September 16, 1993, on NBC. It introduces the primary characters and settings, and distances itself from its parent series Cheers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathryn Joosten</span> American actress (1939–2012)

Kathryn Joosten was an American actress. Her best known roles include Dolores Landingham on NBC's The West Wing from 1999 to 2002 and Karen McCluskey on ABC's Desperate Housewives from 2005 to 2012, for which she won two Primetime Emmy Awards in 2005 and 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brother from Another Series</span> 16th episode of the 8th season of The Simpsons

"Brother from Another Series" is the sixteenth episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 23, 1997. Sideshow Bob is released from prison after his arrest in "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming" into the care of his brother Cecil and claims to be a changed man. However, Bart does not believe him and tries to find out what Bob is up to. It was the first episode directed by Pete Michels and was written by Ken Keeler. The episode guest stars Kelsey Grammer in his sixth appearance as Sideshow Bob and David Hyde Pierce in his first appearance as Cecil. The title is not only a pun on the movie The Brother from Another Planet, but for the fact that guest stars Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce also played bickering brothers Frasier Crane and Niles Crane, respectively, on the NBC sitcom Frasier.

"The Matchmaker" is the third episode of the second season of American sitcom Frasier. The episode aired on October 4, 1994 on NBC. It is noteworthy in being Joe Keenan's first episode produced on the show, after which he became a regular writer and eventually executive producer on the show. It won a GLAAD Media Award for its lighthearted satire of the various stereotypes surrounding gay men. It was also a breakthrough performance for Eric Lutes, leading to his casting as a regular on Caroline in the City.

Jay Kogen is an American comedy writer, producer, actor and director.

Christopher Lloyd is an American television producer and screenwriter. Lloyd is the co-creator and executive producer of the ABC mockumentary family sitcom Modern Family, which he co-created and produced with Steven Levitan. Lloyd has had an extensive career on many series, primarily Frasier.

<i>Frasier</i> (season 1) Season of television series

The first season of Frasier originally aired from September 16, 1993, to May 19, 1994, on NBC, consisting of a total of 24 episodes. This premiere season was mostly directed by James Burrows, alongside Andy Ackerman. The other 2 directors were co-creator David Lee and Rick Beren.

<i>Frasier</i> (season 7) Season of television series

The seventh season of Frasier originally aired from September 23, 1999, to May 18, 2000, on NBC.

The 52nd Writers Guild of America Awards, given in 2000, honored the film and television best writers of 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pamela Fryman</span> American television producer and director (born 1959)

Pamela Gail Fryman is an American sitcom director and producer. She directed all but twelve episodes of the television series How I Met Your Mother.

"Woody Interruptus" is the twelfth episode of Cheers's ninth season. It first aired on NBC in the United States on December 13, 1990. In the episode, Kelly returns from France with a male friend who says he's going to steal her from Woody. Woody deals with this by deciding to sleep with Kelly. This episode earned its director James Burrows accolades for Best Directing in 1991 and gained high viewership at its first airing.

References

  1. "WEEK'S TV RATINGS". San Francisco Chronicle . 24 December 1998. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  2. "WEEK'S TV RATINGS". San Francisco Chronicle. 16 December 1998. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  3. Ryon, Ruth (17 October 1999). "Now She's Mad About Montecito". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  4. "The Writers Guild Foundation Library Catalog". Writers Guild of America. Archived from the original on 2012-02-26. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
  5. "Winner and Nominee Search". Directors Guild of America . Retrieved 2012-03-23.