# Frasier Crane super rich?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 20, 2006, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235 "2006-10-20T15:46:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mouse\_Maven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@Mouse\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mouse_Maven)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/21 "2006-10-20T17:21:46Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] I seem to recall Frasier’s dad was a research scientist, too. [/QUOTE] Research scientist don’t get paid much. Unless they hit on a Big Thing and start/join a big private company. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/22 "2006-10-20T17:31:54Z")
That episode was just on the other night. Research scientist was what Frasier told Sam Malone about his dad. I think he also told him Marty was dead. As for that house that Archie Bunker lived in? It wasn’t all that big, it didn’t have any luxuries or anything that wasn’t standard middle class decor in those days, and they’d been living there forever. I always thought it was just about right for him. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Dumbest\_Guy\_in\_the\_Room](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@The\_Dumbest\_Guy\_in\_the\_Room](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Dumbest_Guy_in_the_Room)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/23 "2006-10-20T17:33:01Z")
[QUOTE=Walloon] Frasier’s dad was a retired police detective. [/QUOTE] I the episode of _Cheers_ where he mentioned hids Dad, he claimed that he was dead. He may have also claimed that he was a research scientist but I can’t remember. It was sorted out, iirc, in the episode where the Cranes go to Boston, with an aside that he was angry with his father that day. I then assume it would be difficult to bring up the subject later: “Hey Norm, you remember I told you my Dad was dead…” ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/24 "2006-10-20T17:35:15Z")
[QUOTE=Spectre of Pithecanthropus] At least, the Bundys’ home didn’t look particularly luxurious inside, but you’re right about TV families usually appearing to be richer than they would be IRL. I wonder if you’re from California, where, traditionally, small and average houses were almost always single-storey, outside of exceptional areas like San Francisco and the beachfront areas. Back East, it’s not at all unusual to see very small houses in older neighborhoods that have two storeys. [/QUOTE] Keep in mind that in the Midwest, outside of your bigger cities, homes are pretty darn cheap compared with most of the coasts. ```auto Estimate of home value of owner-occupied houses in 2000 in Decatur, IL: * Less than $10,000: 190 * $10,000 to $14,999: 427 * $15,000 to $19,999: 464 * $20,000 to $24,999: 612 * $25,000 to $29,999: 854 * $30,000 to $34,999: 1230 * $35,000 to $39,999: 1421 * $40,000 to $49,999: 2350 * $50,000 to $59,999: 1982 * $60,000 to $69,999: 2309 * $70,000 to $79,999: 2039 * $80,000 to $89,999: 1577 * $90,000 to $99,999: 1306 * $100,000 to $124,999: 1452 * $125,000 to $149,999: 947 * $150,000 to $174,999: 568 * $175,000 to $199,999: 288 * $200,000 to $249,999: 220 * $250,000 to $299,999: 110 * $300,000 to $399,999: 87 * $400,000 to $499,999: 50 * $500,000 to $749,999: 16 * $750,000 to $999,999: 11 * $1,000,000 or more: 8 ``` and ```auto Estimate of home value of owner-occupied houses in 2000 in Baldwin Park, CA: * Less than $10,000: 44 * $10,000 to $14,999: 52 * $15,000 to $19,999: 67 * $20,000 to $24,999: 16 * $25,000 to $29,999: 7 * $30,000 to $34,999: 18 * $35,000 to $39,999: 16 * $40,000 to $49,999: 34 * $50,000 to $59,999: 24 * $60,000 to $69,999: 17 * $70,000 to $79,999: 85 * $80,000 to $89,999: 163 * $90,000 to $99,999: 335 * $100,000 to $124,999: 1053 * $125,000 to $149,999: 3194 * $150,000 to $174,999: 2986 * $175,000 to $199,999: 711 * $200,000 to $249,999: 284 * $250,000 to $299,999: 121 * $300,000 to $399,999: 47 * $400,000 to $499,999: 0 * $500,000 to $749,999: 19 * $750,000 to $999,999: 10 * $1,000,000 or more: 15 ``` The populations are similar, Decatur’s median annual income is about $10k lower, and other than that, I know nothing about Baldwin Park, CA, it was just one of the first ones I saw with a similar population. Data from [city-data.com](http://city-data.com) ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/25 "2006-10-20T18:08:32Z")
Ha! MEGA-whooshes all around. The occupation of Frasier’s dad was a inconsistency introduced during _Cheers_ that was amusingly rectified years later. As I recall: _Cheers_ episode (the conversation turns to fathers) Frasier: [wistfully] I was never close to my dad. He was always concentrating on his experiments, always his experiments. Sam: Your dad was a scientist, huh? Frasier: [sarcastically] No, he was a white rat! Years-later _Frasier_ episode, guest-starring Ted (Sam Malone) Danson: Martin: Pleased to meet you, I’m Frasier’s dad. Sam: [looks at Frasier] You said he was dead. Frasier: [gets angry look from Martin] We had a phone conversation. You called me a stuffed shirt and hung up. I was upset! Martin: [to Sam] No, not dead, just a retired cop. Sam: [looks at Frasier again] You said he was a research scientist. Frasier: [gets a second angry look from Martin] You were dead! What did it matter?! ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/26 "2006-10-20T18:14:59Z")
In a book I once had about the show, they asked Kelsey Grammer that very question. He said that he didn’t understand how Frasier could live the way he does on a typical radio show host’s salary. His explanation was that Fraiser must have bought stock in Microsoft in the 1990’s. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/27 "2006-10-20T18:17:24Z")
I seem to recall also that the view from Frasier’s apartment is impossible; it would have to be located in the middle of Puget Sound to have that view. ---
**Author:** ![42fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/b487fb/32.png) [@42fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42fish)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/28 "2006-10-20T18:51:16Z")
[QUOTE=Nonsuch] I seem to recall also that the view from Frasier’s apartment is impossible; it would have to be located in the middle of Puget Sound to have that view. [/QUOTE] Maybe that’s how he can afford it: Lots of room, but you have to take a canoe from the lobby to the on-shore parking garage. ---
**Author:** ![Improvisor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/50afbb/32.png) [@Improvisor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improvisor)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/29 "2006-10-20T19:56:06Z")
[QUOTE=Nonsuch] I seem to recall also that the view from Frasier’s apartment is impossible; it would have to be located in the middle of Puget Sound to have that view. [/QUOTE] -slight hijack… According to a Puget Sound harbor cruise I was on (decide for yourself how authoritative that is…) the view out his apartment window is supposedly taken from part of the way up a radio tower at the top of Queen Anne Hill. Queen Anne Hill is the first large hill right north of downtown Seattle. But still technically impossible. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/30 "2006-10-20T20:36:38Z")
FWIW, an industrious psychiatrist can haul in $400,000 per year. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/31 "2006-10-20T20:40:08Z")
I always figured that Hester’s parents came from old money, but Martin insisted that the family live on his and Hester’s salaries. So Hester’s parents put everything into huge trust funds for Frasier and Niles. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/32 "2006-10-25T17:32:43Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] …Frasier and Niles’ mother was herself a practicing psychiatrist (played by Nancy Marchand in the character’s single non-flashback appearance) so there could easily be serious family money on her side. [/QUOTE] And played by the lovely Rita Wilson in a flashback, IIRC. [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001854/](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001854/) ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/33 "2006-10-25T18:24:03Z")
Utterly useless piece of trivia: the character of Frasier Crane was based upon a guy named Dolph, an old college buddy of NBC President Brandon Tartikoff’s (and my father’s) He was - and is - a balding, Yale-educated psychiatrist and part-time actor from Seattle. Great guy. As smart, erudite and complex as Fraiser, but not nearly as stuffy. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/34 "2006-10-25T18:30:30Z")
Frasier Crane - suuuuuuuupah genius. He owns a mansion and a yacht! ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/35 "2006-10-25T23:13:06Z")
Frasier’s show was not syndicated. In one episode with his agent, they are trying to put together a syndication package in small markets. ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2006, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/36 "2006-10-26T00:40:29Z")
TV shows tend to show an exaggerated lifestyle for the cast. Frasier could have invested wisely before he was a radio personality or be living way beyond his means. The fact that status was so important to him means he could easily be living under a mountain of debt. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2006, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235/37 "2006-10-26T03:21:13Z")
[QUOTE=Garfield226] Keep in mind that in the Midwest, outside of your bigger cities, homes are pretty darn cheap compared with most of the coasts. [/QUOTE] Great site you bring up there. Apparently, I live in a whole other world: ```auto * Less than $10,000: 0 * $10,000 to $14,999: 0 * $15,000 to $19,999: 8 * $20,000 to $24,999: 0 * $25,000 to $29,999: 7 * $30,000 to $34,999: 8 * $35,000 to $39,999: 10 * $40,000 to $49,999: 0 * $50,000 to $59,999: 0 * $60,000 to $69,999: 0 * $70,000 to $79,999: 5 * $80,000 to $89,999: 13 * $90,000 to $99,999: 9 * $100,000 to $124,999: 56 * $125,000 to $149,999: 63 * $150,000 to $174,999: 99 * $175,000 to $199,999: 182 * $200,000 to $249,999: 547 * $250,000 to $299,999: 536 * $300,000 to $399,999: 694 * $400,000 to $499,999: 551 * $500,000 to $749,999: 782 * $750,000 to $999,999: 367 * $1,000,000 or more: 516 ``` [http://www.city-data.com/housing/houses-Cambridge-Massachusetts.html](http://www.city-data.com/housing/houses-Cambridge-Massachusetts.html) Holy crap, this place is expensive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frasier-crane-super-rich/377235.md?page=1)