Cheers star Ted Danson's professional life was going better than ever as the lead of the popular sitcom, but his private life was a bit of a hot mess. Speaking with NPR, Danson said that he didn't fully mature until he hit his 40s. He realized that he was sabotaging the relationships in his life.
During this period, his marriage to Cassandra "Casey" came to an end. He also briefly dated Whoopi Goldberg as well. Truthfully, Danson found that he didn't get things together until after Cheers ended in 1993.
He said, "I won't be too specific, but I didn't really grow up emotionally until I was in my 40s, and I was a bit of a liar in my relationship. I'll leave it at that," Danson said. "And I started to work on myself very seriously around that time. I went to clinics and a psychologist and a mentor. I worked very hard to not be that person who hid his emotions and left out the back door."
Danson said he put his poor parents through a lot during this time.
"So, that was all kind of messily in the press, and my poor parents were going, 'What?' And I finally called them, and they were very sweet, and they came to support me and everything," he said. He added, "The press sounded horrible. But the work underneath the press was invaluable. I'm very glad for that time, even though it was messy, very messy."
'Cheers' Star Had To Grow
Previously, Danson said that he would have never found his current wife Mary Steenburgen if he didn't get his act together.
My life was a hot mess at the time, and if I had not stopped and gotten it together, I would never have met my wife," Danson said.
However, Danson said he wouldn't change a thing if given the chance. "I wouldn't choose a do-over. You know, if I did something differently, and I took a different path, I wouldn't be with my wife, Mary Steenburgen. I am horribly embarrassed about many things in my past, things that are cringeworthy. But that's my life," he said.
That doesn't mean he doesn't have regrets. There are things he's not proud of.
He said, "I wish I hadn't become a liar and walked out the back door early in life. I wish that hadn't been me. But even your wounds, you kind of have fondness for if you've gone through them and live through it and acknowledged it and made amends and all that stuff."
"I was like a convert to truth. And our life together is so empty of secrets," Danson said. "If there's even a moment when I didn't exactly tell the truth, it's so devastating to me that I immediately grind to a halt and say, 'I got to talk to you.' Being truthful, it greases the skids of life. But our life together is very full of laughter and joy. We're very blessed."
