The Cheers & Frasier Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Kelly Gaines Boyd is a character on the American television show Cheers, portrayed by Jackie Swanson. Kelly joined Cheers in the middle of the seventh season as Woody Boyd’s love interest. She appeared in 24 episodes.

Kelly and Woody first meet in the 13th episode of the 7th season (159, "Golden Boyd", first aired on February 9, 1989). Woody and Sam are bartending at a private party to celebrate Kelly’s return from Europe. Kelly is a rich and sheltered girl, but Woody is able to open her eyes to new experiences, the first being a monster truck pull. Again in Kelly’s third appearance in the 19th episode of the 7th season (165, "The Gift of the Woodi", first aired April 6, 1989), Woody teaches her a lesson from his world. Instead of buying her an expensive gift for her birthday, he writes her a memorable song.

Kelly and Woody marry in the 10th season’s finale episode. The marriage, at the Gaines' mansion, was a truly memorable fiasco: The minister died; Kelly's flirtatious cousin Monika (Colleen Morris) teased Sam until her fanatically-jealous husband brandished a sword; Rebecca's petulance caused the French chef to quit, leaving Miss Howe in charge of the food; Carla kept getting pushed down the shaft in the dumbwaiter; Woody could not keep his hands (and other things) off Kelly before the ceremony; and two attack dogs (cf. "The Lads" on Magnum, P. I.) menaced everyone who dared exit the kitchen to the patio, until the super-infuriated Carla chased them inside, at which time they whimpered like puppies and scampered away. To top it off, the dead body of the minister tipped over and toppled the wedding cake to the floor.

Kelly and Woody were expecting their first child when Cheers ended.

In the 16th episode of the 2nd season (040) of Frasier, Sam visits and it is revealed that Kelly and Woody's first child was a baby boy. In the 13th episode of the 6th season (133), Woody visits Seattle and reveals that he and Kelly have had another child, a girl.

Gaines Family[]

Kelly is the daughter of Walter Gaines (Richard Doyle), a vice-president at Lillian Corporation and Rebecca Howe's boss. He appeared in eight Cheers episodes (see below), which makes him the only member of Kelly's family to appear more than once. The Gaines are a rich Lutheran, Boston-based family. Kelly's parents are divorced.

Her mother, Roxanne Gaines (Melendy Britt), appeared only in the Cheers Episode 185 / Season 8 Episode 17, "Woody or Won't He" (first aired on February 8, 1990). She is a sexy, hot high-society lady who is aware of her attractiveness and uses it to flirt with other men. At the wedding of Kelly's sister, she flirts intensively with Woody, and he cracks the party when he tries to reject her. Later Kelly tells Woody that her mother flirted with all her boyfriends, just for fun and because it keeps her young. She gives Woody a letter from her mother which is believed to be an apology, but contains only the information that the lady is still interested in him.

At the wedding, Roxanne told Woody that, at his age, she had been a dancer. Perhaps like this, she could seduce Kelly's father to marry her, but the marriage failed, because she did not stop flirting with other men. Kelly tells Woody that her sister's wedding is the first time she has seen her parents together since their divorce. Although Roxanne is a bit snobbish (When Kelly said she wanted to wear something decent at her sister's wedding, she asked, "Who raised you?", and she told Woody that he was not the sort of boys Kelly usually dated), she also accepts under-class men—at least for having fun with them.

In the episode "Woody or Won't He," we learn that Kelly has a sister, but her name is never mentioned, and she and the name of the actress remain uncredited. We also learn that Kelly has a cousin named Patsy, and that Woody has already met her, but although she is attending the wedding of Kelly's sister (Kelly wants Woody to say "Hello" to her), she remains unseen in the episode. Another unseen character is Kelly's crazy aunt Martha, who thinks she is Eleanor Roosevelt and Woody is Winston Churchill.

In the Episode 233 (Season 10 Episode 14) "No Rest for Woody," Woody meets Kelly's grandmother (Celeste Holm), who finally accepts him as Kelly's future husband.

Although she is already married, Kelly's other cousin Monika (Colleen Morris) flirts intensively with Sam at Kelly's wedding (Episode 244 / Season 10 Episode 25, "An Old-Fashioned Wedding").

In the Episode 252 (Season 11 Episode 08), "Ill-Gotten Gaines," we meet Walter Gaines's brother Richard (John Valentine) and his wife, Katherine (Sondra Currie). Walter believes Woody caught him having an affair with her.

Personality[]

Kelly is a quirky character. She has a collection of over 1,000 Barbie dolls, but it is revealed in one episode that she pulls the legs off of them when angry. Kelly does not fit the common stereotype of a snobbish and sophisticated upper-class girl — rather, she is sincere and naïve, with little idea of the "real life." In the episode "Home Malone" (09.25, 04/25/1991), she works at the Cheers bar as a waitress to get some "real-life experience" - cashing in on her naivety, Carla tells her that all tips go to her as the head waitress, while Norm says that his massive tab is beers he has already paid for, and should be erased every time he orders another one.

Kelly is also a bit flirtatious like her mother Roxanne and her cousin Monika: Before flying to Europe to study, she tells Woody she wants to buy a new bikini and is going to attend a figure-drawing course and she would like to date other boys "in order to keep the love between him and her secret." When she comes back, she brings a Frenchman named Henri (Anthony Cistaro) with her and dates him several times despite her relationship with Woody (Henri appeared in five episodes: "Woody Interruptus" (09.11, 12/13/1990), "It's A Wonderful Wife" (09.19, 2/28/1991) [without Kelly], "Home Malone" (09.24, 4/25/1991), "A Fine French Whine" (10.10, 11/21/1991), and "The Magnificent Six" (11.04, 10/22/1992) [without Kelly]).

In "An Old-Fashioned Wedding" (10.25, 05/14/1992), Kelly herself makes fun of her love life by saying she does not know her sign (of zodiac), but she knows that she is not a Virgo, and by telling freely that she has made love with Woody.

Appearances[]

Kelly Gaines appeared in the following 24 "Cheers" episodes. Her father, Walter Gaines, appeared in the eight Episodes 159, 165, 185, 190, 233, 244, 252, and 267, her mother, Roxanne Gaines, only in Episode 185.

  • 159 / 07.13 Golden Boyd (9 February 1989)
  • 160 / 07.14 I Kid You Not (16 February 1989);
  • 165 / 07.19 The Gift of the Woodi (6 April 1989)
  • 177 / 08.09 Two Girls for Every Boyd (23 November 1989)
  • 185 / 08.17 Woody or Won't He (8 February 1990)
  • 190 / 08.22 Loverboyd (29 March 1990)
  • 206 / 09.12 Woody Interruptus (13 December 1990)
  • 219 / 09.25 Home Malone (25 April 1991)
  • 225 / 10.06 Unplanned Parenthood (24 October 1991)
  • 229 / 10.10 A Fine French Whine (21 November 1991
  • 233 / 10.14 No Rest for the Woody (9 January 1992)
  • 238 / 10.19 Rich Man, Wood Man (20 February 1992)
  • 241 / 10.22 Rebecca's Lover... Not (23 April 1992)
  • 244 / 10.25 An Old-Fashioned Wedding (14 May 1992) [originally released as a one-hour special, in syndication as a double episode]
  • 245 / 11.01 The Little Match Girl (24 September 1992)
  • 246 / 11.02 The Beer Is Always Greener (1 October 1992)
  • 252 / 11.08 Ill-Gotten Gaines (19 November 1992)
  • 253 / 11.09 Feelings... Whoa, Whoa, Whoa (3 December 1992)
  • 254 / 11.10 Daddy's Little Middle-Aged Girl (10 December 1992)
  • 259 / 11.15 Loathe and Marriage (4 February 1993)
  • 265 / 11.21 Woody Gets an Election (22 April 1993)
  • 266 / 11.22 It's Lonely on the Top (29 April 1993)
  • 267 / 11.23 Rebecca Gaines, Rebecca Loses (6 May 1993) [originally released as a one-hour special, in syndication as a double episode]
  • 269 / 11.25 One for the Road (20 May 1993) [97-minute special]

German dubbing[]

In the German-dubbed versions, Kelly Gaines ("Cheers"), Kelly Bundy ("Married with Children"), and Tiffany Malloy ("Unhappily Ever After") have the same voice: Claudia Lössl. The voice of Kelly Gaines's mother, Roxanne, Helga Trümper, is also the voice of Kate Tanner ("ALF" ).

The German title of Episode 185, "Woody or Wont He," "Die scharfe Schwiegermutter," is a pun: In German, the word "scharf," when used for persons, can mean "tough, aggressive, dominant," but interestingly also "sexy." Hence the title can mean "The Aggressive / Dominant Mother-in-Law" or "The Sexy Mother-in-Law." However, the German expression "scharfe Schwiegermutter" mostly means "aggressive / dominant mother-in-law."

Advertisement