Coach Ernie Pantusso

Ernie "Coach" Pantusso
Coach ruins the blender by mixing a recipe with the coconut cup in "Cliff's Rocky Moment" (episode 38, 1984)
First appearance	Give Me a Ring Sometime (episode 1.01)
Last appearance	Rescue Me (episode 3.25) Cheerio, Cheers (last filmed with Colasanto)
Portrayed by	Nicholas Colasanto
Information
Occupation	Baseball coach (retired) Assistant bartender (1982–1985) (until death)
Family	Two unnamed brothers Unnamed sister
Spouse(s)	Angela (deceased)
Children	Lisa (daughter)
Relatives	Joyce Pantusso (niece) Phyllis Pantusso (sister-in-law)

Ernie Pantusso (or Pantuso), commonly known as "Coach", is a fictional character on the American television show Cheers, portrayed by Nicholas Colasanto between 1982 and 1985. Coach was originally Sam Malone's baseball coach before the show's premiere. Then, he later became a bartender of Cheers while Sam became its owner and another bartender. He is not "worldly wise" but has some shred of wit. He also has a daughter named Lisa, who solely appeared in "Coach's Daughter" (1982), from his late wife Angela.

While he technically last appeared in the cold opening of "Rescue Me", Colasanto's last filmed appearance as Coach was an episode "Cheerio, Cheers". When Colasanto died in 1985, Coach was written out as deceased without explanation. Since then, Colasanto's replacement Woody Harrelson joined the cast as Woody Boyd in the fourth season of Cheers.

Former umpire Ron Luciano auditioned for Coach Ernie Pantusso, but he failed to get the part because producers "wanted an experienced actor".Robert Prosky, who later appeared in the eleventh-season episode "Daddy's Little Middle-Aged Girl" (1992) as the character Rebecca Howe's Navy father, was offered the role of Coach, but he turned down the role. Therefore, the role was given to Nicholas Colasanto. According to Colasanto, Coach was nearly "child-like" and more of a surrogate "son" than a surrogate "father" to Sam Malone (Ted Danson), while Sam was more of a "father" to Coach for dependency on Sam's "moral support". Moreover, Coach was beloved by everyone and a good "lovable man". According to director and producer James Burrows, the character of Coach was much different from the actor Nick: Coach was slow, while Nick was sharp.

Coach is a component of many people. [...] [He] is not a worldly man [and] not well-read. He comes from the dugouts. He may be intelligent, but he's not worldly wise. He's so positive; that's what makes him funny. He'll say the most absurd thing, but, if someone corrects him, he immediately capitulates because he doesn't want to offend anyone.