The TV icon on women, riptides, and a trusty antacid.

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by Steven Russell

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What adventure most changed your life?

I was filming a movie with Mary Steenburgen in 1994, and we’d both reached a point in our lives where we thought we were total failures at relationships. But to get to know each other, we went canoeing in Montecito, California. The river was gorgeous — mountains and woods right to the water, sea otters and blue herons — and we were paddling totally in sync. Mary kept want- ing to see what was around the next bend, and the next bend. My life changed. We went up the river as friends and came back as lovers. Not only that, but the trip was a template for our life together. I tend to play it safe, and she keeps nudging me around that next bend.

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What should every man know about money?

I believe the universe works by the law of attraction. In the case of money, if you’re broke and all you focus on is being broke, the universe gives you more broke. If you instead think about how much you love abundance, the universe starts providing you with money in your life. I know it’s a bizarre kind of faith. Am I saying if something bad happens, don’t worry about it? Yes, actually.

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What should every man know about women?

I remember Norm’s line on Cheers — “Women, you can’t live with them, pass the beer nuts.” For me, I’d say that if you get into an argument with a woman and think that being right gives you some sort of moral high ground, you’re wrong. Being right is the booby prize.

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What’s the secret do being good in bed?

Enjoy yourself and you’ll leave her smiling too.

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What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

Whenever she was asked that, Bette Davis would say, “Always take Fountain.” That’s this street in Los Angeles that you can duck down and miss a lot of stuff. It’s brilliant.

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What’s the best survival skill you know?

If you’re swimming in the ocean and get caught in a riptide, don’t fight it. Flip onto your back and let it take you where it wants until it peters out, then swim in to shore. That’s not a bad metaphor for life, too.

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Have you ever cheated death?

In my mid-40s, right after Cheers, I was going through a particularly adolescent period, and was driving too fast in the rain through Topanga Canyon in L.A. I felt my tires slip a little and part of my brain said, well, I’d better slow down. But another part said, you know what, I don’t have to slow down. So I went around the next curve even faster and spun out, missed the cliff edge by a hair, slammed into the embankment, and got hit by a pickup. The car was totaled and I was taken out on a board, but except for some whiplash, I was fine. It was like, wow, I need to grow up and start taking care of myself.

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What hidden skill do you have?

I can open any refrigerator, go with whatever’s there, and make you a great meal you will enjoy. For kids at breakfast, I like to scramble up some egg whites with veggie sausage, goat cheese, tomato, and carmelized onions. Then roll the scramble into corn tortillas, and let them eat it like finger food. Oh, Lord, it’s great. But the really important skill is to boast constantly about how you’re making them the best breakfast in the world. I find that has a very positive effect.

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What piece of gear should every man own?

My archeologist father would say that if you have string and a pocketknife, you can survive anywhere. Me, I always carry a pack of Tums.

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What piece of clothing should every man own?

An authentically beat up leather jacket. If it hasn’t been in your closet for 15 years, you’re just faking it.

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What piece of clothing should a man never wear?

A bonnet. Some guys can look good in chiffon, but I draw the line at bonnets.

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What do you want to do before you die?

I want the full monty. I want grandkids, I want to see grandkids get married. I don’t want to bale from life because I’m afraid of how hard it gets. Here’s my mantra — happy healthy happy healthy happy healthy dead.

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