Martin Crane

Grew up… in Seattle, Wash., where he remains to this day. Martin comes from a simpler time, when all one needed to relax was a nice can of Ballantine’s beer and a good game of football on TV.

Living… with his son, Frasier, in Frasier’s plush Seattle apartment. Martin spends most of his time in his beloved recliner, watching TV. There’s not much else for a retired man to do these days.

Profession… retired. Martin was formerly a police officer with the Seattle Police Department. Martin retains all of the hallmarks of his former occupation: he’s as wise and tough as any homicide detective. It takes brains to be a good detective, despite what Martin’s snobbish sons might say.

Interests… sports, beer and outdoor activities. Martin is a man’s man, which means that his interests tend to cause friction with his more dainty sons.  Even though Frasier and Niles are unrelenting in their criticism of Martin’s tastes, he refuses to give up the things he loves, especially his tattered old recliner.

Relationship Status… widowed. Martin lost his wife, Hester, a few years before his retirement. While she was a woman of good taste, as her sons are, she “had too much class to ever make me or anybody else feel second-rate.”

Challenge… putting up with his pretentious sons while recovering from the gunshot wound that forced him into retirement. Martin suffers from physical pain, and he certainly doesn’t need the headache of having to play by his son’s rules.

Personality… sarcastic, realistic, and unpretentious. Martin is essentially the exact opposite of his sons. Being a detective has hardened him with a charming cynicism that Frasier seems to lack. As Martin once capture his life philosophy, “The world would be a happier place if everybody would remember two little words: people stink.”