Sitcoms have the ability to make us forget our troubles, as we immerse ourselves into a world divergent from the issues of everyday life. Most of us have experienced that distinctive feeling of nostalgia that comes from watching a classic sitcom that reminds us of good times. This nostalgia has been successfully utilized in hit new shows such as WandaVision, which frequently references classic sitcoms.

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But watching these classic shows and their beloved stars also leave us wondering, "whatever happened to them?" There's no business like show business. However, showbiz is a notoriously cut-throat industry that can be cruel at the best of times. Despite the success of their past work, a highly competitive industry often leaves talented actors with a lack of security. From exploring totally new career paths to meeting tragic ends, here's what happened to these 10 forgotten sitcom stars.

10 Shelley Long - 'Cheers'

Cast of cheers ted danson shelley long
via The New York Times

As the intellectual Diane Chambers, Shelley Long was the perfect antidote to Ted Danson's macho Sam Malone. Danson has said, "You can't imagine anyone else playing Diane. She was Diane." Long's character is one that many millennials will no doubt identify with today, having captured the frustrations of wanting to fulfil one's creative dreams whilst having to work a menial job to make ends meet.

After leaving Cheers in 1987, Long went on to play Carol Brady in The Brady Bunch Movie, but she suffered from depression and allegedly attempted to take her own life in 2004, following the breakdown of her marriage. Most recently, she can be seen in Modern Family, as Jay's ex-wife.

9 David Faustino - 'Married... With Children'

Married With Children David Faustino Date
via IMDB.com

Faustino will always be best remembered as the awkward, misfit son of Al and Peg Bundy on the infamously irreverent Married... with Children. He played the role from the age of 13, until the show's end in 1997. Since then, he appeared on reality TV show Celebrity Boot Camp in 2002, in which he was constantly reduced to his past role as Bud Bundy. He has also had small roles on TV series such as Entourage, American Dad!, and Bones. Additionally, Faustino is a fan of hip-hop and has pursued a music career under the alias D'Lil.

8 Alfonso Ribeiro - 'The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air'

Will Smith and Alfonso Ribeiro on Fresh Prince Carlton

As Carlton Banks, Will Smith's snooty yet lovable cousin, Alfonso Ribeiro captured the preppy archetype of the '90s. Famed for the "Carlton dance", Ribeiro later showed off his dancing skills on Dancing with the Stars, consistently impressing judges and eventually winning the competition.

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He also has a radio show, The 90s with Alfonso Ribeiro, where he discusses 90s music and culture.

7 Erin Moran - 'Happy Days'

UNITED STATES - JULY 10: HAPPY DAYS - Gallery - Season Two - 7/10/75 Joannie (Erin Moran)
via ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images

Moran delighted viewers as Richie Cunningham's charming younger sister, Joanie, on Happy Days. She and co-star Scott Baio, who played her on-screen love interest, appeared in the spinoff Joanie Loves Chachi in the '80s, but it was a flop. Sadly, Moran did not have a glittering career post-Happy Days.

She appeared on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club in 2008, but Moran's financial problems led to her living in a trailer park, having lost her Palmdale home to foreclosure in 2010. A year after losing her home, she joined several of her former co-stars in suing CBS for breach of contract. Eventually, CBS settled out of court and awarded each actor $65,000. Tragically, she died from throat cancer in 2017. She was 56.

6 David Hyde Pierce - 'Frasier'

David Hyde Pierce as Niles
via NBC

Is there a better example of sibling casting than David Hyde Pierce as the haughty brother of Kelsey Grammer's Frasier? As Niles, Hyde Pierce managed to perfect a character even more snooty than Frasier.

Related: 'The Simpsons': How Kelsey Grammer Became Sideshow Bob

Since the sitcom's end in 2004, he has mainly worked in the theater, but you can also hear his distinctive voice in blockbuster Hellboy, as well as in 2 episodes of The Simpsons where he voices Sideshow Bob's (Kelsey Grammer) brother. In a shocking contrast to his Niles persona, he played a violent psychopath in 2010 thriller movie The Perfect Host. 

5 Lisa Bonet - 'The Cosby Show'

A Different World Lisa Bonet Thanksgiving
via Bustle.com

Best known for playing Denise Huxtable, Bill Cosby's rebellious daughter, on hit 80s sitcom The Cosby ShowBonet seems to be more notable now for her romantic and familial relationships than for her acting roles. She shares lookalike daughter Zoë Kravitz with ex-husband Lenny Kravitz and she is married to hunky Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa. But she has also had several roles on prominent television series, having played Marnie's romantic rival on HBO's Girls and a teaching guru on New Girl.

4 Pam Dawber - 'Mork & Mindy'

Pam Dawber and Robin Williams in Mork & Mindy
via ABC

On '70s sitcom Mork & Mindy, Pam Dawber was perfectly cast as the straight-faced companion to Robin Williams' erratic extra-terrestrial Mork. Thereafter, she appeared in another, albeit less successful, sitcom, My Sister Sam. More recently, she has appeared in the 2016 TV adaptation of The Odd Couple and in several episodes of NCIS, which stars her real life husband Marc Harmon.

3 Tiffani Thiessen - 'Saved By The Bell'

Promo shot of Tiffani-Amber Thiessen and Mark-Paul Gosselaar of Saved by the Bell
via etonline.com

Best known as Saved by the Bell's Kelly Kapowski, the most popular girl in school and Zack Morris's love interest, Thiessen also went on to star in Beverly Hills, 90210. In 2002, she appeared in the Woody Allen movie Hollywood Ending, but in recent years she has largely remained away from the big screen. She had a leading role on White Collar and has appeared on a number of cooking-based shows such as Hell's Kitchen, Dinner at Tiffani's, and Food Network Star. 

2 Jason Alexander - 'Seinfeld'

jason alexander as george on seinfeld
via NY Daily News

The incorrigible George Constanza from Seinfeld is a difficult role for an actor to top. Indeed, the internet is full of George memes and his various idiosyncratic quotes remain the stuff of comedy legend. But since his role as the neurotic George ended in 1998, Jason Alexander has devoted much of his time to Broadway, most notably in The Producers. He was reunited with Seinfeld creator Larry David in Curb Your Enthusiasm, in which he played an exaggerated version of himself.

1 Kel Mitchell - 'Kenan & Kel'

Kenan and Kel
via Paramount Plus

The unpredictable Kel Mitchell was the perfect counterpart to Kenan Thompson in Kenan & Kel, perpetually frustrating his best friend by getting him into increasingly ludicrous scenarios. While Thompson has had a prosperous career on SNL, we rarely hear about Mitchell anymore.

He has had numerous small roles on less successful and short-lived sitcoms, but he was once again brought into the limelight in 2019 with his appearance on Dancing with the Stars, achieving the impressive feat of coming in second place. Incidentally, his dance partner, Witney Carson, was also paired with another of this list's entries, Alfonso Ribeiro, during his winning appearance on the competition five years earlier.

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