There was so much to love about Frasier. Aside from the fact that star Kelsey Grammer seemed born to play the fussy titular doctor or that he was surrounded by one of the best ensembles in TV history, “Frasier” also attracted a dazzling array of guest stars, many of which we never met must see. That's because dozens of guests simply provided their voices for Frasier's call-in talk radio show. Again, these were well-known stars, and everyone from Helen Mirren to Billy Crystal turned to Frasier for life advice. It wasn't just actors either. “Frasier” hosted Art Garfunkel, Stephen King and tennis legend John McEnroe, making for one of the most impressive guest star lists of any TV show (even rivaling “The Simpsons” for the sheer number of celebrities). who had agreed to appear).

Another example of how the show was able to go beyond Hollywood with its guest stars was when a tech mogul showed up to help Frasier celebrate his 2,000th radio show, which was actually the 200th episode of Frasier . This particular guest appearance also had some suspicious synergies with a particular technology product that was released around the same time, suggesting that the guest appearance was not motivated solely by an interest in the show itself.

Season 9, Episode 8 of “Frasier,” simply titled “The Two Hundredth,” was, believe it or not, the 200th installment of the sitcom. The episode begins with the titular doctor turning 2,000. episode of his KACL talk show, with Dan Butler's Bulldog Brisco interrupting the proceedings by promoting his return to the radio station. After Bulldog is quickly rejected by Frasier, station manager Kenny Daly (Tom McGowan) invites a special guest for Dr. Crane one: Bill Gates.

Yes, the Microsoft founder and tech world icon visited KACL in Seattle to meet with Frasier for what was supposed to be an interview, but that quickly turns into Gates answering questions from callers about his software and, essentially, a technical one Support hotline directs while Frasier watches in horror from the control room. At one point, producer Roz Doyle (Peri Gilpin) announces that the telephone board is “lighting up,” adding, “Wow, who knew we had line seven.” After Frasier leaves his guest to his own devices, Gates even utters the famous catchphrase Doctor said, “I’m listening,” much to the chagrin of his host.

It's a fun little cameo from Gates, largely due to Frasier being shocked at being ousted from his own hosting duties by what he calls an “egomaniac gasbag.” The irony that someone like Dr. Of course, when Crane throws such insults around him, it's completely lost on the man himself. But while this particular cameo was undeniably amusing due to Kelsey Grammer's typically brilliant performance, there's also a slightly cynical element at play here.

In “The Two Hundredth,” Bill Gates asked callers specific questions about his own operating system, Windows. Specifically, a caller asks the Microsoft founder, who had resigned as the company's CEO the year before but remained on the board, whether he needed to create a “boot disk” to install Windows XP. This particular episode aired on November 13, 2001, less than a month after that particular operating system launched on October 25, 2001. After telling the caller that he doesn't need to create a boot disk, Gates says, “It's a feature. “ from XP – very fast, very smooth.”

The whole thing is obviously a publicity stunt, as Gates is clearly doing his colleagues at Microsoft a favor by visiting the “Frasier” set and talking about the ease of use of Windows. Luckily, writer Rob Hanning managed to insert the promo as organically as possible, and Kelsey Grammer's reaction to Gates' hijacking of his show makes the whole thing funny enough to distract from the shameless introduction.

Later in the episode, Frasier discovers that a tape of one of his shows is missing from his vast collection and becomes consumed with the idea of ​​somehow replacing it. He falls to pieces in front of friends and family as his obsession takes control. This all makes for an amusing episode that cleverly shows that Frasier is the truly self-obsessed one here and not the “egomaniac gasbag” Bill Gates.

Whether the new Frasier revival will ever celebrate its own 200th episode remains to be seen, but Kelsey Grammer has ambitious plans for the series' future. If the new series actually makes it to 200 episodes, perhaps we'll see Elon Musk or some other “egomaniac gasbag” flogging the latest product that brings us closer to the AI-driven garbage future imagined by people like Joe Russo. For now, perhaps we can console ourselves by reliving the oddity of a time when Bill Gates talked about Windows XP on “Frasier,” which was the only time we heard from our tech overlords in person.