CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Last week, I received an e-mail from reader Mark McComas, who asked, "Any observations as to why Kelsey Grammer can't make a series fly post-'Frasier'?"

I told him I thought the failures were, in part, due to the projects he worked on. Fox's "Back to You" and the just-cancelled "Hank" on ABC (the announcement came Wednesday) had good set-ups but have been flawed in execution.

However, the biggest part, I believe, is a matter of recognition. Grammer played Dr. Frasier Crane for 22 seasons -- 11 on "Cheers" and then 11 more on "Frasier." It's no surprise, then, that people have difficulty seeing him in other roles.

Just like it's sometimes hard to see uber-famous, overexposed-in-the-tabloids movie actors as the character instead of them playing the character, it can be hard to see TV actors in new roles when they've been entrenched in one - especially a popular one - for so long.

Look no further than other popular '90s sitcoms for examples of this. It's taken the actors from "Seinfeld," "Friends" and "Will & Grace" years to get their footing back - if they even have. (I'm going to focus on TV only; some, like Jennifer Aniston, have had success in film, and others, like Grammer and David Schwimmer, have done reasonably well behind the camera.)

The lack of success for "Seinfeld" actors following the show even led to the term "the 'Seinfeld' curse," which Julia Louis-Dreyfus finally broke with "The New Adventures of Old Christine." Still, before that she had the forgettable "Watching Ellie."

And the other cast members aren't exactly disproving the curse. Jason Alexander has had two shows go down in flames, "Listen Up" and "Bob Patterson," while Michael Richards' eponymous show made it just seven episodes.

When you look at the casts of "Will & Grace" and "Friends," not many of them are faring much better. Courteney Cox, of course, has found success this year with "Cougar Town," but before that, her show "Dirt" on FX received only lukewarm reviews and lasted for two 13-episode seasons. Lisa Kudrow was praised for her HBO series "The Comeback" and even earned an Emmy nomination, but it was still cancelled after one season.

Eric McCormack's "Trust Me" only made it 13 episodes on TNT earlier this year, and although Debra Messing's "The Starter Wife" mini-series was relatively successful, it bombed when turned into a weekly show. Matthew Perry's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" got the axe after one season, and Matt LeBlanc completely disappeared after his "Friends" spin-off "Joey" was dumped after two seasons. (Both have new shows coming, though; LeBlanc's on Showtime, and Perry's on ABC.)

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Last week, I received an e-mail from reader Mark McComas, who asked, "Any observations as to why Kelsey Grammer can't make a series fly post-'Frasier'?"

I told him I thought the failures were, in part, due to the projects he worked on. Fox's "Back to You" and the just-cancelled "Hank" on ABC (the announcement came Wednesday) had good set-ups but have been flawed in execution.

However, the biggest part, I believe, is a matter of recognition. Grammer played Dr. Frasier Crane for 22 seasons -- 11 on "Cheers" and then 11 more on "Frasier." It's no surprise, then, that people have difficulty seeing him in other roles.

Just like it's sometimes hard to see uber-famous, overexposed-in-the-tabloids movie actors as the character instead of them playing the character, it can be hard to see TV actors in new roles when they've been entrenched in one - especially a popular one - for so long.

Look no further than other popular '90s sitcoms for examples of this. It's taken the actors from "Seinfeld," "Friends" and "Will & Grace" years to get their footing back - if they even have. (I'm going to focus on TV only; some, like Jennifer Aniston, have had success in film, and others, like Grammer and David Schwimmer, have done reasonably well behind the camera.)

The lack of success for "Seinfeld" actors following the show even led to the term "the 'Seinfeld' curse," which Julia Louis-Dreyfus finally broke with "The New Adventures of Old Christine." Still, before that she had the forgettable "Watching Ellie."

And the other cast members aren't exactly disproving the curse. Jason Alexander has had two shows go down in flames, "Listen Up" and "Bob Patterson," while Michael Richards' eponymous show made it just seven episodes.

When you look at the casts of "Will & Grace" and "Friends," not many of them are faring much better. Courteney Cox, of course, has found success this year with "Cougar Town," but before that, her show "Dirt" on FX received only lukewarm reviews and lasted for two 13-episode seasons. Lisa Kudrow was praised for her HBO series "The Comeback" and even earned an Emmy nomination, but it was still cancelled after one season.

Eric McCormack's "Trust Me" only made it 13 episodes on TNT earlier this year, and although Debra Messing's "The Starter Wife" mini-series was relatively successful, it bombed when turned into a weekly show. Matthew Perry's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" got the axe after one season, and Matt LeBlanc completely disappeared after his "Friends" spin-off "Joey" was dumped after two seasons. (Both have new shows coming, though; LeBlanc's on Showtime, and Perry's on ABC.)

There are, of course, exceptions to this. The two that come to mind immediately are "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" vets David Boreanaz and Alyson Hannigan.

Boreanaz, who continued his "Buffy" role on the spin-off "Angel," has stuck to drama, starring in the Fox quirky crime show, "Bones," for five seasons and counting. Hannigan, who showed off her comedic skills in the "American Pie" films, went the sitcom route with CBS' "How I Met Your Mother," also going strong in its fifth season.

Reinvention isn't impossible, but it is difficult -- especially when the show you're best known for is still popular enough to be shown in frequent reruns.

Season finales: "Project Runway," 10 p.m. Thursday, Lifetime (part one of two); "America's Next Top Model," 8 p.m. Wednesday, CW (followed by a clip show).

Mini-series: "The Prisoner," 8-10 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday, AMC (Ian McKellen and Jim Caviezel remake of '60s sci-fi series).

Specials: "How The Beatles Rocked the Kremlin," 10 p.m. Saturday, PBS2; "Merry Madagascar," 8 p.m. Tuesday, NBC (cartoon holiday special); "No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos," 10 p.m. Tuesday, PBS (prolific cinematographers on numerous Hollywood classics).

Guest stars: Stephenie Meyer on "Oprah," 4 p.m. Friday, NBC; Lady Gaga on "Gossip Girl," 9 p.m. Monday, CW; Edward Norton and Elizabeth Banks on "Modern Family," 9 p.m. Wednesday, ABC.

Reach Amy Robinson at flips...@wvgazette.com.