FILE PHOTO SHOWING CAST OF TELEVISION SHOW CHEERS, 1998-03-07 (photo)

The U.S. Supreme Court may hear the case of Norm and Cliff, characters from the long-running television series "Cheers." The cast of "Cheers" is shown in a file photo from the Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado on March 7, 1998. Actors George Wendt (far right) and John Ratzenberger (second from left) have been fighting with Paramount Pictures for seven years over the rights to their "Cheers" characters Norm and Cliff. The studio wants to license the character's likenesses to a company operating Cheers-like bars in airports. The actors claim they created the characters and don't want them exploited. The Supreme Court justices are expected to announce in the next two weeks whether they will hear the case or send it back to Los Angeles for trial. BK