“I love going to work,” Ted Danson says. “I love writers. I love actors. I love studios. I love driving through the gate, I really do.”

For Danson, of course, the television studio – and your living room – is a place where everybody knows his name. It has been 40 years since Sam Malone strolled in from the back of the bar in the opening moments of “Cheers,” straightening a picture, unpacking some mugs and pouring himself some coffee. (He’d straighten a picture again in the final moments of the series before walking off into the back of the bar).

Later in that first episode, during an argument about the sweatiest movie ever, John Ratzenberger delivers his first line as Cliff Clavin, claiming the crown should go to “Body Heat,” a 1981 film that co-starred an up-and-coming movie actor named Ted Danson. (Sam shoots Cliff a bemused look.)

Danson continued acting in movies but truly made his home on television, where he has been an almost constant presence: He has played a regular or recurring character in nearly 700 episodes across a dozen series over four decades. He has specialized in comedy – “Becker,” “Bored to Death,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “The Good Place” – but also tackled dramas ranging from “Damages” to “CSI” to “Fargo.” 

While none matched the extraordinary success of “Cheers” (and a few, like “Ink” and “Help Me Help You,” barely registered), he keeps reveling in each new opportunity. 

“I’m a little like a 1940s or ‘50s contract player, where they’d say, ‘OK, Ted, go over here now, you’re a bartender; now go over here and you’re a demon.’ I’m much better at that than having a pile of scripts to choose from,” says the 74-year-old with 18 Emmy nominations to his credit. Of the shows that failed to catch on, he says simply, “I don’t have regrets.”

Danson’s latest is NBC’s “Mr. Mayor,” created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, which returns for its second season on March 15th. On the show, Danson plays Neil Bremer, a billionaire businessman who runs for mayor of Los Angeles almost on a lark and then wins only to discover how unprepared he is for the job and its responsibilities. 

Warm, self-effacing and generous with his time, Danson spoke by video recently about being a “slower, dumber joke guy,” the one piece of advice he gave Tina Fey for the show, and what Mayor Bremer would do if confronted by the famous “Trolley Problem” that his character of Michael imposed on the characters of “The Good Place,” where you have to choose between passively killing five people or actively killing one. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWb_svTrcOg)

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q. The show was originally going to be set in New York City and star Alec Baldwin. Once they rewrote it for you and Los Angeles, what was the appeal for you?

It was Tina’s and Robert’s pedigree. I have so much admiration for Tina. And when I heard Tina was interested, I thought, ‘I don’t know if I can do what she does. I wonder if I can.’ So I knew it would be exciting. 

I don’t have Alec Baldwin’s chops to do this kind of material – he’s really good at having that fast, slightly nonsensical stuff pouring out of his mouth. I’m a little bit of a slower, dumber joke guy. His rhythm is built for their style. So I’m sure they slowed it down. 

Q. Do you like the challenge of taking on a different comedic style?

They have a totally different sensibility than me and that’s exciting. Our job as actors is to root everything we do in some kind of reality. But in their case, you still have to reach for these very extravagant jokes that are out of left field so that’s a challenge I love – to reach for that and keep it tied to something inside of you.

 Also, a lot of the comedy I’ve done over the years has been live audience and that’s a relationship where there’s a rhythm, a back and forth with the audience. This is just pedal to the metal, go as fast as you can, ‘Did you hear that joke? Too late.’ That’s another challenge I have every week, which I love.

Q. How involved do you get in shaping your character and the dialogue?

The way I was raised, you don’t tell the writers what to do; you get a script and then you would perform it and then there’s a conversation – not ‘I have a better idea,’ but ‘When I perform your words, this is how it makes me feel. Are we on the same page?’ I have that conversation with Tina and Robert. 

I did say one thing: We did an episode in the first season about a harassment seminar. We were all in one room in live time and it worked really well. When we’re all together in one room on one subject, when you can see that odd mixture of characters and actors, that is when we fly. My example for Tina was that we always felt at “Cheers” that when we stayed in the bar we were great but when we went elsewhere it took the audience away a little bit. We’re doing more scenes like that, but I don’t think it was necessarily just my idea.

Q. How has the show evolved in the second season?

In the past when you did 22 or 24 episodes, you’d spend the first 11 shows with both the writers and actors finding your way, realizing who you are. We only did nine episodes of “Mr. Mayor” last year, so this season we really found who were are. 

Also in the first season, while I feel blessed as an actor getting to work during COVID, it was hard to say, ‘Come, be playful, be silly and carefree’ when we’re wearing hazmat suits. ‘Come have fun, but please don’t die’ doesn’t make for great comedy. This season, we were blessed to be able to act in front of the cameras without masks for the first time and really got to know each other. You see that on screen. Some of the characters are more grounded.

Q. How do you build a new character for a sitcom, making sure he’s not just Sam Malone redux?

When you do ‘Fargo’ or ‘Damages,’ you are afforded the luxury of indulgence. You can take your time to discover moments on camera. I always say the difference between drama and comedy is that with drama you can show up depressed, divorced, drunk and the camera goes, “Ooh, wow, look at that; that is so interesting.” 

In comedy, you’re an athlete and you’ve got the ball and you’re running down the field in live time. Or a new comedy is like learning a new dance. But there is a metronome going and you better keep up. So much of how you find yourself is in learning to say the words in the correct meter – that informs your character. It’s a little like Shakespeare in that way. There actually is a truth in half-hour sitcoms and if you dance to the music you will discover things about yourself and your character.

Q. And if you’re not in rhythm?

It’s horrible, it’s the worst. The camera doesn’t lie. I might be showing you what a great idea I had at home or what I did the take before, but if it goes well, then I’m actually in the moment discovering something. There’s a huge difference.

Q. What would Mayor Bremer do if you put him at the gears of the trolley in Michael’s “Trolley Problem” scene?

[Laughs.] Wow. That’s a tough one. He’d probably end up taking out five people with his indecision. Or I’d have everyone on my staff jump off the trolley so we’re not responsible. He’s so in over his head.

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Q. Your politics are well-known but the show rarely takes a sharp political stance. Would you want it to take more pointed aim it issues?

That would be a different show. We’re a workplace comedy galloping very fast down the street – we’ll fire over our shoulder at things that deserve to be mocked, but we’re best at taking on social and political issues quickly and sticking to the characters and situations.

Q. Do you strive to keep your activism, like your work with ocean conservation, separate from your acting?

Yes. If I were a writer-producer-actor maybe it would be different. But I much prefer using my brain and influence to participate in the real world dealing with issues like in my role at Oceania. That’s a real cudgel to take to some of the issues and problems the world is facing and I’m surrounded by such bright people. So that satisfies one part of me and I can stick to being a silly man on screen.