The Lillian Corporation sold Cheers back to Sam Malone for 85 cents. The comic bargain occurs in the eighth-season finale, “Cry Harder,” after Sam exposes Robin Colcord’s insider trading and protects the corporation from being defrauded.
Sam had originally sold the bar after Diane Chambers left, buying a boat and attempting to move on from Cheers. Rebecca Howe then managed the bar for the Lillian Corporation, while Sam returned as an employee and repeatedly tried to regain ownership.
The scene is easy to misremember as a one-dollar purchase because the corporation offers to sell the bar for a dollar. Sam discovers that he has only 85 cents available, however, and the sale proceeds at that amount. The dollar is therefore a tempting but incorrect answer.
After Sam becomes owner again, Rebecca loses her corporate position and returns to Cheers. The ownership story continues when Rebecca later buys the pool room and bathrooms from John Allen Hill, making her Sam’s partner in the property.