According to series creator
Reinhold Weege on the season 1 DVD commentary, when it is mentioned in the first episode that Harry Stone is a Mel Tormé fan, friends and relatives of the famed jazz and pop singer called Tormé to tell him about the reference. Tormé was so flattered that when the series later contacted him about appearing on the show, he was more than happy to do so. Tormé has also stated that largely due to the "Night Court" references, he noticed that his audience at concerts started to get younger and younger, and that his newfound resurgence was because of the show.
