“Cheers” icon Ted Danson recently recalled the first time he met former President Bill Clinton — and the experience was certainly outside of the NORM!

The “Man on the Inside” star, who moderated a panel with Bill and Hillary Clinton at History Talks in Philadelphia Saturday, opened the event by letting the audience know that the Clintons and his wife, actor Mary Steenburgen, go way back, Variety reported.

Steenburgen grew up in Arkansas and was introduced to the pair by her father when Bill Clinton was the state’s governor in the late 1970s. Eventually, the “Book Club” star became close with the political power couple.

When Steenburgen and Danson’s relationship became serious in the ’90s, it was only natural that she introduce him to her family and friends.

“One of the first things she did was take me to meet her dear friends in the White House,” Danson told the audience, per Variety. “Bill — Mr. President — took me around the corner, and there were three Secret Service agents behind him, all of them looking at me. The president asked me what my intentions were.”

Danson then turned to Bill Clinton on the stage and asked: “My first question is to you, Mr. President. Do you think that was fair?”

“No, but it was effective. And I didn’t think I had to be fair,” Bill Clinton replied after a brief silence. “As it turned out, you became the best thing that ever happened to her.”

Although Bill Clinton came off a bit like an overprotective father in Danson’s story, he did walk Steenburgen down the aisle when she tied the knot with Danson in 1995.

Danson also offered a funny tidbit about his wife’s friendship with the former president during an interview with “CBS This Morning” in 2013.

“They were best friends and – I mean – he gave her away at our wedding,” Danson said of Bill Clinton and his wife. “It’s hard to believe still to me sometimes how close we all are, because it sounds kind of pretentious, but they are best friends – I mean – I watched her give him a ‘noogie’ in the Oval Office.”

By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.