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About[]

Happy Days is an American television sitcom that aired first-run from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984 on ABC-TV, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes

spanning over eleven seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presented an idealized vision of life in the mid-1950s to mid-1960s Midwestern United States, and starred Ron Howard as teenager Richie Cunningham, Henry Winkler as his friend Fonzie, and Tom Bosley and Marion Ross as Richie's parents, Howard and Marion Cunningham. Happy Days became one of the biggest hits in television history and heavily influenced the television style of its time.

The series began as an unsold pilot starring Howard, Ross and Anson Williams, which aired in 1972 as a segment entitled "Love and the Television Set" (later retitled "Love and the Happy Days" for syndication) on ABC's anthology show Love, American Style. Based on the pilot, director George Lucas cast Howard as the lead in his 1973 hit film American Graffiti, causing ABC to take a renewed interest in the pilot. The first two seasons of Happy Days focused on the experiences and dilemmas of "innocent teenager" Richie Cunningham, his family, and his high school friends, attempting to "honestly depict a wistful look back at adolescence". Aspects of American Graffiti were reflected by the new series, from the drive-in diner being a major location, to the initial use of the song "Rock Around the Clock" for the opening credits (though for Happy Days, Bill Haley and His Comets recorded a new version).

Initially a moderate hit, the series' ratings began to fall during its second season, causing Marshall to retool it emphasizing broad comedy and spotlighting the previously minor character of Fonzie, a "cool" biker and high school dropout.[2] Following these changes, Happy Days became the number-one program in television in 1976–1977, Fonzie became one of the most merchandised characters of the 1970s, and Henry Winkler became a major star. The series also spawned a number of spin-offs, including the hit shows Laverne & Shirley and Mork & Mindy.

Character Appearances[]

Actor Character Seasons
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Ep
Ron Howard Richie Cunningham Main Guest 170
Anson Williams Potsie Weber Main 211
Marion Ross Marion Cunningham Main 252
Tom Bosley Howard Cunningham Main All
Henry Winkler Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli Recurring Main All
Don Most Ralph Malph Recurring Main Guest 168
Erin Moran Joanie Cunningham Recurring Main Recurring Main 234
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita Mitsumo "Arnold" Takahashi Recurring Guest Guest Recurring Guest 26
Al Molinaro Al Delvecchio Recurring Main Guest 145
Scott Baio Chachi Arcola Recurring Main Recurring Main 131
Lynda Goodfriend Lori Beth Cunningham Recurring Main Guest 66
Cathy Silvers Jenny Piccolo Recurring Main Guest 55
Ted McGinley Roger Phillips Recurring Main 61
Linda Purl Ashley Pfister Main 19

Main Characters[]

  • Richie Cunningham – The protagonist for the first seven years of the series (1974–80). When Ron Howard left the show due to his burgeoning directorial career, Richie was written out by leaving to join the United States Army. He marries his girlfriend, Lori Beth, in season eight by phone, while Fonzie stands-in for him in the wedding. Howard returned for guest appearances as Richie during the show's final season. He came back with Lori Beth and their son, Richie Jr., and Ralph in the season 11 two-part episode, "Welcome Home", and then left for California with Lori Beth and Richie Jr. to pursue a career in screenwriting. He also returned in "Passages", when he and his family attended Joanie and Chachi's wedding.
  • Marion Cunningham – Wife of Howard Cunningham, mother of Richie and Joanie, and a traditional homemaker. She is the only character who is allowed to call Fonzie by his real first name, Arthur, which she does affectionately. She sometimes gets tired of being at home, such as in "Marion Rebels" where she gets into an argument with Howard and briefly gets a job as a waitress at Arnold's. In "Empty Nest" when Joanie left for Chicago to pursue her music career, Marion had "empty nest syndrome" and was thrilled when her and Howard's niece, K.C., moved in with them. Marion was one of only four characters to remain with the show throughout its entire run.
  • Howard Cunningham – Husband of Marion Cunningham, father of Richie and Joanie, business owner of a hardware store called "Cunningham's Hardware", he is a lodge member, and family man. Frequently seen reading the daily newspaper in his easy chair. Enjoys driving his beloved 1948 DeSoto Suburban. In "Letting Go", he did not want Joanie to go to Chicago, still seeing her as his "little girl". But after talking with Fonzie and realizing how much she has grown up, he supports her going. In "Passages", Howard says that he is proud of Richie and Joanie in Joanie and Chachi's wedding. Howard is one of only two characters (the other being Fonzie) to appear in every episode of the series.
  • Joanie Cunningham – Richie's younger sister. In early seasons, she is sometimes snooping on Richie's activities and would occasionally be sent to her room by her parents. She is affectionately called "Shortcake" by Fonzie. Later on, Joanie briefly joins a motorcycle gang after going on a date with a boy, whom she considered to be "dull". In "Smokin' Ain't Cool", Joanie started smoking in order to be in a cool club, until Fonzie sets her straight. For years, Fonzie's cousin, Chachi, had been chasing her until she eventually agreed to a date with him. She and Chachi would eventually form a band together; and in "Letting Go", they leave for Chicago to pursue their music career (which spun off the short-lived series Joanie Loves Chachi). Joanie, however, eventually left the band to return home to pursue a teaching career. She and Chachi then broke up for a time until Chachi proposes to her and they get married in the series finale.
  • Arthur Herbert Fonzarelli, a.k.a. The Fonz or Fonzie – Initially a minor character, he was a hugely popular breakout character and was made a series regular. Fonzarelli's "Fonzie" nickname and comeback phrase, "Sit on it," were created by the show's producer, Bob Brunner. Known for being especially cool and for his catchphrases "(H)eyyyy!" and "Whoa!" His coolness gave him special powers, such as making machinery (such as Arnold's jukebox and other vending machines, electric lights, and car engines) function by pounding on them with his fist, or getting the attention of girls by snapping his fingers. His parents abandoned him as a child and his grandmother raised him from the age of four.
  • Potsie Weber – Richie's best friend and an aspiring talented singer. He is somewhat more carefree and worldly than Richie in early seasons, then in mid-seasons, he becomes more often paired with Ralph for plots, and the two became inseparable. In later seasons, his character evolves to increasingly emphasize his dimwitted side, and Ralph would often say to him "You're such a Potsie". Potsie often lightheartedly mentioned the supposed hatred his father (who never appeared on the show) had for him. Potsie remained with the show after Richie and Ralph joined the Army; however, he was seen less frequently. While Potsie's character became underdeveloped in these later episodes (and he, along with Ralph, was one of the few characters absent from the finale), he is mentioned to regularly bowl with the Cunninghams and still continues his position as assistant manager of Cunningham Hardware, and as pledge master of the Leopard Lodge.
  • Ralph Malph – In the first season, Ralph was more of a side character to plots, but when Most became a main cast member in season two, Ralph was more commonly seen, and he, Richie, and Potsie (these two also later became roommates) became the three amigos. Known for saying "I still got it!" after delivering one of his jokes. Ralph left with Richie after the 1979–80 season to join the Army. Malph returned as a guest star in the final season, although he is absent in the finale (along with Potsie)—he is mentioned as having left to continue college to become an optometrist like his father.
  • Chachi Arcola – Fonzie's younger cousin and later Al Delvecchio's stepson. Chachi is very close to his older cousin Fonzie. Fonzie acts as the older brother figure that Chachi needs. Chachi has a similar personality to his older cousin. He has Fonzie's smoothness and charisma, but Chachi is more laidback. Chachi becomes "one of the guys" as he gets older, joining Richie, Potsie, Ralph, and Fonzie in their antics. After Richie and Ralph leave the show, Chachi and Fonzie often have plots together. Chachi has a crush on Joanie Cunningham from the moment he meets her in season 5, but she initially thinks of him as a little kid, calling him names like "shrimp", "drip", etc. But as they enter high school, she too begins to find him attractive. In season 11, they broke up for a short period. But as the season progresses, they get back together and Chachi eventually proposes to Joanie and she says yes. The series finale features Chachi and Joanie's wedding.
  • Al Delvecchio – From seasons four to nine (1976–82), Al became the new owner/cook of the drive-in after Arnold got married the previous season. Al later married Chachi's mother Louisa, thereby becoming Chachi's stepfather and Fonzie's uncle. Molinaro left Happy Days in 1982 to take his "Al" character to Joanie Loves Chachi, and returned as Al in three later episodes of Happy Days. Known for sighing "Yeeep, yep, yep, yep, yep" when he was disappointed or when things did not go his way.
  • Mitsumo "Arnold" Takahashi (Noriyuki "Pat" Morita) (seasons 3, 10–11: 26 episodes) depicted the owner of Arnold's Drive-In for season three (1975–76). He stated that he obtained the moniker when he purchased Arnold's restaurant and people thought it was named after him, explaining that it was too costly to buy enough letter signs needed to rename it "Takahashi". He moonlighted as a martial arts instructor, teaching self-defense classes at the drive-in after hours. Morita also played "Arnold" as a guest star in 1977 and 1979 before returning as a recurring character after Al Molinaro departed in 1982.
  • Jenny Piccolo – Joanie's boy-crazy best friend (1980–83), frequently mentioned but never seen in early episodes. She made her first on-screen appearance in the eighth season and remained a recurring character through the ninth season, becoming a regular during the tenth season in 1983. She returned as a guest star in the 1984 series finale. Jenny's father, played by Cathy Silvers' real-life father Phil Silvers, appeared in one episode.
  • Roger Phillips (Ted McGinley) – Marion's nephew; coach and teacher at Jefferson High, until "Vocational Education" where he became principal at Patton High. Introduced in 1980 after Richie left the show as a recurring character.
  • Lori Beth Allen-Cunningham (Lynda Goodfriend) – Richie's girlfriend and later his wife (1977–82). She married Richie by phone in season eight. Fonzie helped Lori Beth deliver her baby in "Little Baby Cunningham". She returned as a guest star in the final season, where she is revealed to be pregnant with her second baby.
  • Ashley Pfister (Linda Purl) – Divorced mother who becomes Fonzie's steady girlfriend until they broke up offscreen sometime before "Where the Guys Are". Purl also played as Richie's part-time girlfriend Gloria in season 2.

Mork & Mindy Connection[]

The character of Mork was introduced in a season five episode of Happy Days titled "My Favorite Orkan." Richie tells everyone he has seen a flying saucer, but no one else believes him. Fonzie tells him that people make up stories about UFOs because their lives are "humdrum." Then, while Richie's at home, Mork walks in. He freezes everyone with his finger except Richie and says he was sent to Earth to find a "humdrum" human to take back to Ork. Richie runs to Fonzie for help. When Mork catches up to him, he freezes everyone, including Fonzie. But gradually starts to see Fonz start to fight his way out of the freeze, due to his famous and powerful thumbs. Mork challenges Fonzie to a duel: Finger vs. Thumb. After their duel, The Fonz admits defeat. But Mork decides to take Fonzie back to Ork instead of Richie. Then, Richie wakes up and realizes he was dreaming. There is a knock on the door and much to Richie's dismay, it is a man who looks exactly like Mork except in regular clothes asking for directions.

When production on Mork & Mindy began, an extra scene was filmed and added to this episode for subsequent reruns. In the scene, Mork contacts Orson and explains that he decided to let Fonzie go, and was informed by him, that they had a new mission for him. That he was going to be sent to to the year 1978 to continue his mission, Mork complaining he didn't want to be stranded on Earth.

Fonzie and Laverne of Laverne & Shirley appeared in the Pilot of Mork & Mindy told as a retrospective by Mork to Mindy about one of his previous visits to Earth. His return journey to Milwaukee this time to visit Fonzie, as an interplanetary expert in 'dating', wanting to know more about why a man dates a woman. Fonzie subsequently setting Mork up on a disastrous date with Laverne.

Mork returns once more to the Cunningham's in Happy Days in an episode in 1979, Mork Returns. Mork brings Richie greetings from Mindy, Richie enquiring if that's a heavenly body? Mork replying 'Well she must have something because I'd be willing to walk 10 miles in the snow to stand in her garbage' Mork explains he is living in the future in the 1970s, but tells Richie that he enjoys coming to the 1950s because life is simpler and more "humdrum" than in the 1970s. Fonzie sees Mork and immediately tries to run away, but Mork freezes him and makes him stay. He eventually lets him go, but not before Fonzie asks Mork to reveal two things about the future: "Cars and girls". Mork's response is "In 1979... both are faster." The episode is mostly a retrospective in which clips are shown as Richie and Fonzie try to explain the concepts of love and friendship to Mork.

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