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Richard "Richie" Cunningham (Sr.) is the, as far as we know, first Earthling to ever encounter Mork, being the 'humdrum' specimen of humanity that was selected to be brought back to Ork for them to study, during the events of My Favorite Orkan, in Season 5 of Happy Days. He was played by Ron Howard.
About Richie[]
Richie was the middle child of Howard & Marion Cunningham, the older brother of Joanie Cunningham and younger brother of Chuck Cunningham. His closest friends were Ralph Malph, and Warren "Potsie" Weber, but Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli eventually referred to Richie as his best friend.
Richie Cunningham was the epitome of the 1950s wholesome, clean-cut, All-American teenager. His red hair and freckles gave him a strong resemblance to 50s TV icon Howdy Doody.
Outside of Fonzie, Richie's closest friend was Potsie followed by Ralph; it was mentioned more than once that Richie and Potsie had been best friends since childhood. Like Potsie and Ralph, Richie's primary goal in his teen years was to pick up girls, though any success he had did not last long. Early on he was more willing to do almost anything to get girls, including going through an hazing ritual to join a gang, which included him and Potsie dressing up in drag for a dance. Richie took part in fewer of these machinations over time, but occasionally he would go along with a scheme cooked up by Potsie or Ralph, though something would almost invariably go wrong with their plans, and the three would get into some kind of trouble.
Richie does not readily compromise his own moral code. Richie is always willing to stand up for what he believes, to his friends as well as his adversaries, no matter what it might cost him. This trait caught the attention and eventual admiration of Fonzie when they first met; Fonzie was a member of a gang called the Falcons and resented Richie at first sight, but when he threatened to beat him up, Richie stood his ground, which caused Fonzie to remark, "You got guts!" From that moment on the two became friends, and Fonzie appointed himself a protector of Richie and the others, usually showing up right at the last second before any of them can get hurt by bullies or gang members.
Aspirations[]
Early on, Richie mentioned that he wanted to go to law school and become a lawyer, but it turned out that his real passion was for journalism. His first reporting job was for the Jefferson High Bugle, and he later worked as a cub reporter for the Milwaukee Journal. After graduating high school, Richie studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), where he would meet Lori Beth Allen; the two would begin dating which turned into a steady relationship. After graduating from UWM, Richie served a brief tour in the Army and was stationed in Greenland, during which time he proposed to, and then married Lori Beth by telephone, with the Fonz standing in as groom for Richie. Lori Beth visited Richie in Greenland long enough to get pregnant with their first child: a son who was aptly named Richard Jr. In the final season of the series, Richie returned to Milwaukee and, after wrestling with his conscience, and after a falling out with Howard (and a brief fight with Fonzie), Richie decides to move his family west to California and further his writing career in the hope of finding work as a screenwriter.
Mork & Mindy[]
Richie has two encounters with Mork, both in the 1950s, when he is the chosen subject for Orkan scientists keen to examine Earthlings, with Mork being dispatched to bring this 'humdrum' human back with him to Ork in My Favorite Orkan. After this transpires to be a 'dream', or Mork making it appear so, Richie is somewhat vindicated in the view that it all happened, when Mork Returns to visit him having established himself in the 1970s, bringing Richie greetings from the Cosmic Congress and Mindy!