Happy Days originated in 1974 as a nostalgic teen-populated situation comedy centered on the life of Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) and his best friend Potsie (Anson Williams), both students at Jefferson High School in 1950's Milwaukee Wisconsin. The character, of Arthur Fonzarelli, Fonzie, with whom the show is now most associated was originally only fifth-billed. But his leather jacketed, "great with the girls," biker profile unexpectedly captured the imagination of viewers. Fonzie increased the popularity of the show and actor, who portrayed him, Henry Winkler, and by 1980, "the Fonz" had achieved top billing.

    The show presented a saccharine perspective on American youth culture of the 1950s. With rock and roll confined to the jukebox of Al's Diner, the kids worried over first loves, homecoming parades, and the occasional innocuous rumble. The Cunninghams represented the middle class family values of the era. Minor skirmishes erupted between parents and children, but dinner together was never missed--prepared and served by mother, Marion (Marion Ross), or daughter, Joanie (Erin Moran). There was no inkling of the "generation gap" discourse which was beginning to differentiate youth from their parents in the 1950s, and which was still active in the mid-1970s when the show was created.

    One episode pits Ritchie and his friends against Ritchie's father, Howard (Tom Bosley), by virtue of his support of a business plan that would send a freeway through the teen make-out spot, Inspiration Point. Civil disobedience is suggested by the teenagers' organization of petitions and picket signs to protest the plan. Fonzie even chains himself to a tree at the site. Yet generational harmony is restored when Ritchie makes Howard realize that he, too, participated in the culture of Inspiration Point when he was young.

    Fonzie's lower class status, his black leather clothes, and motorcycle, propensity to get into fights, and apparent sexual exploits with multiple women takes advantage of the code of delinquency which social scientists of the period fashioned under the rubric of deviancy studies. But again, Fonzie's representation had none of the hard edge or angst of a James Dean or Marlon Brandon character and was played more for laughs than social critique. Yet his popularity on the show may have tapped into deeper audience identifications.

    His image of an impervious, highly testosteroned male, albeit with modicums of vulnerability and hyperbole as acted by Winkler, was overtly rewarded in the show. It only took a snap of his fingers to have women do his bidding or grown men cower in fear of being pummeled by an out-of-control Fonzarelli. So male-identified was his character that the men's restroom in Al's Diner was referred to as his "office."

    The Fonz's courting of many women at once meant be was never subject to the kind of romantic involvement and inevitable heartbreak which characterized Ritchie's relationships with women. The Fonz's style, "my way" bravado, working class ethos, and loner sensibility differed from the mainstream Cunninghams and was in direct opposition to the upwardly mobile, college-bound, leadership-quality Ritchie. Ritchie, audiences knew, would someday outgrowth Milwaukee and leave it behind, but Fonzie had fewer choices, and was the type to stay behind. And perhaps the tension between these two worlds, these two life directions kept audiences watching through the show's ten year run during which time Ritchie and his pals go to college, the army, and even get married.

    Despite these contrasts, however, Fonzie and the Cunningham family were never involved in overt conflict. Indeed, by the end of the show, Fonzie had moved into the Cunningham's garage apartment, and though the bemused Howard Cunningham often wondered what was happening "up there," Fonzie was, by this time, a thoroughly domesticated character. His role not only paralleled that of Mr. Cunningham, but those of countless sitcom fathers before him, and he was as likely to dispense careful, family-oriented wisdom, as to suggest rebellion of the slightest sort. But it was always proffered with Winkler's parody-delinquent sense of style, a style that continues to appeal to youngsters in syndicated rerun throughout the world.

    Happy Days stands as the first of a string of extremely successful spinoff comedies from producer Garry Marshall. Laverne and Shirley, Mork and Mindy, and others shows helped propel the ABC television network into first place in the ratings battles, and enabled Marshall to move from television to feature film direction.

    -Lisa Anne Lewis

    CAST

    Richie Cunningham (1974-80).................. Ron Howard  

    Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli.................... Henry Winkler  

    Howard Cunningham ...............................https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/interviews/https://interviews…  

    Marion Cunningham............................... Marion Ross  

    Warren "Potsie" Webber (1974-83).... Anson Williams  

    Ralph Malph (1974-80)............................ Donny Most

    Joanie Cunningham .................................Erin Moran  

    Chuck Cunningham (1974)................ Gavan O'Herlihy  

    Chuck Cunningham (1974-75)......... Randolph Roberts

    Bag Zombroski (1974-75)................. Neil J. Schwartz

    Marsha Simms (1974-76).................... Beatrice Colen

    Gloria (1974-75)........................................ Linda Purl

    Wendy (1974-75).................................... Misty Rowe

    Trudy (1974-75)........................................... Tita Bell

    Arnold (Matsuo Takahashi) (1975-76, 1982-83)................ Pat Morita

    Charles "Chachi" Arcola (1977-84)............. Scott Baio

    Lori Beth Allen Cunningham (1977-82)........................ Lynda Goodfriend

    Eugene Belvin (1980-82)....................... Denis Mandel

    Bobby (1980-84)....................................... Harris Kal

    Jenny Piccalo (1980-83)........................ Cathy Silvers

    Roger Phillips (1980-84)....................... Ted McGinley

    Flip Phillips (1982-83)........................... Billy Warlock

    K.C. Cunningham (1982-83)............... Crystal Bernard

    Ashley Pfister (1982-83)............................ Linda Purl

    Heather Pfister (1982-83)................ Heather O'Rourke

    Officer Kirk................................................ Ed Peck

    PRODUCERS

    Garry Marshall, Thomas Miller, Edward Milkis, Lowell Ganz, Brian levant, Fred Fox Jr., Tony Marshall, Jerry Paris, William S. Bickley, Gary Menteer, Walter Kempley, Ronny Hallin.

    PROGRAMMING HISTORY

    ABC

    256 Episodes

    January 1974-September 1983   Tuesday 8:00-8:30

    September 1983-January 1984   Tuesday 8:30-9:00

    April 1984-May 1984   Tuesday 8:30-9:00

    June 1984-July 1984   Thursday 8:00-8:30

    Thumbnail of Henry Winkler

    Henry Winkler on the genesis of Fonzie's "whoa"and the "thumbs up"

    04:23
    Thumbnail of Garry Marshall

    Garry Marshall on negotiating with ABC so Fonzie could wear a leather jacket on Happy Days

    02:19
    Thumbnail of Tom Bosley

    Tom Bosley on his character "Howard Cunningham," and on dropped older son "Chuck," played by Gavan O'Herlihy, on Happy Days

    04:11
    Thumbnail of Pat Morita

    Pat Morita on being cast as "Arnold Takahashi" on Happy Days by Garry Marshall and Jerry Belson

    09:00
    Thumbnail of Ron Howard

    Ron Howard on accepting the lead role in Happy Days

    01:06
    Thumbnail of Marion Ross

    Marion Ross on being cast on Happy Days

    04:34

    Howard Anderson, Jr.

    Howard Anderson Jr. on creating the opening titles for Happy Days

    00:59

    Tom Bosley

    Tom Bosley on the decision to make Happy Days a three-camera show, and focus on the "Fonzie" character

    02:13

    Tom Bosley on the popularity of Happy Days

    01:26

    Tom Bosley on his character "Howard Cunningham," and on dropped older son "Chuck," played by Gavan O'Herlihy, on Happy Days

    04:11

    Tom Bosley on shooting the pilot for Happy Days, and on shooting the first few episodes

    04:45

    Tom Bosley on the rising popularity of Happy Days

    01:53

    Tom Bosley on working with Happy Days creator Garry Marshall

    03:48

    Tom Bosley on the challenges of trying not to be typecast as "Howard Cunningham" from Happy Days

    03:29

    Tom Bosley on finding the character of "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    04:42

    Tom Bosley on Marion Ross as "Marion Cunningham" on Happy Days and on the sense of values on the show

    05:22

    Tom Bosley on working with Ron Howard as "Richard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:54

    Tom Bosley on working with Erin Moran as Joanie Cunningham on Happy Days

    03:18

    Tom Bosley on Henry Winkler as "Fonzie" on Happy Days

    03:22

    Tom Bosley on Anson Williams and "Potsie Webber" and Donny Most as "Ralph Malph" on Happy Days

    04:40

    Tom Bosley on "Scott Baio" as "Chachi Arcola" on Happy Days

    00:35

    Tom Bosley on Pat Morita as "Arnold" on Happy Days

    01:03

    Tom Bosley on the logistics of shooting Happy Days, and on shooting in front of a studio audience

    03:28

    Tom Bosley on specific episodes of Happy Days

    05:02

    Tom Bosley on watching his performances as "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    02:50

    Tom Bosley on shooting the final episodes of Happy Days

    01:37

    Tom Bosley on Ron Howard leaving Happy Days

    01:37

    Tom Bosley on the continued popularity of Happy Days in syndication and on cable

    04:40

    Tom Bosley on appearing on the pilot for Love Boat

    01:47

    Michael Eisner

    Michael Eisner on the development of Happy Day s; on casting Fonzie

    05:08

    Michael Eisner on how Happy Days almost didn't get greenlit because network research said "the 50s won't work"; Eisner didn't believe in research

    03:35

    Michael Eisner on the development of Happy Days; the pilot didn't have Henry Winkler as Fonzie; on casting that role

    01:41

    Bob Elliott

    Bob Elliott on making guest appearances on Happy Days and Trapper John, M.D.

    01:05

    Charles Fox

    Charles Fox on scoring the music for the pilot for Happy Days (on Love, American Style) and later composing for the Happy Days series

    08:10

    Composer Charles Fox on working on Happy Days (continued)

    02:10

    Eddie Foy III

    Eddie Foy III on casting Happy Days

    01:34

    Richard Frank

    Richard Frank on overseeing production of Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley 

    05:51

    Richard Frank on the legacy of Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley

    03:13

    Lowell Ganz

    Lowell Ganz on starting to write for Happy Days

    02:58

    Lowell Ganz on Happy Days going from a one-camera show to a three-camera show

    02:37

    Lowell Ganz on the popularity of the "Fonzie" character on Happy Days and working with Ron Howard

    04:04

    Lowell Ganz on the rise of the ratings of Happy Days and becoming a producer on the show

    02:50

    Lowell Ganz on the challenges of producing Happy Days

    01:43

    Lowell Ganz on Happy Days' "Richie/Fonzie romance"

    03:46

    Lowell Ganz on moving "Fonzie" into the Cunningham household on Happy Days

    01:16

    Lowell Ganz on Tom Bosley as "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    03:05

    Lowell Ganz on Marion Ross as "Marion Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:10

    Lowell Ganz on Erin Moran as "Joanie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:40

    Lowell Ganz on Anson Williams as "Potsie Webber" on Happy Days

    01:30

    Lowell Ganz on the difficulty of serving a large cast as producer of Happy Days

    02:04

    Lowell Ganz on Pat Morita as "Arnold" and Al Molinaro as "Al Delvechio" on Happy Days

    01:25

    Lowell Ganz on the writers coming up with stories for Happy Days while he was a producer

    02:16

    Lowell Ganz on spinning off Laverne & Shirley from Happy Days

    00:01

    Lowell Ganz on working with director Jerry Paris while producing Happy Days

    00:52

    Lowell Ganz on Happy Days "Jumping the Shark" and Ron Howard leaving the show

    02:48

    Lowell Ganz on Happy Days' place in television history and his career

    02:04

    Lowell Ganz on the legacy of Happy Days

    01:42

    Lowell Ganz on returning to Happy Days later in its run

    02:31

    Ron Howard

    Ron Howard on accepting a role in the pilot of Happy Days (aired as an episode of Love, American Style) to avoid the Vietnam War draft

    02:11

    Ron Howard on the Happy Days pilot's belated series pickup, following the success of the feature film "American Graffiti"

    01:12

    Ron Howard on accepting the lead role in Happy Days

    01:06

    Ron Howard on the nostalgic quality of Happy Days

    00:30

    Ron Howard on the premise of Happy Days and breakout character "Fonzie"

    01:32

    Ron Howard on how Happy Days' "Fonzie" was being groomed to compete with Good Times' "J.J."

    01:40

    Ron Howard on rejecting Happy Days' title change to Fonzie's Happy Days when Fonzie became a breakout character

    02:22

    Ron Howard on the network and studio's waning interest in him on Happy Days in light of breakout character "Fonzie"

    02:31

    Ron Howard on his Happy Days co-stars Henry Winkler, Donny Most, and Anson Williams

    01:06

    Ron Howard on his Happy Days parents -- Tom Bosley and Marion Ross

    00:40

    Ron Howard on his Happy Days co-star Erin Moran

    00:30

    Ron Howard on working with Happy Days director Jerry Paris

    00:53

    Ron Howard on comparing the approach to comedy on The Andy Griffith Show to that of Happy Days

    01:23

    Ron Howard on his Happy Days character "Richie Cunningham"

    01:16

    Ron Howard on his character "Richie's" relationship to "Fonzie" on Happy Days

    01:06

    Ron Howard on the "best boss" he ever worked for: Happy Days creator/producer Garry Marshall

    01:33

    Ron Howard on the "Howdy Doody" episode of Happy Days

    00:58

    Ron Howard on playing a drunk scene in the Happy Days episode "Richie's Cup Runneth Over"

    00:48

    Ron Howard on the Happy Days episode "Hollywood" which ushered in the TV term "jump the shark"

    02:08

    Ron Howard on the Happy Days episode "Richie Almost Dies" and Henry Winkler's contribution

    01:01

    Ron Howard on the Happy Days episode "My Favorite Orkan" (which introduced "Mork") and Robin Williams' talent

    03:47

    Ron Howard on "Richie's" memorable rendition of "Blueberry Hill" on Happy Days

    00:37

    Ron Howard on the catchphrases from Happy Days

    01:12

    Ron Howard on the inspiration for his trademark laugh from Happy Days

    00:13

    Ron Howard on how little research he did into the 1950s for Happy Days

    00:18

    Ron Howard on how the cast of Happy Days, excluding himself, eventually allowed their 1950s style haircut to grow out to 1970s length during the show's run

    00:34

    Ron Howard on Lynda Goodfriend, who played his character's love interest, "Lori Beth," on Happy Days

    00:55

    Ron Howard on what might have been "Richie Cunningham's" career trajectory following Happy Days

    00:27

    Ron Howard on his attempt to renegotiate his ABC contract to allow him to stay with Happy Days and pursue his burgeoning directing career

    03:24

    Ron Howard on telling Garry Marshall that he'd be leaving Happy Days to pursue a directing career

    01:52

    Buz Kohan

    Buz Kohan on working with Garry Marshall and briefly being on the writing staff of Happy Days

    01:51

    Garry Marshall

    Garry Marshall on the origin of the name "Potsie Weber"

    00:20

    Garry Marshall on "New Family in Town", the original unsold pilot for Happy Days

    04:18

    Garry Marshall on the casting of Ron Howard and the development of the Fonz character on Happy Days

    06:52

    Garry Marshall on the genesis of Mork on Happy Days, "My Favorite Orkan" (airdate: February 28, 1978) which led to Mork & Mindy

    02:32

    Garry Marshall on improvising a set on the Happy Days episode "Fonzie for the Defense" (airdate: May 30, 1978)

    02:04

    Garry Marshall on negotiating with ABC so Fonzie could wear a leather jacket on Happy Days

    02:19

    Garry Marshall on the family focus of Happy Days

    00:39

    Garry Marshall on the censorship of a scene in "All the Way" (airdate: January 15, 1974), the first episode of Happy Days 

    01:04

    Garry Marshall on the writers, producers and other behind-the-scenes on Happy Days

    02:19

    Garry Marshall on his favorite episodes of Happy Days

    03:29

    Garry Marshall on the Happy Days episode "Richie Almost Dies" (airdate: January 31, 1978) (Fonzie cries)

    01:28

    Garry Marshall on the Happy Days episode "Hard Cover" (airdate: September 27, 1977) (Fonzie gets a library card)

    01:11

    Penny Marshall

    Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall on introducing the characters of "Laverne DeFazio" and "Shirley Feeney" on Happy Days

    01:00

    Pat Morita

    Pat Morita on being cast as "Arnold Takahashi" on Happy Days by Garry Marshall and Jerry Belson

    09:00

    Pat Morita on his character of "Arnold Takahashi" on Happy Days

    03:56

    Pat Morita on his favorite "Arnold" moments on Happy Days

    04:07

    Pat Morita on people accepting his "Arnold Takahashi" character on Happy Days, and on why ABC wanted the audience to see him

    03:26

    Pat Morita on working with Tom Bosley as "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:47

    Pat Morita on working with Marion Ross and "Marion Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:51

    Pat Morita on working with Ron Howard as "Ritchie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    02:29

    Pat Morita on working with Henry Winkler as "Fonzie"
    on Happy Days

    02:55

    Pat Morita on Erin Moran as "Joanie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:46

    Pat Morita on Anson Williams as "Potsie Webber" on Happy Days

    02:04

    Pat Morita on Donny Most as "Ralph Malph" on Happy Days

    02:10

    Pat Morita on leaving Happy Days for Mr. T. & Tina, produced by James Komack

    03:00

    Janis Paige with Emerson College

    Janis Paige on guest-starring on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Happy Days

    01:36

    Carroll Pratt

    Carroll Pratt on providing a laugh track for The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, The Brady Bunch, Gilligan's Island, My Favorite Martian, Happy Days, and The Andy Griffith Show

    05:16

    Rob Reiner

    Rob Reiner on contributing writing to the pilot for Happy Days

    01:32

    Marion Ross

    Marion Ross on being cast on Happy Days

    04:34

    Marion Ross on the basic premise of Happy Days

    02:36

    Marion Ross on her Happy Days character, "Marion Cunningham"

    03:12

    Marion Ross on comparing her own life to the life of "Marion Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:44

    Marion Ross on how her Happy Days character, "Marion Cunningham," developed over time

    01:49

    Marion Ross on learning the place of her character, "Marion Cunningham," on Happy Days

    01:01

    Marion Ross on "Marion Cunningham's" relationship with "Ritchie Cunningham" (Ron Howard) on Happy Days

    03:13

    Marion Ross on Henry Winkler as "Fonzie" on Happy Days and on "Marion's" friendship with "Fonzie"

    01:49

    Marion Ross on Anson Williams as "Potsie Webber" on Happy Days

    03:01

    Marion Ross on Scott Baio as "Chachi Arcola" on Happy Days

    01:14

    Marion Ross on Pat Morita as "Arnold" and Al Molinaro as "Al" on Happy Days

    00:47

    Marion Ross on Tom Bosley as "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:02

    Marion Ross on Erin Moran as "Joanie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:07

    Marion Ross on how the young cast of Happy Days dealt with fame

    02:26

    Marion Ross on Garry Marshall's producing style on Happy Days

    03:03

    Marion Ross on Jerry Paris as director on Happy Days

    04:35

    Marion Ross on Happy Days director Jerry Paris and his working relationship with Garry Marshall

    01:30

    Marion Ross on the Happy Days softball team

    03:18

    Marion Ross on the Happy Days fan mail

    01:33

    Marion Ross on "Marion Cunningham" dancing with "Fonzie" on Happy Days

    00:59

    Marion Ross on the disappearance of "Chuck Cunningham" on Happy Days

    00:42

    Marion Ross on Happy Days losing Donny Most and Ron Howard

    00:52

    Marion Ross on the final episode of Happy Days, which featured the marriage of "Joanie" and "Chachi," and the return of Ron Howard as "Ritchie Cunningham"

    01:24

    Marion Ross on Happy Days' many spin-offs, including Mork & Mindy

    02:00

    Marion Ross on where "Marion Cunningham" of Happy Days might be in the then-present

    01:12

    Marion Ross on the legacy of Happy Days

    00:54

    Mark Rothman

    Mark Rothman on going to write for Happy Days

    01:18

    Mark Rothman on switching Happy Days from a single camera show to a multi-camera show in front of an audience 

    10:15

    Mark Rothman on working with Garry Marshall and Jerry Belson

    04:55

    Mark Rothman on "Fonzie" becoming the central character of Happy Days

    02:24

    Mark Rothman on inventing the Happy Days catchphrase "Sit on it!"

    02:18

    Mark Rothman on Henry Winkler as "Fonzie" on Happy Days

    07:23

    Mark Rothman on Ron Howard as "Richie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:34

    Mark Rothman on Marion Ross as "Marion Cunningham" on Happy Days

    02:43

    Mark Rothman on Tom Bosley as "Howard Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:53

    Mark Rothman on Erin Moran as "Joanie Cunningham" on Happy Days

    01:02

    Mark Rothman on Donny Most and Anson Williams as "Ralph Malph" and "Potsie Webber" on Happy Days

    02:57

    Mark Rothman on Pat Morita as "Arnold" on Happy Days and the inception of Laverne and Shirley

    06:57

    Mark Rothman on the inception of Laverne and Shirley

    03:26

    Fred Silverman

    Fred Silverman on highlighting the Fonzie character on Happy Days during his first year as President of ABC Entertainment in 1975

    00:52

    Dick Van Patten

    Dick Van Patten on a guest role he had on Happy Days

    01:16

    Cindy Williams

    Cindy Williams on her first appearance on Happy Days  and on working with the cast

    04:23

    Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall on introducing the characters of "Laverne DeFazio" and "Shirley Feeney" on Happy Days

    01:00

    Henry Winkler

    Henry Winkler talks about getting cast as "The Fonz" on Happy Days; why Fonzie never rode a motorcycle or combed his hair, and the genesis of his catchphrase "whoa"

    08:46

    Henry Winkler ("Arthur Fonzarelli" aka "The Fonz") talks about the cast and director of Happy Days

    06:07

    Henry Winkler on how he was cast as "Fonzie' on Happy Days , and how the network originally wanted someone bigger for the role

    02:54

    Henry Winkler on celebrity and using "Fonzie's" catchphrases in public

    02:11

    Henry Winkler on crafting the voice of the Fonz on Happy Days

    01:56

    Henry Winkler on the inspiration for 'The Fonz'

    01:22

    Henry Winkler on what became the infamous "jumping the shark" episode of Happy Days

    03:25

    Henry Winkler on a typical production week at Happy Days

    03:48

    Henry Winkler on the episode "Fonzie Gets Married"

    01:09

    Henry Winkler on the episode "Fonzie Moves In"

    00:15

    Henry Winkler on Fonzie's love life

    01:24

    Henry Winkler on the "Dance Contest" of Happy Days

    03:56

    Henry Winkler on the "My Favorite Orkan" episode of Happy Days

    01:47

    Henry Winkler on his favorite episode of Happy Days and how his character changed

    01:25

    All Shows

    Loading Shows...