Whatever happened to the cast of Happy Days

in 1974 ABC adds the first episode of happy days and the sitcom went on to become one of the best-loved TV shows of all the time created by Gary Marshall the man who would later go on to direct films such as pretty woman beaches and the Princess Diaries happy days ran for 11 seasons and was syndicated around the world focusing on the Cunningham family and friends The Show revisited an idealized version of the 50s when interest in as nostalgia for that period was experiencing a peak in the u.s. happy days was immensely successful and made household names of the cast and today we're going to revisit them and find out what they're currently up to the show was initially centered around Richie Cunningham who was played by Ron Howard at the time Howard was already an established child actor having appeared in The Andy Griffith Show for eight years when the pilot of Happy Days was shot it wasn't picked up for some time and how it went on to find success starring in George Lucas's 1973 coming-of-age film American Graffiti when happy days was finally aired a year later Howard was the focal point of the series playing the quintessential boy next door off screen howard pursued his interest in directing and in 1977 he made his debut with the low-budget comedy action film grand theft auto which went on to become a commercial success in 1980 Howard left happy days to focus on his directing career making the occasional reappearance during the show's final season in 1982 Howard directed nightshift featuring Michael Keaton Shelley Long and his Happy Days co-star and good friend Henry Winkler the film did relatively well both commercially and critically and marked the beginning of an auspicious directing career in the following years Howard directed well-received films including splash cocoon Apollo 13 and how the Grinch Stole Christmas in 2001 he released a beautiful mind a film based on the life of John Nash a Nobel laureate in economics who suffers from schizophrenia the film was immediately successful and went on to win Howard an Academy Award as Best Director Howard's career as a director is notable for his consistency he continues to direct films which by and large do well both commercially and critically how it chooses to mix smaller budget films such as frost/nixon and rush with big-budget ventures including a series of films based on Dan Brown's best-selling novels in 1975 Howard married his high school sweetheart Cheryl Ally and their marriage is considered one of the longest surviving Hollywood marriages the couple have four children together the eldest being Bryce Dallas Howard who has starred in M night Shyamalan the village and lady in the water as happy days progressed a fan favorite emerged in the form of Arthur Fonzarelli better known as Fonzie or the Fonz portrayed by Henry Winkler the charming greaser became legendary his popularity was recognized and Winkler was given lead billing with Howard Fonzie was initially imagined as a dumb hunk created to act as a foil for Richie Cunningham however during auditions Winkler's intelligent interpretation of the role was preferred and the actor was snapped up for the part while on the show Winkler made a number of average films however he missed an opportunity when he declined the part of Danny Zuko in what was to become one of the most successful movie musicals of all time grease Winkler was the first choice for the role which he refused for fear of being typecast the part then went to John Travolta Winkler later admitted regretting the decision and is quoted as saying I was asked to be in grease but I decided I didn't want to be typecast but what I didn't realize was that I already was that's why John Travolta went on to buy his own plane and I just went home however the actor has enjoyed a long and area'd career despite not being able to recreate his success from the happy days he's been an executive producer on the oscar-winning documentary film who are the D bolts and where did they get 19 kids he produced several TV shows including MacGyver and directed a number of movies Winkler has also continued to act in supporting roles in both film and TV he can be seen in films such as holes and down to you and has made appearances in successful TV shows including Lauren order numbers and Arrested Development in 1978 Winkler married Stacy Firstman Weitzman they met when Winkler went into a store to buy a jacket where Weitzman was working as a publicist the couple have two children together and Winkler also has a stepson from Weitzman's earlier marriage Winkler has dyslexia and has spoken out about the difficulties he faced growing up as a result of the condition the actor was diagnosed after seeing his stepson being tested and identifying with the doctor's comments he was 31 years old at the time Winkler has co-created a series of children's books featuring a dyslexic protagonist in recognition for his work with children who suffer from learning disabilities Winkler has been awarded an OBE over the years Winkler has remained close to his happy days co-star Ron Howard and is the Godfather to Howard's children Ritchie Cunningham's lovable hard-working father Howard Cunningham was played by actor Tom Bosley by the time Bosley came to happy days he's been acting for many years in theater film and TV but Howard Cunningham was to be one of his most notable roles Bhosle initially turned down the part but changed his mind after rereading the pilot and being moved by a scene between Howard Cunningham and Richie after happy days wrapped both Lee went on to play sheriff Amos topper in the successful murder mystery series Murder She Wrote starring Angela Lansbury he then went on to appear in another murder mystery series but this time he was the star in the Father Dowling mysteries Bosley took on the role of crime solving Bosley was also a popular voice-over artist recognizable for his distinctive gravelly tone Bosley was twice married his first wife died in 1978 after a seven-year battle with a brain tumor the couple had been married for 16 years and after her death Bosley suffered from depression he credited his recovery to his family friends and daughter both the remarried actress Patricia Carr in 1980 in 2010 the actor died of heart failure at the age of 83 while fighting lung cancer his death was widely reported in the media and tributes from fans who remembered Bosley from the Happy Days flooded in several of his former castmates also paid tribute to the actor including Ron Howard Henry Winkler and his on-screen wife Marion Ross doting wife and mother Marion Cunningham was played by actress Marion Ross like Bosley Ross was already a well-established actor by the time she came to Happy Days her credits included the film's Sabrina and teacher's pet as well as TV shows including the Outer Limits and Perry Mason after happy days Ross starred in the short-lived but critically acclaimed Brooklyn Bridge when that show was canceled Ross continued to work steadily in film TV and theatre in 1951 aged only 23 and still in college Ross eloped with Freeman Messman on the spur of the moment they were together for 18 years before the marriage ended in divorce the couple had two children together both of whom currently work in the film and television industry later in life Ross met actor Paul Michael the pair never married but were together for 23 years until Michael died in 2011 aged 84 as well as the Fonz Richie Cunningham had two other good friends Potsie Weber and Ralph Malph Potsie was portrayed by actor Anson Williams the character was originally meant to be Richie Cunningham's best friend however as Winkler's Fonzie became the show's breakout star pottsy's prominence diminished and he was paired with ralph for the show's subplots williams stayed on for the lifetime of happy days although his appearances became much less frequent in the later seasons after happy days rapped Williams went on to become a TV director working on shows such as Beverly Hills 90210 Melrose Place and charmed also a successful entrepreneur Williams founded the cosmetics company Star Maker cosmetics in the late 80s he along with fellow Happy Days cast member al Molinaro opened up a chain of diners called Big Al's Williams has been married twice his first wife was actress Lauri Murphy who played his girlfriend on happy days the couple married in 1978 but the marriage ended in divorce after eight years in 1986 Williams then went on to meet and then marry his current wife Jackie gherkin in 1988 Williams's father to five daughters an interesting piece of trivia about Williams is that he was born Anson William Heimlich and is in fact the nephew of dr. Henry Heimlich creator of the Heimlich maneuver pottsy's best friend practical joker Ralph Malph was played by actor Donny most the actor left happy days after the seventh season as he wanted to branch out as an actor he appeared in several films and TV shows his credits include Baywatch Charles in Charge and Glee he is also well known for voicing Eric the Cavalier in Dungeons & Dragons most married actress Morgan Hunt in 1982 and together the couple had two daughters rounding up the Cunningham family was Richie Cunningham's younger sisters Joanie played by actress erin moran initially Richie and Joanie had an older brother in the form of Chuck Cunningham but after the second season of happy days the character abruptly disappeared this gave rise to the term Chuck Cunningham syndrome which describes his circumstances when a TV character disappears from shows as if they never existed Moran like Howard was all ready an established child actor when she came to the show her journey from bratty little sister to a popular young woman was documented on the show and her on-screen character won the admiration of Fonzie's younger cousin chachi the popularity of Joanie and chachi as a couple gave rise to the spin-off series Joanie Loves Chachi starring Moran the show failed to find an audience and was cancelled after two seasons moran then returned to happy days for its final season after the show moran failed to establish a successful career as an actress despite guest starring in several well-known TV shows including The Love Boat Murder She Wrote and diagnosis murder in 2008 Moran participated in reality TV show Celebrity Fit Club but her casual attitude to losing weight and admission that she was only on the show for money failed to win her favor with audiences in 2011 Moran along with Happy Days coasters don most Anson Williams Marion Ross and the estate of Tom Bosley filed a breach of contract lawsuit against CBS for not being paid Happy Days merchandising revenues the case was settled out of court and each actor received a payment of $65,000 and a promise by CBS to continue honoring the terms of their contracts despite the payout in 2012 it was reported in the media that Moran had encountered financial troubles once more and had lost her California home to foreclosure forcing her to move into her mother-in-law's mobile home Moran has been married twice her first marriage to raqi Ferguson lasted for six years between 1987 to 1993 when the couple divorced Moran went on to marry her current husband Steve Fleischman radar online recently reported that Moran has moved out of her mother-in-law's trailer following arguments and that the former actress is currently living in hotels and planning to write an autobiography to help pay off her debts Moran's co-star and on-screen boyfriend Scott Baio who portrayed chachi fared far better than the actress after the expiration of happy days he came to the sitcom with an already impressive CV having played the lead in Bugsy Malone while on happy days bio also earned two Emmy nominations for his lead performances in the TV movies stone and all the kids do it after the demise of Joanie Loves Chachi bio like Moran returned to Happy Days for the show's final season when the show wrapped bio continued to act and in 1984 he took on the titular role in Charles in Charge a part that propelled him into the limelight once more once the show came to an end fire worked steadily in film and TV his credits included Arrested Development and diagnosis murder in addition to acting bio has worked as a producer director and presenter in 2007 and 2008 bio even starred in his own reality TV series the show was produced by BIOS friends turned producer Jason Hervey himself a former child star of the 80s classic The Wonder Years in 2007 vaio married his longtime girlfriend model and actress Renee Sloan the couple met in the late 90s at the Playboy Mansion and began dating in 2003 before marrying four years later the couple have a daughter together bio and his wife established the Bayley bio angel foundation after their daughter tested a false positive for a rare metabolic disorder the foundation helps financially support other families who are dealing with the condition bio has been vocal about his conservative political views and is a registered Republican in 2010 the actor posted an unflattering picture of Michelle Obama on Twitter and was heavily criticized for the action that same year he and his wife became embroiled in an argument with online magazine Jezebel over comments bio made about his taxes going to feed lazy people things escalated when Sloan defended bio on a Facebook post and made homophobic remarks about the Jezebel staff the altercation was widely reported in the media since 2012 bio has been starring in the sitcom see Dad run the show depicts a former actor who becomes a stay-at-home dad and finally we turn our attention to al Molinaro who played Aldo Vecchio the drive-in owner and cook of Arnold's diner in happy days Molinaro joined the cast in season 4 when Pat Morita who played Arnold Takashi left the show at the end of the third season Morita would later go on to find worldwide fame after playing mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid Molinaro was already financially independent from business ventures when he decided to pursue acting he got his break playing officer Marie Dressler on The Odd Couple and after that followed happy days when the show wrapped Molinaro all but retired from acting making a handful of minor appearances in sitcoms and commercials in 1994 Molinaro appeared in the music video for the single Buddy Holly by American rock band Weezer and that concludes our roundup of what happened to the cast of happy days we hope you enjoyed this video and remember for more videos like this subscribe to london city girl and we'll see you next time you

Channel: LondonCityGirl

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Keywords: Happy Days cast then and now, Happy Days - Where are they now, What happened to the Fonz, What happened to the cast of Happy Days, What happened to Fonzie, What happened to the actor who played Fonzie, What happened to Henry Winkler, Henry winkler Fonzie, What happened to Richie Cunnigham, Richie Cunningham Ron Howard, What happened to Joanie Cunnigham, What happened to Erin Moran, What happened to Chachi from Happy Days, What happened to Scott Baio

Id: RlFuKBW8GPc

Length: 16min 54sec (1014 seconds)

Published: Thu Dec 04 2014