Días felices

"American Graffiti"-styled television show that ran a decade (1974-1984) and completed a mind-blowing 255 episodes in all. The show followed the Cunningham family (father Tom Bosley, mother Marion Ross, son Ron Howard and daughter Erin Moran) in Milwaukee throughout the 1950s. Howard, his friends (Don Most and Anson Williams) and their misadventures with school and girls dominated the show's story-lines early on. Would-be motorcycle tough guy punk Henry Winkler (aka Fonzie) stole the show from minute one and he was the main reason why the show survived so long. Cast departures (Howard, Most and diner owner Pat Morita) and additions (Ted McGinley, Scott Baio, Al Molinaro and Morita again) did nothing to change ratings as the show consistently stayed high on the Nielsen scale. Also the father of two lesser spin-offs ("Laverne & Shirley" and "Joanie Loves Chachi"), "Happy Days" proved that one amazing character (Fonz) could basically carry a program's list of shortcomings. 4 stars out of 5.

When Happy Days aired, I was in grade school, and like all the kids in my day, I loved "The Fonz" and his "cool" image and what it represented. Of course, ratings are ratings, and the Fonzie became the dominant figure in the show.

Now, as I've watched the reruns on "Nickelodean", I have to admit that the show was of much better quality in its early episodes. It truly was a "family" show with a moral at the end of each episode, without being preachy. It seems that in those early episodes (the first year or year and a half), the show truly did capture the 50's suburban lifestyle.

Once Fonzie became the focus, it does seem now that the show got kind of silly and unbelieveable, and saturated by "Fonzie." Of course, it's not quality of writing that keeps shows alive, unfortunately, and I realize that the show wouldn't have survived as long as it had if it had kept its earlier format. Still, I do greatly enjoy those early episodes when I watch them.

I don't know what Joel S. was watching when he was making comments about Fonzie being a loser.

Fonzie was supposed to be older than the rest of the gang, but not by that many years. Perhaps it was because Henry Winkler was older than the rest of the cast that he looked, as you said, twenty years older.

Fonzie never dated high school girls. He knew they were too young for him. He had morals.

Fonzie being an illiterate high school drop-out? I don't know where you got that from. Fonzie had dropped out of high school when the show started, but one of plot points of the episode where Richie graduated high school was that Fonzie revealed that he'd been secretly going to night school to earn his high school diploma. He graduated with the rest of the gang.

Fonzie living above the Cunningham's garage. That was because he'd given up his own apartment to his grandmother after she'd been forced to leave her own place. He stayed above the garage for so long because he loved he Cunninghams like his own family. He essentially was a part of the family. In the last season, he did move out into a regular apartment. In the last episode he bought a house so that he would be allowed to adopt an orphaned boy he'd befriended. Gee...buying a house so you can provide a good home and be a good parent? Doesn't sound like a loser.

As well, Fonzie also worked several jobs at once. He was (or became) the owner of the garage he worked at. When Arnold's burned down, he put up money to help Al rebuild and became the part-owner. Then, he started teaching shop class at Jefferson High. He later went to a tough school and became the Dean of Boys, so he could help kids who needed guidance.

So, I think Fonzie was a cool character not because of his leather jacket, or motorcycle, or his prowess with girls. I think he was cool because he was a good person who was always willing to help a friend in need. Did you ever see the episode where Al wants to go down to Alabama to join a Civil Rights march? (This was a later episode when the time was the 1960's). Fonzie is concerned about Al's safety and goes with him to look out for him. Fonzie joins Al and a young African-American man in a sit-in at a diner. That doesn't sound like something a loser would do.

It's the 1950's Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The show centers on teenager Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard), his suburban family, his school friends, and local mechanic, the Fonz (Henry Winkler). It does start with a brother Chuck and a grey jacket for Fonzie. The first two seasons are shot single camera style. There is a rougher edge to some serious subject matters. It's not the hardest hitting but the difference with the later years is stark. It's American Graffiti. Heck, it's sometimes close to American Pie. After those initial two, the show becomes the standard for 80's brighter, lighter, family friendly, multi-camera sitcom style done in front of a live studio audience.

Over the years, there are different characters and it becomes a legendary sitcom lasting 11 seasons. Henry Winkler, Marion Ross, and Tom Bosley are the veterans who held up the show all the way to the end. On the other hand, the supposed lead Ron Howard would leave the show after seven seasons. He was never that funny to me and I question his ability as the straight man. He's better as a director anyways. I'm not a fan of Joanie and Chachi who are fighting half of time. I never really liked Chachi and I only tolerated Joanie. I'm not a big fan of Potsie either and I definitely don't like his crooning. At least, Ralph Malph gets a few laughs at his own expense. As for the later additional characters, I like boy-crazy Jenny Piccalo the most. She's a fun character and the definition of the clueless cute single girl. KC is a little bland as a random cousin coming out of nowhere for the 10th season. I like Roger Phillips especially when he's paired up with the Fonz at the school. There is a weird situation with Linda Purl who plays two characters over the years. During the second season, she's Richie's girlfriend Gloria, and during the tenth season, she's Fonzie's girlfriend Ashley Pfister. Think about that. What I forgot is that Ashley's daughter was played by Poltegeist's Heather O'Rourke. Over the years, there are many memorable guest stars. Phil Silvers played Cathy Silvers' father. Robin Williams had a great crazy turn as Mork leading to his own show and becoming a Hollywood legend. There's also Laverne & Shirley who spun off on their own. This show lasted 11 seasons and is one of the legendary network TV shows of all times.

This was one of the greatest shows of the 1970's. Many people think of it as a simple comedy, but in the early years the series tackled some serious issues such as racism and nuclear war. The strength of the show was the friendship between Richie and Fonzie. The chemistry between Ron Howard and Henry Winkler made this show a classic. Unfortunately, after Howard left, they tried to keep the show going by focusing on Joanie and Chachi and that was when the show began to go downhill. However, just ignore the final years of the show and pay attention to the early years.