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Originally aired beginning in 1974 -- just one year after "American Graffiti" put George Lucas on the map and made the 1950s cool again -- "Happy Days" represents nostalgia at its peak. The popular show revolved around average teen Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) and his friends during the late 1950s and early 1960s in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Injecting pure Americana straight into the veins of viewers, "Happy Days" ran for 11 seasons on ABC, becoming one of the most successful shows of the era and one of the greatest sitcoms of all time. And naturally, any network is going to look at that level of popularity and try to find a way to capitalize on it. 

Back in the 1970s, any show that had even a hint of a following could usually be counted on to generate a spinoff or two, so it...

Garry Marshall's 1974 sitcom "Happy Days" was a phenomenon. It started slow, but gained popularity over its first few seasons, and eventually lasted a massive 255 episodes over 11 seasons. It would spawn four spin-off shows in the form of "Laverne & Shirley," "Blansky's Beauties," "Mork & Mindy," and "Joanie Loves Chachi." One could even debate that the obscure angelic sitcom "Out of the Blue" counts, as it had a crossover with "Mork & Mindy." The series spawned piles upon piles of merch, attracting a wide audience of kids who weren't old enough to remember the time of the show's setting. 

Set in the suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the mid-1950s, "Happy Days" tapped into Boomer nostalgia like nothing before, presenting the past (at least as far as white suburbanites were concerned) as a simpler, sillier, more idealized time. It was about relationship issues, friendships, family, and the act of just hanging out.

Some of the most successful shows in television history forged their own legacy as spin-offs from preexisting series. In many cases, these spin-offs are more popular and enduring than the shows they originated from in the first place. Spin-offs can be continuations, side stories, or revivals of an original property, completely reinvigorating a franchise as it expands it. And virtually every genre and format has seen its fair share of thriving spin-offs, from crime procedurals and sitcoms to animated series and talk shows.

In some instances, a spin-off builds directly off its originating show while in other instances, some successful spin-offs require no prior knowledge of the previous series. No matter what form they come in or how connected they are to other shows, audiences love spin-offs, making them a staple in the industry for decades. With all that in mind, here are the 12 best television spin-offs of all time.

Garry Marshall's sitcom "Happy Days" debuted on ABC in 1974, and it quickly became a fulcrum in popular culture. Marshall's show was set in the 1950s and served as nostalgia bait for white Boomers who were teens in post-war America. "Happy Days" starred Ron Howard as the innocent teen Richie Cunningham, and followed the wholesome adventures of him and his family. "Happy Days" didn't so much interrogate the 1950s as roll around in them. "Happy Days" spawned five spinoff shows and it ran for 11 seasons.

The standout character on "Happy Days" was, of course, Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler), a gentle greaser, mechanic, and leather-wearing bad boy, who was Richie's best friend. The Fonz, however, wasn't so much a "bad boy" as too cool for the room. Everyone loved the character, and audiences couldn't wait to see him every week.

Howard left at the end of the show's seventh season,...

Though Pat Morita became a household name for his Oscar-nominated turn as Mr. Miyagi in 1984's The Karate Kid, he had already played an important role in the sitcom Happy Days. With a career that spanned over five decades, Noriyuki "Pat" Morita was a groundbreaking figure in Hollywood who helped to open doors for actors of Asian descent. The early days of Morita's career involved stints on various sitcoms in the '60s and '70s, and by the time he arrived on the wildly popular Happy Days, he was already a seasoned veteran.

Besides being a cultural touchstone of the 1970s, the nostalgic Happy Days also kicked off the careers of several notable names including Henry Winkler. The series sat atop the television rankings for several years, and some of the Happy Days spinoffs were almost as successful as the original. Pat Morita left his mark on the long-running show,...

The sitcom Happy Days was a television institution, and its overwhelming popularity resulted in an astounding number of spinoffs. First airing in 1974, Happy Days told the story of a gang of teens in middle America during the '50s and '60s, and their nostalgic adventures were exactly what television audiences wanted at the time. Just a few short years into its run, Happy Days began receiving a slew of spinoffs that were met with varying degrees of success, though were popular enough to spawn other shows themselves. While no spinoff series ever eclipsed the original, Happy Days was a fertile product for new TV shows.

With Happy Days' simplistic format and a slew of memorable characters, spinoffs came naturally for the sitcom, and audiences couldn't get enough of the "good old days" on their TV sets. Even after the notorious "jump the shark" episode, the series was still popular...

Warren Berlinger, a busy character actor whose numerous roles made him one of TV’s most familiar faces from the Kraft Theatre golden age through the Grace and Frankie streaming era, died Wednesday at the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia, California. He was 83.

His death was confirmed by daughter Elizabeth. A cause has not been announced.

With a cherubic face that could seem simultaneously amiable and, along with the hint of an accent from his native Brooklyn, mischievous, Berlinger was a go-to actor for supporting and sidekick roles for decades, both in film, and television.

After the Bishop show,...

Sad news for movie fans. Iconic American filmmaker and legendary TV sitcom creator Garry Marshall has passed away. Perhaps best known for turning Julia Roberts into a household name with his classic 1990 romanic comedy Pretty Woman, the man succumbed to complications from pneumonia following a stroke. A Los Angeles resident most of his life, he died Tuesday night in a Burbank, California hospital.

Garry Marshall was 81 years old at the time of his passing. Along with Pretty Woman, he also helped establish actress Anne Hathaway as a true Hollywood star with both 2001's The Princess Diaries and its 2004 sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement. A true legend in both the world of film and television, news of his untimely demise was first announced by Access Hollywood. Cause of death was then later confirmed by TMZ.

Born in the Bronx, New York, Marshall began his career on television writing for Jack Paar's Tonight Show.

TV will never be the same. Acclaimed producer Garry Marshall has died at the age of 81. The brother of Laverne & Shirley's Penny Marshall created the Happy Days, Joanie Loves Chachi, Mork & Mindy, and Angie TV shows, and so much more.The Bronx-born son of Marjorie Irene and Anthony Wallace, Marshall began his career as a joke-writer for Joey Bishop. Marshall's other TV series work includes: Blansky's Beauties, The Brian Keith Show, Me and the Chimp, Love American Style, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Lucy Show, The Joey Bishop Show, and Make Room for Daddy.Read More…...