The Happy Days Cast: Then And Now

It has been 30 years since the records in the ‘Happy Days’ opening credits stopped spinning – what madcap antics have Richie, The Fonz, Potsie, Ralph Malph and the gang been up to since? They weren’t all happy days…

Henry Winkler – The Fonz

No Arthur Fonzarelli, no 'Happy Days’: Winkler’s cooler-than-cool greaser icon was a TV staple for 11 years between 1974 and 1984, never a hair out of place – even when he jumped a shark on a jetski, coining the phrase meaning 'to begin one’s eventual decline in quality’. No such diminishing returns for Winkler, however, who has remained a mainstay in comedy ever since he left Milwaukee; unafraid to play against type, he traded in his snappy coolness to play bumbling idiots in 'Arrested Development’ (he’s likely to return for season five) and 'Parks & Recreation’. Winkler has tried his hand at horror, too; first as the Principal in 'Scream’, then in a series of terrifyingly average Adam Sandler comedies.

Ron Howard – Richie Cunningham

The true success story of 'Happy Days’, little Richie Cunningham went from being the fresh-faced ginger kid on the small screen to the baseball-cap-wearing ginger guy who made movies for the big screen. Howard quit 'Happy Days’ in 1980 to focus on directing and never looked back: he got his start in family adventure movies like 'Splash’, 'Cocoon’ and 'Willow’ before moving onto bona fide awards fodder like 'Apollo 13’ and 'A Beautiful Mind’, which earned him an Oscar nomination. Moby Dick-a-like nautical drama 'In The Heart Of The Sea’ is due this Christmas and 'Inferno’, the final part of the 'Da Vinci Code’ trilogy, is due in 2016 – your parents are probably excited anyway.

Erin Moran – Joanie Cunningham

TV was all little Joanie Cunningham knew: she got her start in showbusiness as a kid on shows like 'Gunsmoke’, graduating to 'The Don Rickles Show’ and 'My Three Sons’ before settling into the groove of 'Happy Days’. A brief, derided spin-off – 'Joanie Loves Chachi’ – didn’t pan out, so she returned to 'Happy Days’ for its final season before setting sail on 'The Love Boat’, playing four different characters over five years. Acting roles have been sporadic in the 21st century – maybe you remember her from 'Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star’? – but she hit the headlines a few years back as part of a lawsuit against CBS relating to her 'Happy Days’ image rights: the network settled with Moran and her castmates to the tune of $41,000 each. In 2012 it was revealed she was broke and had been kicked out of the trailer she shared with her husband and his mother, but we hope she is doing okay now.

Anson Williams – Potsie Weber

Lovable klutz Potsie was the butt of many a joke in 'Happy Days’, but actor Anson Williams has been doing pretty well for himself ever since the sun set on Al’s diner. A businessman and an entrepeneur, Williams actually opened a series of branded Al’s Diner restaurants along with Al Molinaro, who played the eponymous owner. Williams kept one foot in the entertainment industry and although he didn’t enjoy quite as much directorial success as castmate Ron Howard, he has directed over 100 episodes of quality network television, including 10 episodes of 'Sabrina The Teenage Witch’, in which he reprised the role of Potsie in a fantasy sequence. In 2014, Williams released his memoir, 'Singing to a Bulldog: From 'Happy Days’ to Hollywood Director, and the Unlikely Mentor Who Got Me There’, in which he revealed John Lennon once visited the set of 'Happy Days’.

Don Most – Ralph Malph

Youthful practical joker Ralph Malph is now aged 61. Ouch. When he’s not acting as a reminder of our own fleeting mortality, Don Most still works in the biz and has worked solidly, appearing in shows like 'Teen Wolf’, 'Murder, She Wrote’ and 'Baywatch’. He also lent his voice to 'Family Guy’ and – you’re going to love this – the little-seen 'Happy Days’ animated spin-off 'The Fonz And The Happy Days Gang’, in which Ralph Malph and pals travelled through time with Fonzie’s dog, Mr. Cool. Most recently he played “ginger supremist” Rusty Pilbury in 'Glee’, but if you must know exactly what he’s up to, you can follow him on LinkedIn. The internet is weird.

Scott Baio – Chachi Arcola

As Fonzie’s cousin Chachi, Scott Baio was the only other Happy Dayer allowed to enjoy a modicum of cool. He span off with Joanie but later found success with 'Charles In Charge’ and 'Diagnosis: Murder’. Baio joined up with buddies Ron Howard and Henry Winkler to play lawyer Bob Loblaw in the third season of Mitch Hurwitz’s madcap TV sitcom 'Arrested Development’ and he’s rumoured to return for the fifth season next year. Baio is an outspoken Republican (he sat near Margaret Thatcher at Ronald Reagan’s funeral) and his comments on social media often cause controversy. In 2010, he tweeted from @ScottBaio: “Taxes are DONE…That should feed, house & provide medical for a few lazy non working people at my expense. Have a great Monday!” It goes without saying that not everybody loves Chachi.

Tom Bosley – Howard Cunningham

Avuncular father figure Tom Bosley was already a United States Navy veteran and a Tony-award winner by the time he played “Mr. C” on 'Happy Days’, and it was the role that defined his career (although many also remember underrated crime serial 'Father Dowling Investigates’). Bosley sadly died in 2010 from complications of a staph infection, with his final role being in underwhleming Jennifer Lopez romantic comedy 'The Back-Up Plan’.

Marion Ross – Marion Cunningham

The matriarch of the Cunninghams didn’t stop the graft when 'Happy Days’ drew to a close – with 184 acting credits to her name, she’s the hardest working member of the cast. Sitcoms, sitcoms, sitcoms: that’s how you’d describe her post-'Happy Days’ body of work, with roles in 'The Love Boat’, 'That '70s Show’ and 'The Drew Carey Show’ among others, but Ross was also a fine dramatic access, winning plaudits in 'Brothers & Sisters’ and a Golden Globe nomination for 'The Evening Star’, the sequel to 'Terms Of Endearment’. If your little ones flip out when they hear Marion Ross talk, it’s probably because she provided the voice for Spongebob Squarepants’ Grandma.

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Image Credits: Rex Features/PA