‘These Happy Days are Yours and Mine’: Find out What the Cast of ‘Happy Days’ is Doing Today
Sunday, Monday… Happy Days! You know the theme song and you know it truly was a happy day whenever Happy Days was on TV. The sitcom was hugely popular and ran for 11 seasons between 1974 and 1984 and became the most iconic work for many of its stars. Happy Days also spawned a record number of spin-off shows including Mork & Mindy, Laverne & Shirley, and Joanie Loves Chachi.
While the show has been off the air for decades, its reruns remain as popular as ever, and it is now considered one of the most beloved nostalgic shows of all time. With many of its stars in the headlines recently, you may be wondering, what is the main cast of Happy Days doing now? Let’s find out (and don’t forget to read until the end to see a reunion photo of the cast!) amid the show’s 50th anniversary! Can you believe that it premiered so long ago?
Ron Howard (69)
Richie Cunningham
Paramount/Everett Collection
Ron Howard was already a star when he became Richie Cunningham as he played little Opie on The Andy Griffith Show since he was a little kid. He grew up in the acting world because his father, Rance Howard was a famous actor. Howard has carried on the tradition as his daughter Bryce Dallas Howard (pictured below) is the star of many films including the beloved Jurassic World series. Despite being a famous face from Happy Days, he was always jealous of the fame that his co-star Henry Winkler received, even claiming that the stress caused his hair to fall out in clumps. He left in the 7th season to become a filmmaker and work behind the camera.
Apple TV+/Everett Collection
This has served him well over the years and all’s well that ends well as he’s worked with Winkler again several times and they remain close friends. Some of his top directorial credits include Splash, Cocoon, Apollo 13, The Da Vinci Code, and Thirteen Lives. Howard also works as a producer and he worked with the recent films Willow, Judy Blume Forever, Tetris, and Bono & The Edge: A Sort of Homecoming with Dave Letterman.
Henry Winkler (78)
Arthur ‘Fonzie’ Fonzarelli
Everett Collection
Henry Winkler, who became an international sensation for playing leather-jacketed lothario Arthur “The Fonz” Fonzarelli, found himself too closely associated with the role that made him a household name. “Everybody said, ‘He is such a good actor. He is so funny. He’s The Fonz.’”
With his phone not ringing, Winkler began working behind the camera, producing series like MacGyver (the original in 1985 plus its 2016 reboot) and directing films like Cop and a Half (1993) starring Burt Reynolds. “It was fun but it was not as satisfying to me,” he recalled. Thankfully, the phone began ringing with roles that were far and away from The Fonz, like inept lawyer Barry Zuckerkorn on Arrested Development, endearing obstetrician Dr. Lu Saperstein on Parks and Recreation, and irresponsible embezzler Eddie Lawson on Royal Pains. He even dipped his toe into reality TV by traveling to Asia and Europe with William Shatner, Terry Bradshaw, and George Foreman for NBC’s Better Late Than Never.
Merrick Morton/HBO/Everett Collection
But the New York City native’s career climbed to new heights when he began playing self-absorbed acting teacher Gene Cousineau in the 2018 HBO comedy Barry starring Bill Hader. “When I read [the pilot script] I knew I was in greatness,” he said, smiling. The following year, the actor was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for the seventh time in his career (three times for playing The Fonz), but this time he won. “I wrote this 43 years ago,” he said in his acceptance speech for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy. “[Entertainment lawyer] Skip Brittenham said to me a long time ago if you stay at the table long enough, the chips come to you, and tonight I got to clear the table!” Winkler has been married 44 years and has two children with his wife Stacey, plus a stepson. As The Fonz would say: perfectomundo!
In addition to a career resurgence, Winkler has turned his greatest weakness into a strength in order to bring awareness and help others. He suffers from dyslexia and has co-written several children’s books and spoken out about the learning disorder. The Queen of England actually awarded him with an Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire “for services to children with special educational needs and dyslexia in the UK” before her passing.
Marion Ross (95)
Marion Cunningham
Everett Collection
We cannot forget Richie and Joanie’s proper but loving mom played by Marion Ross! She was one of those TV housewives that everyone loved. After Happy Days ended, she continued to act, mainly appearing in a guest role capacity but occasionally playing a series regular.
Lifetime/Everett Collection
She was a regular on The Love Boat, Brooklyn Bridge, and The Drew Carey Show. Gilmore Girls fans may remember her as Gran in six episodes of the series. Ross is now 95 years old and acted as recently as 2021 in a show called Viral Vignettes also starring Don Most, who we will talk about in a bit.
Tom Bosley (d. 2010)
Howard Cunningham
Everett Collection
Tom Bosley played the father of Richie and Joanie and the husband of Marion and was the only actor besides Winkler to appear in all 255 episodes of Happy Days. After the show, he starred in Murder, She Wrote and Father Dowling Mysteries, trading in his sitcom hat for one of mystery solving.
Peter Iovino/©CBS Films/Everett Collection
He also appeared in The Love Boat and The Drew Carey Show with his former TV wife and made appearances on popular shows such as Boy Meets World, Port Charles, Walker, Texas Ranger, Touched By An Angel, One Tree Hill, and That ’70s Show. Bosley worked right until his death in 2010 at the age of 83, with his final appearance being the movie The Back-Up Plan.
Erin Moran (d. 2017)
Joanie Cunningham
Everett Collection
Rounding out the Cunningham family, Erin Moran starred in Happy Days and its spin-off Joanie Loves Chachi. After the success of Happy Days, Moran decided not to act much and became another child star who ended up having a rough life. Her TV mother, Marion Ross said that her parents were not supportive and Moran did not handle fame well.
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Sadly, she died in 2017 at age 56 after a battle with cancer. In her later years, she was living in a trailer park in Indiana with her second husband and mother-in-law. Prior, she did appear in a few projects most notably The Love Boat and Murder, She Wrote alongside her TV parents.
Scott Baio (63)
Chachi Arcola
Paramount/Everett Collection
This was Scott Baio‘s breakout role as Fonzie’s nephew who eventually dates and marries Joanie. After Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi, he starred in Charles in Charge and Diagnosis Murder with Dick Van Dyke. After Charles in Charge, he has appeared in a handful of series and movies including See Dad Run, and reunited with Ron Howard in Arrested Development.
Jesse Grant/Getty Images
He has been in the news recently for making the decision to leave California due to the crime. He has been at odds with the Happy Days cast due to differing political views as well. In 2018, he was accused of sexual assault by his Charles in Charge co-star Nicole Eggert but he was not charged.
Don Most (70)
Ralph Malph
Everett Collection
Most played a side character who eventually became one of Richie’s best friends, along with Potsie. He left at the same time as Howard after their characters left for the Army. Most went on to appear in Charles in Charge and Diagnosis Murder alongside former castmember Baio, as well as Star Trek: Voyager and Glee.
MyCinema/Everett Collection
The 70-year-old has also directed and recorded several singing albums over the years, proving that he isn’t just a side character. Be sure to read our exclusive interview with him in the link below!
Remind Anson Williams (74)
Warren ‘Potsie’ Weber
Paramount/Everett Collection
After Happy Days, Anson Williams followed in the footsteps of his co-star and friend Howard and went right into directing. He’s directed many popular shows including Melrose Place, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Lizzie McGuire, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager.
Rachel Luna/Getty Images
Last year, Williams ran for the position of Mayor of Ojai, California. He had the support of many of his former cast members but ultimately lost to incumbent mayor Betsey Stix by 42 votes. He also wrote an autobiography called Singing to a Bulldog: From Happy Days to Hollywood Director, and the Unlikely Mentor Who Got Me There and recently just got remarried for the third time. He will be directing a one-woman show called Crazy Mama in April 2024 at Bethel Woods Center For the Arts in New York. It will share the story of a woman dealing with her mother’s mental illness.
Many of the surviving cast still do fan conventions so be on the lookout for where you can meet your favorite character from Happy Days!
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Where Are They Now - The Seventies
June 2022
Who can forget all the great TV shows, movies and music of the ‘70s?
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