Top Stupid Things about the 'Happy Days' TV series (1974-1984)

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Panther, Mar 25, 2020.

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  1. Mylene

    Mylene Senior Member

    Laverne & Shirley was the top rating show on Australian TV for years. It used to be on Friday night. Years later when they were repeating it viewers noticed they cut huge sections out so they could squeeze in more commercials on it's initial run.
     
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  2. Kyle B

    Kyle B Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    And when Suzanne Somers went to renegotiate a couple of years later, ABC wanted to prevent this from happening again, so the producers of Three’s Company took a hard line. Of course, she could be replaced while Marshall and Williams couldn’t.

    While the show varied in quality later on, those two performers were stellar. Great chemistry, and great contrasting personalities. One of the writers later said that it was a joy writing for Cindy Williams because she could make any line funny. It’s true. When you watch the reruns, sometimes she gets laughs out of thin air.
     
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  3. Honey Bunches of Sadness

    Honey Bunches of Sadness Forum Resident

    Location:
    SF Bay Area
    Sounds like the "glasses are cool" episode.
     
  4. Mylene

    Mylene Senior Member

    Richie wants to vote for Adlai Stevenson but the Fonz is big on Ike.
     
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  5. clhboa

    clhboa Forum Resident

    "Married With Children" followed a similar trajectory. It limped on way too many years past it's prime. Both were my favorite show at the time they were on.
     
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  6. pig bodine

    pig bodine God’s Consolation Prize

    Location:
    Syracuse, NY USA
    George Steinbrenner would have made him cut it.
     
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  7. rjp

    rjp Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    :tiphat:
     
  8. nano nano

    nano nano Forum Resident

    Location:
    IN
    The show became so inane that it's impossible to list every stupid element. In general, when Fonzie fused into a triple combo of Barbarino, Mork, and Alan Alda, it was game over. People are shocked that the actual "shark jumping" episode was so early in the show's run. The series still had 164 painful episodes left in the tank, even after Fonz cleared the shark. I wish "The Big Ragoo" had tapped danced across the AstroTurf during the final "Joanie marries Chachi" episode, signifying that it was all just a dream. "They'll never go from rags to riches..."
     
  9. Jack Lord

    Jack Lord Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I recall hearing that the producers felt compelled to "clean up" Fonzie because he became so popular among young kids (like me). American youth could not have a womanizing, brawling, high school drop out as their hero.

    I still recall my mom, who grew up in the 50s, first setting eyes on the Fonz. "He's a hood", she casually observed. And I am sure there were many others like her who made the same, initial observation. After watching an episode, she realized he was harmless.
     
  10. MekkaGodzilla

    MekkaGodzilla Forum Resident

    Location:
    Westerville, Ohio
    Yeah, but what does Fonzie know? He was gonna marry a stripper, remember?
     
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  11. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

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    Hollywood, USA
  12. Solitaire1

    Solitaire1 Carpenters Fan

    In the early days of Happy Days Fonzie was always seen around his motorcycle. The reason was so that he could wear his leather jacket, which, while with his motorcycle, could be considered safety gear.
     
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  13. Solitaire1

    Solitaire1 Carpenters Fan

    I think this could be an argument for a show to have a planned end, rather than just going on until it can't go on anymore. Often, I think it is better to leave them wanting more. An example of this for me is Green Lantern - The Animated Series, which was outstanding and I was sad to see it end after only two seasons...especially with the potential stories that were being set up (such as The Blackest Night).
     
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  14. Manapua

    Manapua Forum Resident

    Location:
    Honolulu
    I know the two aren't the same story but in American Graffiti, John Milner (the Fonzie prototype) was supposed to be this cool, thuggish sort the kids idolized yet he seemed to be on somewhat friendly terms with Steve, Kurt & Terry who were basically strait-laced nerds. They probably just watered this plot point down even more for TV.
     
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  15. Jack Lord

    Jack Lord Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I have always thought The Odd Couple ended at its peak and on the right note.

    Ironically, Garry Marshall did not think to transfer that to Happy Days. But I suppose as long as the show is profitable, it goes on.
     
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  16. SomeCallMeTim

    SomeCallMeTim Forum Resident

    Location:
    Rockville, CT
    By the early 80's, networks no longer had the luxury to allow a show to build an audience. The fledgling but rapidly growing competition from cable and home video were cutting into the networks' audience, so profit trumped product. Had "Police Squad" premiered a decade earlier, we might have seen an entire season or more produced. "Happy Days" kept drawing an audience until the bitter end.
     
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  17. Luke The Drifter

    Luke The Drifter Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Or Mr. Burns
     
  18. Kyle B

    Kyle B Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    The difference was that Happy Days was a #1 show at its peak and was still in the top 20 in the early 80s. So there was an incentive to keep it going. The Odd Couple never made it into the top 30. And yeah, the audience was fragmenting. ABC had other problems on its schedule, so a top 20 show like HD wasn’t going anywhere.
     
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  19. Jack Lord

    Jack Lord Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    Indeed. Money trumps art. To be honest, were I presiding over Happy Days and it was doing well, I would be very hesitant to kill it off.
     
  20. neo123

    neo123 Senior Member

    Location:
    Northern Kentucky

    Now, if only reality shows would do the same...
     
  21. neo123

    neo123 Senior Member

    Location:
    Northern Kentucky
    And the common link between MWC and HD is Ted McGinley was a replacement actor on both, who wasn't as popular/good as the actor he replaced.
     
  22. SteveRes

    SteveRes Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Cunningly playing the long game, waiting for Mr C to kick the bucket (or sit on it) so he could spend the rest of his days "comforting" Marion.
    I don't blame him either :D
     
  23. neo123

    neo123 Senior Member

    Location:
    Northern Kentucky

    I was 7/8 years old during the first 2 seasons and it was one of my favorite shows, along with Six Million Dollar Man. Anyway, one of the nights Happy Days was on, my parents went out and my brother and I were dropped off at my Grandma's place so she could babysit us. When my brother and I started watching Happy Days, my Grandma said a similar thing. She also said something along the lines of the '50s weren't really considered happy days due to it being not too long after WW II, Korean War and start of the Cold War.
     
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  24. Kyle B

    Kyle B Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    I first saw it in prime time during season 3. Our local ABC affiliate actually got a pre-feed and showed it at 7:30 on Tuesdays (they showed Space: 1999 in prime time at 8:00 pm). That didn’t last long; when the ratings shot up during season 3, Happy Days was back in pattern at 8:00 and Space: 1999 was banished to some weekend afternoon slot. I first saw the earlier seasons during the ABC daytime run. I thought they were odd and preferred the studio audience shows. Of course, as an adult, I realized those first two years were the best.
     
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  25. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    The "Ted McGinley Syndrome," similar to the "Cousin Oliver Syndrome" (in The Brady Bunch, when a new younger actor is brought in to cover for an aging cast), or the "Jump the Shark Syndrome" (when the show makes a leap in logic that basically kills the series).
     
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