50 YEARS of HAPPY DAYS

THE CAST OF THE FEEL-GOOD 1950S FAMILY SITCOM SHARE MEMORIES WITH CLOSER

- Louise A. Barile

In the 1970s, the coolest decade in entertainment was the 1950s. Grease packed the house on Broadway. American Graffiti cruised into theaters, and Happy Days became one of TV’s most popular shows. Created by Garry Marshall, the Milwaukee-set sitcom introduced the world to all-American high schooler Richie Cunningham, his family and his close circle of friends. “So many fans have written to me over the years and said they wished they had a family like ours,” Marion Ross, 95, who played Mrs. C., tells Closer. “We were a family off stage as well as on stage.”

Before Happy Days, Marion, Ron Howard, 69, and Anson Williams, 74, appeared together in a TV pilot set in the 1950s called “Love and the Television Set,” which aired as a segment on Love, American Style. “I was in awe of Ron because he was already a star,” recalls Anson to Closer. Having spent his childhood on The Andy Griffith Show, Ron admits he had mixed feelings about committing to another TV series, but he had personal reasons for saying yes. “I had a horrible draft number,” Ron confides. “I really didn’t want to go to Vietnam, and I didn’t want to go to Canada.” The actor hoped to qualify for a work deferment” as the star of a TV show. “[The pilot] didn’t sell, and another few months later they did away with the draft, so I dodged that bullet,” he says.