In all of the decades where TV series such as The Brady Bunch, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Knight Rider, Supernatural, Smallville and other TV series have had comprehensive books written about them — the author of this piece himself wrote 5 Smallville tie-in books — there has been one major series that never got a huge spotlight with an entire book dedicated the show, and that series was the iconic 1974-1984 series Happy Days. Thankfully, to tie in with the 50th anniversary of the show’s premiere in, authors Brian Levant and Fred Fox Jr. – themselves writers and Supervising Producers for the classic show – we now have 50 Years of Happy Days: A Visual History of an American Television Classic, a HUGE (260+ pages) tome celebrating the beloved series which starred such talents as Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham, Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham, the late Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham, and, of course, Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli, known to most around him as “The Fonz.” When this show was at its height, there was no one cooler than the Fonz, with his leather jacket, cool demeanor, and classic catch phrases.
For those old enough to remember Happy Days, or for those of us who’d watch the reruns on cable channels such as TBS in the years to follow, the 1950s rose-colored look at the past almost gave the series a timeless feeling. The show inspired several spinoffs, both official and unofficial, depending on who you ask. The most successful spinoffs you should know well: Laverne & Shirley with Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams, and Mork & Mindy starring Robin WIlliams and Pam Dawber. What you might not know well are all of the stories behind the stories, all told in this fantastic volume (did we mention it was huge?) In addition to stories and interviews with surviving Happy Days cast members, the book shows off Happy Days memorabilia and is beautifully designed throughout. In short, it’s a labor of love.
Also a labor of love was the opportunity to interview the authors, Brian Levant and Fred Fox Jr., in video that you can see below. Any chance to talk about classic TV is a welcome one around these parts, but to get to ask questions about Happy Days decades after making the repeats a daily afternoon ritual was surreal as well as wonderful. It might also be pointed out that Levant and Fox have done much more than Happy Days: Levant was the director of such big-screen hits as Beethoven and The Flintstones movies in addition to developing the long-running television revival The New Leave it to Beaver which was originally known as Still the Beaver. He also was the director of the Scooby-Doo live action TV-movies which starred Robbie Amell, and his long list of TV writing credits include episodes of The Jeffersons, Mork & Mindy, Charles in Charge and more.
Laverne & Shirley is where Fred Fox Jr. got his TV writing start, and beyond Happy Days, his most prolific role was as a producer credited on 188 episodes of the popular ABC TGIF sitcom Family Matters, a series that he wrote dozens of stories for. He was also a co-producer and writer for the Happy Days 30th Anniversary Reunion which aired 20 years ago and managed to bring back not just one, but two Chucks! (If you know, you know). Together, the Brian Levant/Fred Fox Jr. team were the creators of the popular TV series My Secret Identity which starred Jerry O’Connell in one of his first major roles after Stand by Me, and Fox also wrote and produced for The New Leave it to Beaver.
In any event, you can watch our interview below, and if you haven’t ordered a copy of 50 Years of Happy Days already, do so! All orders through our Amazon.com affiliate link support this site… and as a bonus, the studios will see there’s still a market and interest for great books like these!
