The theme song of the Happy Days series was “Rock Around the Clock,” performed by Bill Haley and the Comets, and it could be heard as soon as the episode started. Season one used this new version, recorded in 1973, and like the show itself, it would undergo some changes along the way.
From the third season onwards, the Happy Days theme song would be modified to make it sound more modern. This was written and performed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. The recording would be commercially released only in 2005.
The "Happy Days" Pilot Was Rejected by ABC
The Happy Days series turned out to be wildly successful in the '70s. In 1976, it became the number one TV program, influencing how television styles would be conducted at the time. But did you know that it was rejected after it was first shown to the network as a pilot?
ABC actually passed on Happy Days when the show was first shown as a pilot. After American Graffiti became a huge motion picture success, executives realized it would be a huge mistake not to pick up the show, especially with Ron Howard attached to both projects.
Nobody Liked Pinky
After her initial introduction in the series, Pinky Tuscadero would soon be planned out by management as Fonzie’s long-term girlfriend. She was, after all, Fonzie’s female counterpart.
However, things weren’t as smooth in reality as they were in their fictional relationship. There was an animus of sorts between the two actors.
"Happy Days" Gave Us “Jumping The Shark”
The idiom “Jumping the Shark” originated from the Happy Days sitcom. Although the show started to pick up after Richie had been replaced by Fonzie, and their Broadway comedy style was effective enough to hook their audience, after some time the show’s popularity gradually began to dwindle.
In season 5, Fonzie goes water skiing wearing swimming trunks and his signature leather jacket. In this episode, he literally jumps over a shark, an outlandish scene that would surprise the remaining Happy Days viewers. This moment was so cringe-worthy it has gone down in history as “jumping the shark,” a term used when preposterous plot devices are resorted to in a desperate attempt to regain a show’s good ratings.
Chuck Cunningham Just Disappeared
We have already mentioned how Richie’s character would eventually leave for the military. It was a nice send off to eventually give way to Fonzie’s entry as the centre point of the show. Another character would suffer a similar fate due to his role being eclipsed by the Fonz’s appealing character.
Richie’s older brother, Chuck Cunningham, simply disappeared without any apparent reason in season 2. He was a college boy, and a basketball player, played by Gavan O’Herlihy. Gavan asked to leave the show, and Randolph Roberts replaced him until "Guess Who's Coming to Christmas," after which the character was just never mentioned again as if he never existed at all.