‘Happy Days’ Star Erin Moran Dies at 56
Happy Days Intro theme song
https://youtu.be/6W6y7YhHdVE
Erin Moran, best known for playing Joanie Cunningham on the
1970s sitcom “Happy Days,” has died. She was 56.
According to TMZ, Moran’s
body was found unresponsive Saturday afternoon by authorities in Indiana. The
cause of death is unknown.
The California-born actress, who also starred in the
“Happy Days” spinoff “Joanie Loves Chachi,” had
fallen on hard times in recent years. She was reportedly kicked out of her
trailer park home in Indiana because of her hard-partying ways.
Henry Winkler, who starred opposite Moran as The Fonz in ABC’s iconic
series, tweeted: “OH Erin…now you will finally have the peace you wanted so
badly here on earth. Rest In It serenely now…too soon.”
Moran was just 14 when she signed on to play
Ron Howard’s sister in the family comedy, which aired from 1974 to 1984.
Howard tweeted, “Such sad sad news. RIP Erin. I’ll always
choose to remember you on our show making scenes better, getting laughs and
lighting up tv screens.”
“What happened with all of us was like we were this
family,” Moran said in a 2009 interview with
Xfinity. “It was so surreal with all the cast members…They were my family, get
it?”
The actress, however, apparently wasn’t as happy about
appearing in “Joanie Loves Chachi,” the short-lived sitcom spin-off which
co-starred Scott Baio.
“I liked working with the people. But I didn’t even want
to do it. I was talked into it,” she said. “I wanted to stay on ‘Happy Days.’
They were running them at the same time.”
“Joanie Loves Chachi” only lasted one season
(1982-83) before it was pulled off the air.
Moran’s TV credits also included “The Love
Boat,” “Murder, She Wrote” and “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
She most recently appeared on VH1’s reality show
“Celebrity Fit Club” in 2008 and low-budget film “Not Another B Movie” 2010.
In 2012, Moran and some of her “Happy Days” co-stars —
Anson Williams, Marion Ross, Don Most and the widow of Tom Bosley – filed a $10
million lawsuit against CBS and Paramount, claiming they never received
merchandise royalties they were owed under their contracts. The case was later
settled out of court. Neither Winkler nor Howard were part of the lawsuit.
Most said in a statement, “I am so incredibly sad to hear
about Erin. She was a wonderful, sweet, caring, talented woman. As I write this
I can’t really comprehend this right now. A very painful loss. It gives me some
comfort to know that she’s with Tom, Al, Pat and Garry. Rest In Peace,
sweet Erin.”
Williams, who played Potsie in “Happy Days,” said, “Erin
was a person who made everyone around her feel better. She truly cared about
others first, a true angel. I will miss her so much, but know that she is in
God’s hands. RIP sweet angel.”
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