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| Scott Baio and Phillip R. Allen on Happy Days. |
As the saying goes, you can't cheat an honest man. I've been hearing that well-worn phrase since childhood, but I don't think I actually understood it until I grew up. Maybe I still don't understand it. But here's what I think it means: people fall for scams because they want to get something for nothing. They want the reward without the risk or the sacrifice or the hard work. They want a shortcut. Con artists, then, prey on the dishonesty of their victims as well as their gullibility.
"Scholarship," an episode from the eighth season of Happy Days, is a perfect illustration of this principal. The story centers around young Chachi Arcola (Scott Baio), a star player on the Jefferson High basketball team. He's a shaky student at best, but his skills on the court could make him the first member of his family to go to college. Enter Eddie Monroe (guest star Phillip R. Allen), a sleazy recruiter for the fictional Eastern Florida University. Eddie makes all kinds of unethical promises to Chachi and even helps him cheat on his entrance exam.
It's obvious from the start that Eddie is a blatant liar and con artist. On some level, Chachi must know that. But Eddie is telling Chachi what he wants to hear. Chachi wants desperately to believe the lies, so he does... for a while. I think we've all been there at one time or another. Everybody plays the fool sometime. There's no exception to the rule.
This week on These Days Are Ours: A Happy Days Podcast, we talk about "Scholarship" and whether or not it's a good episode of the show. We hope you'll join us.