Podcast Tuesday: "Father and Child Reunion"

In 1994, Henry Winkler was once again ready for his closeup.

There's such a thing as playing a character too well. When Jim Parsons—now and forever associated with his nerdy Sheldon Cooper character from The Big Bang Theory—hosted Saturday Night Live in 2014, he sang a song called "I'm Not That Guy," an ode to actors like himself who have been hopelessly typecast in sitcom roles. The lyrics reference Jaleel White from Family Matters, Jason Alexander from Seinfeld, and Henry Winkler from Happy Days. As Parson puts it: "Henry Winkler as the Fonz/The epitome of cool/But in real life, he was a nice Jewish boy who went to Yale Drama School."

It's true that, when Happy Days was cancelled in 1984, the news hit Henry Winkler very hard. He was so well-known as Fonzie that he didn't think the public would ever accept him as another character. And so, after the eleventh and final season of Happy Days wrapped, Henry walked away from acting for about a decade. He reinvented himself as a director and producer, jobs that kept him in showbiz but off-camera. All that Yale acting training down the drain.

But in 1994, Henry decided the time was right to come back to acting in a big way, taking the lead role in a Fox sitcom called Monty. Sensing it would have been disastrous to play a character even remotely similar to Fonzie, Winkler portrayed someone who was almost the complete opposite: an uptight conservative talk show host named Monty Richardson. The sitcom depicts Monty's professional life (where his coworkers barely tolerate him) and his home life (where his wife and children barely tolerate him). At the heart of the show is Monty's conflict with his liberal, college-age son Greg (pre-Friends David Schwimmer), newly engaged to even-more-liberal Geena (China Kantner). 

Obviously, Monty was a major change in direction for Henry Winkler. But was it a good one? That's what we're trying to determine on this week's installment of These Days Are Ours: A Happy Days Podcast. You can find out what we thought by clicking the play button below.

Podcast Tuesday: "God Bless Us, Every Fonz"

Henry Winkler in An American Christmas Carol.

One of the most anxious nights of my childhood happened sometime in the mid-1980s. At the time, I was in elementary school and living at home in the suburbs of mid-Michigan with my family. We were Catholic and attended mass regularly. One December, it happened that a holy day of obligation, a midweek mass, fell on the same night that CBS was planning to rerun the 1984 version of A Christmas Carol starring George C. Scott. Mass was at 7:00; the movie was at 8:00.

I was already a Christmas Carol obsessive at this tender age, so this constituted a crisis. I didn't want to miss a minute of the movie, since it's so important to see this story from the very beginning. Luckily, there were a few things on my side. Midweek masses typically lasted only 45 minutes or so, and we did not live far from the church. Seeing the entire movie was still possible. We made it home just as the opening credits were starting, much to my relief. But I can tell you that I took very little, spiritually, from that midweek mass. I'm sure I did not hear a single word the priest said. I was too busy thinking, "Hurry up! Hurry up! Hurry up!"

Now, you might think that since both A Christmas Carol and Happy Days have played such important roles in my life, I would be extremely familiar with the 1979 made-for-TV movie An American Christmas Carol starring Henry "The Fonz" Winkler. I certainly knew of this movie's existence, but until 2025, I had never actually watched the darned thing from beginning to end. This week on These Days Are Ours: A Happy Days Podcast, we talk about our reactions to An American Christmas Carol. This'll be our last episode of 2025. We'll catch you again in 2026.

Podcast Tuesday: "Glory Fades, Richie Dribbles"

Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) prepares to lose the big game in "A Shot in the Dark."

During its fourth season, when it topped the A.C. Nielsen ratings, Happy Days focused increasingly on the character of Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli. The ultra-cool, motorcycle-riding mechanic, as played by Henry Winkler, captured America's imagination and became a pop culture phenomenon whose influence was felt far beyond the show. Kids imitated him on the playground, and there was a plethora of Fonzie merchandise on store shelves. It was Fonzie who almost single-handedly saved the show from cancellation after its rocky second season, and the producers rewarded Henry Winkler with more airtime than ever before. The third season saw the gregarious greaser move into the suburban Cunningham house, while the fourth season was essentially The Fonzie and Friends Show, starting with the epic "Fonzie Loves Pinky" three-parter.

As a result of these changes, the show's original protagonist, nerdy high school kid Richie Cunningham, became more of a supporting character and a foil to the Fonz. He was still important to the series, but he didn't excite the audience the way Fonzie did. Eventually, actor Ron Howard became tired of being Fonzie's "goody two shoes" sidekick and left the series for a prosperous directing career. In the eyes of many fans, Happy Days never quite recovered from Howard's departure.

But even during the Fonzie-crazed fourth season, there was still room for the occasional Richie story. Case in point: "A Shot in the Dark," in which the red-headed honor student becomes an unlikely star on the Jefferson High basketball team, only to have the newfound glory go to his head. That's the episode my co-host Peter and I are reviewing on this week's brand new installment of These Days Are Ours: A Happy Days Podcast. We hope you'll give it a listen.

'Happy Days' memories: An interview with actor Richard Kuller

Richard Kuller on Happy Days in 1974; inset: Richard as he looks today.

The "R.O.T.C." episode of Happy Days

Recently, it has been my great pleasure to co-host a podcast called These Days Are Ours, devoted to the nostalgic 1974-84 sitcom Happy Days starring Henry Winkler and Ron Howard as fun-loving teens in 1950s Milwaukee. Each Tuesday, my cohost and I review another episode of the classic show, thoroughly breaking down the plot, themes, and characters. Here's our latest installment.

Along the way, I've been doing some research into Happy Days, learning how it was made and delving into the careers of the people who made it happen. That includes the many fine actors who guest starred on the series, lending to their talents to an episode or two before moving on. This week, I had the privilege of conducting an online interview with one such performer, Richard Kuller, who appeared in the episodes "R.O.T.C." and "Kiss Me Sickly" in 1974 and 1975, respectively. Richard's other TV and film credits include CPO Sharkey, Copacabana, and Danger Team. He currently teaches theater and dance in California.

Here is our conversation. Richard was very cooperative in answering my nerdy questions about Happy Days, for which I am very grateful.

Had you heard of or watched Happy Days before appearing on it? I ask because the show was fairly new then. 

Yes. I had also done children’s theater in New York before that, with Henry Winkler. 

My guess is that the marching scenes in "R.O.T.C." were filmed away from the Paramount lot, probably at a college or high school with a football stadium. Do you remember where this was? 

It was at a high school, but I don’t remember which one. Those were real ROTC classes marching on the field. Henry was not called that day, although he did appear in the episode. 

Director Jerry Paris

Any particular memories of the cast or director Jerry Paris?

He was a very funny man, and he razzed me, since it was my first time on the show. He told me it was a tradition that I was to pay him a dollar. I thought he was joking and didn’t pay him. He confronted me on the field in front of everyone and demanded my lunch money, which was a few bucks. I pulled the envelope out of my uniform, and the money fell on the ground. He picked it up and plucked out a dollar. snapped it between his hands, and put it in his pocket. I never knew if this was a real tradition or he was just singling me out. 

How did you come to audition for Happy Days? Did you audition for a lot of shows? 

I had a very good commercial agent and was doing well with him. I think one of the casting agents (they didn’t call them casting directors then) for the commercials got me into a reading for Happy Days, but I don’t remember the reading. I was doing a lot of theater at the time, but not getting many opportunities to read for television shows. 

Did you get recognized after appearing on the show? 

Only by friends who already knew me. That didn’t surprise me. I wore glasses and a big cap In that episode. 

Did you get residuals for your episode? 

I still get a couple of bucks every year. 

Did Happy Days help you land a part on CPO Sharkey? Maybe because the producers had already seen you in a military-type comedy?  

No, that was just another recommendation through my commercial agent. I came into that pilot after the cast was already in rehearsal and had bonded. I never did anymore after the pilot. 

You appeared on Happy Days again the very next year. Was that a good experience?  

It was not. My alarm clock failed and I was late for the call. This is a terrible no no. Different director [George Tyne], and he was pissed. When I arrived his only acknowledgment was, "Do you understand your jokes?" I said yes and was thrown into the scene. I didn’t blame him, but his attitude was he just wanted to get the scene done. I remember that Ron Howard, whom I had helped with his marching in the ROTC episode, was friendly. He was always a gentleman. Henry was Fonzie through and through and simply did not want to let me into that bathroom. When I saw the episode, I thought the tension in the situation actually worked well for the scene. 

Did you have any real-life experience with ROTC?  

No. I was able to pick up the marching because I am a dancer, and dancers are trained to pick up steps. 

Are there are any current projects you'd like to promote?  

I have been a teacher of theater and dance at two community colleges for the last 17 years. In that time I have not sought any acting work. In the spring I am directing and choreographing a production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown at Glendale Community college in California.  

Thanks for answering all these questions. I know it's a lot at once. 

That's OK. It was fun to reminisce. 

And thank you for your time. 

You're welcome.

Exciting new venture: A 'Happy Days' podcast!

A new podcast for a classic show!

Happy Days was one of the seminal shows of my TV-addicted youth. My family and I tuned into new episodes every Tuesday night on ABC, and I caught up with the reruns, airing under the name Happy Days Again, in syndication. I also followed the spin-offs, like Mork & Mindy and Laverne & Shirley. Hell, I even tried to watch Joanie Loves Chachi and Fonz and the Happy Days Gang. Who didn't know Richie Cunningham, Arthur Fonzarelli, Ralph Malph, and the other denizens of 1950s Milwaukee? I can still remember being thrilled when Ronny Howard and Henry Winkler guest starred on Sesame Street.

So I quickly said yes when my cohost sked me to cohost a new Happy Days podcast. Our show is called These Days Are Ours, and we'll be going through the classic Garry Marshall-produced series episode by episode. In keeping with Happy Days tradition, new episodes of These Days Are Ours will be posted on Tuesdays. The first episode should be posted on October 2, 2018.

In the meantime, you can check out the show's official website and Twitter account.

UPDATE: Our first episode has been posted. Find it here.