Editing Happy Days (section)

== Characters ==

=== Main ===
* [[Richie Cunningham]] — The [[protagonist]] for the first seven years of the series (1974–1980). When [[Ron Howard]] left the show due to his burgeoning directorial career, Richie was written out by leaving to join the United States Army. He marries his girlfriend, Lori Beth, in season eight by phone so that she will be able to join him at his post in Greenland, while Fonzie stands in for him in the wedding.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Happy Days Episode Guide 1981 Season 8- R.C. and L.B. Forever, Episode 19 |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1981/episode-19-season-8/rc-and-lb-forever/100197 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801035127/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1981/episode-19-season-8/rc-and-lb-forever/100197 |archive-date=August 1, 2013 |access-date=November 8, 2012 |publisher=tvguide.com}}</ref> Howard returned for guest appearances as Richie during the show's final season. He came back with Lori Beth and their son, Richie Jr., and Ralph in the season 11 two-part episode, "Welcome Home", and then left for California with Lori Beth and Richie Jr. to pursue a career in screenwriting. He also returned in "Passages", when he and his family attended Joanie and Chachi's wedding.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Happy Days Episodes- Happy Days Full Episode Guides from Season 11 on ABC |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days/episodes-season-11/100197 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121116212615/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days/episodes-season-11/100197 |archive-date=November 16, 2012 |access-date=November 8, 2012 |publisher=tvguide.com}}</ref>
* [[Marion Cunningham (Happy Days)|Marion Cunningham]] ([[Birth name#Maiden and married names|née]] Kelp) — Wife of Howard Cunningham, mother of Chuck, Richie, and Joanie, and a traditional homemaker. She is the only character who is allowed to call Fonzie by his real first name, Arthur, which she does affectionately.<ref>{{Cite news |last=King |first=Susan |date=October 7, 2009 |title=Marion Ross on 'Happy Days' and today |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-oct-07-et-classic-hollywood7-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=October 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100119181544/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/oct/07/entertainment/et-classic-hollywood7 |archive-date=January 19, 2010}}{{better source needed|date=March 2013}}</ref> She sometimes gets tired of being at home, such as in "Marion Rebels" where she gets into an argument with Howard and briefly gets a job as a waitress at Arnold's.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Happy Days Episode Guide 1977 Season 4- Marion Rebels |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1977/episode-15-season-4/marion-rebels/100197 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801032118/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1977/episode-15-season-4/marion-rebels/100197 |archive-date=August 1, 2013 |access-date=November 8, 2012 |publisher=tvguide.com}}</ref> Marion was one of only four characters to remain with the show throughout its entire run.
* [[Howard Cunningham (Happy Days)|Howard Cunningham]] — Husband of Marion Cunningham, father of Chuck, Richie, and Joanie, business owner of a hardware store called "Cunningham's Hardware", he is a lodge member, and family man. Howard is one of only two characters (the other being Fonzie) to appear in every episode of the series.
* [[Joanie Cunningham]] — Richie's younger sister. In early seasons, she is sometimes snooping on Richie's activities and would occasionally be sent to her room by her parents. She is affectionately called "Shortcake" by Fonzie.
* [[Fonzie|Arthur Fonzarelli]], a.k.a. The Fonz or Fonzie — Initially a secondary or recurring character, billed in the end credits, during the first season, he became a popular [[List of breakout characters|breakout character]] and was promoted to front billing by the second season. Fonzarelli's "Fonzie" nickname and comeback phrase, "Sit on it", were created by the show's producer [[Bob Brunner]].<ref name="variety">{{Cite news |date=November 8, 2012 |title=Bob Brunner, 'Happy Days' writer, dies |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/2012/scene/news/bob-brunner-happy-days-writer-dies-1118061908/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 27, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121117201651/http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118061908?refCatId=14 |archive-date=November 17, 2012}}</ref><ref name="dspy">{{Cite news |date=November 7, 2012 |title=Bob Brunner, 'Happy Days' writer and producer, dies aged 78 |work=[[Digital Spy]] |url=http://www.digitalspy.com/celebrity/news/a436565/bob-brunner-happy-days-writer-and-producer-dies-aged-78.html |url-status=live |access-date=November 27, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923230626/http://www.digitalspy.com/celebrity/news/a436565/bob-brunner-happy-days-writer-and-producer-dies-aged-78.html |archive-date=September 23, 2015}}</ref><ref name="thr">{{Cite news |last=Barnes |first=Mike |date=November 7, 2012 |title='Happy Days' Writer-Producer Bob Brunner Dies at 78 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bob-brunner-happy-days-jump-the-shark-387593 |url-status=live |access-date=November 27, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920120348/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bob-brunner-happy-days-jump-the-shark-387593 |archive-date=September 20, 2018}}</ref> His parents abandoned him as a child and his grandmother raised him from the age of four.
* [[Potsie Weber|Warren "Potsie" Weber]] — Richie's best friend and an aspiring and talented singer.
* [[Ralph Malph]] — In the first season, Ralph was intended as more of a secondary character, billed in the end credits, along with Winkler and Moran, but by season 2, Ralph was front billed with them.
* Mitsumo "Arnold" Takahashi ([[Pat Morita|Noriyuki "Pat" Morita]]) (seasons 1-3, 10–11: 26 episodes) is the owner of Arnold's Drive-In season three (1975–76). Morita also played "Arnold" as a guest star in 1977 and 1979 before returning as a recurring character after [[Al Molinaro]] departed in 1982.
* [[Chachi Arcola]] ([[Scott Baio]]) — Fonzie's younger cousin and later Al Delvecchio's stepson. Fonzie acts as his older brother/father figure. He has much of Fonzie's smoothness and charisma, "wah wah wah" being his catchphrase. Chachi becomes "one of the guys", joining Richie, Potsie, Ralph, and Fonzie in their antics and as their bandmate/drummer.
* {{Visible anchor|Jenny Piccalo|Jenny Piccalo}} ([[Cathy Silvers]]) — Joanie's boy-crazy best friend (1980–1983), frequently mentioned but never seen in early episodes. She made her first on-screen appearance in the eighth season and remained a recurring character through the ninth season, becoming a regular during the tenth season in 1983. She returned as a guest star in the 1984 series finale.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cathy Silvers is so much like Jenny Piccalo that ''it's frightening'' |url=https://www.metv.com/stories/cathy-silvers-is-so-much-like-jenny-piccalo-that-it-s-frightening |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924221100/https://www.metv.com/stories/cathy-silvers-is-so-much-like-jenny-piccalo-that-it-s-frightening |archive-date=September 24, 2021 |access-date=September 24, 2021}}</ref> Jenny's father, played by [[Cathy Silvers]]' real-life father [[Phil Silvers]], appeared in one episode (S9E8 "Just a Piccalo").
* Roger Phillips ([[Ted McGinley]]) — Marion's nephew; coach and teacher at Jefferson High, until the episode "Vocational Education" when he became principal at Patton High.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Happy Days Episodes Guide 1983 Season 11- Vocational Education, Episode 7 |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1983/episode-7-season-11/vocational-education/100197 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116175520/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/happy-days-1983/episode-7-season-11/vocational-education/100197 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |access-date=November 8, 2012 |publisher=tvguide.com}}</ref> Introduced in 1980 after Richie left the show as a recurring character.
* Lori Beth Allen-Cunningham ([[Lynda Goodfriend]]) — Richie's girlfriend and later his wife (1977–82). She married Richie by phone in season eight. Fonzie helped Lori Beth deliver her baby in "Little Baby Cunningham". She returned as a guest star in the final season, where she is pregnant with her second baby.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}
* Ashley Pfister ([[Linda Purl]]) — Divorced mother who becomes Fonzie's steady girlfriend until they break up offscreen sometime before "Where the Guys Are". (Purl also portrays Richie's part-time girlfriend Gloria in season 2).{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}

=== {{anchor|Chuck Cunningham Syndrome}} Minor/recurring ===
* Marsha Simms ([[Beatrice Colen]]) (seasons 1–3, 5; 22 episodes) — A [[carhop]] waitress in the first 3 seasons with comic sides and plot development appearances. She returned for a flashback (guest) appearance in the episode "Our Gang".
* Bobby Melner (Harris Kal) (seasons 8–11; 19 episodes) — Friend of Chachi and Joanie seen in episodes after Richie and Ralph left the show. He is a student in Fonzie's auto shop class, as well as in Roger's health class. At one point, he was also on the Jefferson High basketball team, and performed in a band with Joanie and Chachi.
* K.C. Cunningham ([[Crystal Bernard]]) (season 10; 15 episodes) — Howard's niece. She moves in with Howard and Marion after Joanie leaves for Chicago. She left an all-girls boarding school in Texas because it closed down.
* Leopold "Flip" Phillips ([[Billy Warlock]]) (seasons 9–10; 13 episodes) — Roger's rebellious younger brother. He usually wears a shirt cut off over his bellybutton.
* Tommy (Kevin Sullivan) (seasons 8–11; 13 episodes) — Another friend of Chachi and Joanie in episodes after Ron Howard and Don Most left the show. Like Bobby, Tommy is a student in Fonzie's auto shop class, as well as in Roger's health class.
* Heather Pfister ([[Heather O'Rourke]]) (season 10; 12 episodes) — Ashley Pfister's daughter. Initially she does not get along with Fonzie, but gradually learns to accept him as a father figure.
* {{anchor|Chuck Cunningham}} Charles "Chuck" Cunningham ([[Gavan O'Herlihy]], [[Randolph Roberts]]) (seasons 1–2; 11 episodes) — The oldest son of Howard and Marion Cunningham and older brother of Richie and Joanie, Chuck is a college student and basketball player. He is rarely seen and disappears without explanation in season three, never to be seen nor referenced again after season 2's "Fish and Fins". The character's disappearance gave rise to the term "Chuck Cunningham Syndrome", used to describe TV characters that disappear from shows without an in-narrative explanation and are nowhere to be seen or mentioned again.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Abramson |first=Dan |date=June 17, 2010 |title=The 13 Most Ridiculous Sitcom Mysteries Of All Time (PHOTOS) |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/17/the-most-ridiculous-sitco_n_541532.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170404012114/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/17/the-most-ridiculous-sitco_n_541532.html |archive-date=April 4, 2017 |access-date=April 20, 2020 |website=Huffington Post}}</ref> Gavan O'Herlihy played Chuck, but then he asked to leave the series.<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 10, 2017 |title=Meet 'Chuck,' the lost brother from 'Happy Days' |url=http://onmilwaukee.com/ent/articles/gavanoherlihy.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629151723/https://onmilwaukee.com/ent/articles/gavanoherlihy.html |archive-date=June 29, 2017 |access-date=April 26, 2017}}</ref> He was replaced by Randolph Roberts. In several late-season episodes, Howard and Marion say they are "very proud of our two children", with no on-screen reference to Chuck.
* Eugene Belvin (Denis Mandel) (seasons 8–9; 10 episodes) — Nerdy classmate of Joanie and Chachi, and twin brother of Melvin Belvin. He takes Fonzie's auto shop class and has a crush on Jenny Piccolo. Despite being a general stooge to his classmates at Jefferson High, he frequently tags along with Joanie and Chachi's circle of friends.
* "Bag" Zombroski (Neil J. Schwartz) (seasons 1–4; 9 episodes) — A Jefferson High schoolmate, drummer of Richie's band and a leader of a jacket club called "The Demons".
* Police Officer Kirk / Army Reserve Major Kirk ([[Ed Peck]]) (seasons 3–10; 9 episodes) — Fonzie's nemesis and [[antagonist]], who is eager to demonstrate his inflated sense of authority, and on the watch for delinquents and "[[pinko]]s" (communists). Kirk takes over as acting sheriff following the untimely death of Sheriff Flanaghan.
* Wendy ([[Misty Rowe]]) (season 2; 8 episodes) — A carhop from Arnold's in season two. She is paired with Marsha Simms in 5 episodes.
* Trudy (Tita Bell) (seasons 1–4; 8 episodes) — A Jefferson High classmate, Potsie's and Fonzie's date in various episodes
* Melvin Belvin (Scott Bernstein) (seasons 9–10; 8 episodes) — A nerdy classmate of Joanie and Chachi, and twin brother of Eugene Belvin. Like his brother, Melvin frequently tags along with Joanie's and Chachi's circle of friends.
* Leather Tuscadero ([[Suzi Quatro]]) (seasons 5–6; 7 episodes) — A musician, younger sister of Pinky Tuscadero and a former juvenile delinquent, she forms her own [[girl group]] called "Leather and the Suedes".
* Jennifer Jerome (Lorrie Mahaffey) (seasons 5–6; 6 episodes) — Potsie's steady girlfriend. Mahaffey was [[Anson Williams]]' then wife.
* Laverne De Fazio ([[Penny Marshall]]) and Shirley Feeney ([[Cindy Williams]]) (seasons 3, 6–7; 5 episodes) — Dating interest of Fonzie, Laverne and her friend Shirley appeared prominently in three episodes during season three ("A Date with Fonzie", "Football Frolics", and "Fonzie the Superstar"), which led to the Marshall and Williams starring in the spin-off series ''[[Laverne & Shirley]]''; they also made guest appearances in season six's "Fonzie's Funeral (Part 2)" and season seven's "Shotgun Wedding" (Part 1) (the second part of "Shotgun Wedding" concluded on a [[Crossover (fiction)|crossover]] episode of ''Laverne and Shirley''.)
* Louisa Arcola-Delvecchio ([[Ellen Travolta]]) (seasons 8–11; 5 episodes) — Mother of Chachi Arcola and aunt of Fonzie. She marries Al Delvecchio and they move to Chicago.
* Gloria ([[Linda Purl]]) (season 2; 5 episodes) — Richie's occasional girlfriend in season two.
* Dr. Mickey Malph ([[Alan Oppenheimer]], [[Jack Dodson]]) (season 3–4, 7; 4 episodes) — Ralph's father, an optometrist and, like his son, a self-styled comedian. He briefly separates from his wife Minnie, but apparently resolves the issues with her after a talk with Ralph.
* Raymond "Spike" Fonzarelli (Danny Butch) (seasons 2–4; 4 episodes) — Fonzie's cousin (often referred to as his nephew, but Fonzie explains that he could not be his nephew, as Fonzie was an only child) and his copycat. He goes on a date with Joanie in "Not with My Sister, You Don't" and made only fleeting appearances before the introduction of Chachi.
* Grandma Nussbaum ([[Frances Bay]]) (seasons 3, 9–11: 4 episodes) — Chachi Arcola and Fonzie's grandmother. Grandma Nussbaum was played by [[Lillian Bronson]] in the season 3 episode "Fonzie Moves In".
* Carol "Pinky" Tuscadero ([[Roz Kelly]]) (season 4; 3 episodes) — Former girlfriend of Fonzie and a traveling [[demolition derby]] driver.
* Clarence (Gary Friedkin) (season 10; 3 episodes) — A cook at Arnold's who is referred to several times throughout the show, but never actually seen until the episode "A Woman Not Under the Influence". There, it is revealed that Clarence is a little person.
* Bill "Sticks" Downey ([[John Bailey (American actor) |John Anthony Bailey]]) (season 3; 2 episodes) — Friend of Fonzie, Richie, Potsie, and Ralph and drummer for their band, hence his nickname "Sticks", though he claims he got the nickname because he was skinny.