The TV Sidekick Blogathon: Ralph Malph of "Happy Days"

Welcome to our second contribution to the TV Sidekick Blogathon sponsored by the Classic Film & TV Cafe!  You'll  enjoy reading all the entries in this collection of inspired posts focusing on the venerable assortment of characters who have worked tirelessly alongside TV series stars to provide the complete TV entertainment experience!  Be sure to check out all the other postings; full information available by clicking here. You've already seen in our previous post how we feel about Dr. Leonard McCoy from Star Trek but we've got a more down-to-earth candidate right now.

Happy Days, the popular ABC sitcom that ran for 11 seasons from 1974 - 1984, was a peppy and positive series, filled with appealing characters played by a talented cast.  The core family was the Cunninghams -- Richie, Joanie, Howard and Marion -- and the orbit of personalities who surrounded them started with the Fonz and included Richie's good friends Potsie Weber and Ralph Malph.  For the first seven seasons, good guy straight arrow Richie (Ron Howard) relied on his slightly more mischievous pals Potsie (Anson Williams) and Ralph (Don Most) to instigate the fun and back him up in their innocent and hilarious adventures.  The one true comic character was Ralph Malph, Richie's fellow redhead and the friend who was always a little funnier, a little more cynical -- truly a comedian -- than anyone else in the cast.

In the historical tradition of funnymen, redheads hold an exalted place.  While they might not excel or even be considered in more traditional dramatic roles -- regardless of talent the red hair actually seemed to be a drawback -- you can't beat their comedy chops.  Red Skelton, Red Buttons -- see, even identified by their red hair -- and Danny Kaye were the chief classic redheaded comedians and you can't do much better than that.  (Today you could throw Carrot Top into the mix).

Actor Don -- then Donny -- Most was a worthy inheritor of the redheaded clown position, with perfect comic delivery and a knowing (especially in early episodes) if goofy take on the world.  It was amazing that Happy Days actually had two talented redheads in the cast, with long-time show business veteran (even by that time) Ron Howard having amassed years in the movies and as Opie on The Andy Griffith Show.  But Richie was a good kid, not exactly a good two-shoes but the one in the leadership position in his trio of pals.

If Richie was the innocent redhead, Ralph Malph was the devilish one.  Potsie was someplace in the middle, definitely an Everyman who was pleasant and loyal but mostly lacking the impulse to be purposefully naughty.  Once the character of Fonzie -- played so winningly by Henry Winkler -- captured the hearts of the audience he became the magical breakout element in the show's appeal.  Even if playing disciples to a benign guru in a leather-jacket wasn't quite what they all had signed up for, all the cast's continuing chemistry made Happy Days a phenomena and cemented it into TV history.

But back to Ralph Malph.  The son of an equally wise-cracking optometrist dad (played most memorably by Ralph Dodson), Ralph loved making out with girls and being a wise guy.  Not a wise guy like Fonzie who had tough guy credentials behind him (but preferred to use his wits), Malph was more the eternal smart aleck, the friend with the quips who very much prided himself on making them.

What turned out to be Malph's trademark phrase?  "I've still got it!" which he'd crow each time he landed a comic zinger in conversation with his pals.  And he knew what it was.  It was the ability to make somebody laugh, to elicit a comic response, easier said than done and many never achieve it.  Even more importantly for Ralph Malph, he had been given (thanks to actor Don Most) the magical talisman -- a comedian's red hair -- and would not waste its power.

Especially in those early episodes -- the ones not filmed before a live audience -- the performing chops of the entire cast shine.  They're not playing to the crowd, they're creating comedy through solid writing and wonderful ensemble acting. Both styles are fun, but there's something special about those first two seasons that will really make you appreciate how good everybody is.  The scenes between Richie, Ralph and Potsie are deeper, more intimate than they would or could ever be later and the actors are up to it.  Don Most is wonderful as Ralph Malph, a guy with lots of ideas, lots of hormones and lots of affection for his pals.

So let's celebrate Ralph Malph and the actor who brought him to life with such skill and charm!  Ralph Malph's still got it and so does Don Most!  We're happy to see that in real life Mr. Most is currently enjoying a renewed career as a singer, something Ralph also enjoyed in the series.  There's that multi-talented redheaded comedian/actor trait coming out again!  Please visit his website by clicking here and become his Twitter follower @most_don.

As we stated earlier, be sure to visit all the sites offering contributions to the TV Sidekick Blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe; click here for links to all of them!  Thanks for joining us!

Here are some more priceless Ralph Malph moments from Happy Days -- enjoy!

Henry Winkler -- Happy 68th Birthday!

The man behind one of the most popular TV characters ever is having a birthday today!  The multi-talented, super-nice in real life and dedicated to doing good Henry Winkler is 68 years old today.  The man who forty years ago caused a pop culture tsunami when he turned supporting character Arthur Fonzarelli on Happy Days into the mega-popular "The Fonz" has been a fan favorite ever since, and for good reason.  A good buy, a great character, a long and successful career -- you don't get much better than that.  Henry Winkler is genuine classic TV royalty.

In addition to his 11 seasons (1973 - 1984) as Fonzie on Happy Days and occasionally crossing-over to Laverne & Shirley, Joanie Loves Chachi and in animated form on The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang,  Yale acting grad Winkler starred in a number of feature films including Heroes, The One and Only, Night Shift and The Waterboy.  But he was primarily a TV guy; TV movie aficionados will remember him in the 1975 TVM Katharine co-starring Sissy Spacek as a wealthy debutante who turns into a radical activist, or as a homegrown Scrooge in An American Christmas Carol from 1979.  Many other series starring roles and guest roles have also liberally peppered his resume, including his very popular stint on the cult comedy Arrested Development.

Perhaps less known may be Winkler's output as a television producer, including serving as executive producer for the seven-season hit series MacGuyver beginning in 1985, several seasons of Hollywood Squares, and many other titles over the four decades he's been a show business figure.  All that, combined with his work helping kids overcome learning disabilities including dyslexia (which he had as a child), makes Henry Winkler a wonderful example of a that rare species of show business celebrity who is also a good human being.  (Interesting that his Happy Days co-star Ron Howard is also known as a good guy...must have been something in the water on that set.)

Here's a little selection of Henry Winkler clips showing some of his charm, versatility, pop culture chops and good heartedness.

Winkler played a precursor to Fonzie in the 1974 movie The Lord's of Flatbush:



On The Merv Griffin Show from 1977:



The Fonz is so cool:



Yes, Fonzie really did jump the shark in Happy Days' fifth season; the term has come to mean when a show turns from being good to stinking a little. Happy Days was not at that point yet though it did get a little silly sometimes, mostly because Fonzie was such a popular character that the show started to become fixated on him.



Henry Winkler did an extensive interview for the Archive of American Television and the Emmy folks.  See an excerpt here and you can watch the whole thing by clicking here:



Henry Winkler with Arsenio Hall in 1990:



Henry Winkler on the joys of reading:




The Huffington Post also did a birthday post on Henry Winkler; you can read it here.


It's comforting to know that somebody who has been in the public eye for such a long time continues to be a great person, too.

Happy Birthday, Henry Winkler!

Losing Tom Bosley

It's a bad week for TV sitcom icons. First Barbara Billingsley, now the beloved "Mr. C" from Happy Days, Tom Bosley, has died at the age of 83. For fans of Happy Days, which is on the whole a much better sitcom than most people probably remember it as, his loss means a timely opportunity to revisit the show. The new Hub network, the replacement for Discovery Kids, is running Happy Days (and its spinoff Laverne & Shirley) and as you will learn from reading this article from Media Post, so far it's a hit.

Bosley's Howard Cunningham -- successful proprietor of Cunningham Hardware, proud member of the Leopard Lodge -- was an easygoing presence and a loving husband to the voluptuous Mrs. C, played by Marion Ross. Especially in the first two seasons of the show, in the episodes that weren't filmed live in front a studio audience, Bosley's subtle take on suburban fatherhood was unmatchable. After that, when the Henry Winkler as the Fonz ascended to TV godhood and the over-enthusiastic audience would stop the show with screams and applause every time Fonzie entered the scene, everybody else was a little less than they could be, even a Tony Award-winning actor like Tom Bosley.

But Bosley was still plenty good. Watch some of those early episodes, when the shows were a one-camera treat, for some actual medium close-ups of Bosley, giving it his all as he parented his children Richie, Joanie and the disappearing Chuck. (I highly recommend the 2nd season's "Haunted" episode, the first and best Happy Days Halloween episode, with great moments between Bosley and Ron Howard.) Completely delightful, and something much different than when Happy Days played more like a high school play (because of that audience) than a clever nostalgic sitcom with great writing.

Here's a vintage ABC Happy Days/Laverne & Shirley promo, with the voice-over of the ever-recognizable Ernie Anderson:

Tom Bosley was a man of television, beginning his career after his WW II Navy service, soon getting lots of roles on early TV and also establishing a successful stage career, including winning his Tony for the title role in the 1959 Broadway musical Fiorello. His greatest successes were on TV, though, first as guest star in seemingly every series from the 1960s to the mid-1970s -- Bonanza, Naked City, Route 66, Dr. Kildare (and Ben Casey, and Marcus Welby, MD!), The Defenders, Get Smart, The Virginian, The Mod Squad and so many more -- and co-starring roles in (short-lived) series The Debbie Reynolds Show, and The Sandy Duncan Show. Check out his IMDb listing for his complete credit list -- it's unbelievably impressive.

In 1974 Bosley landed on Happy Days, and a TV legend was born. Over 255 episodes -- only he and Henry Winkler appeared in every single HD segment over the show's ten year run -- Bosley honed his portrayal of the lovable, only slightly irascible, and generally good-natured Howard Cunningham. Post-Happy Days, Bosley was still in high demand as a guest star on many series, and he became a semi-regular on Angela Lansbury's Murder, She Wrote as Sheriff Tupper. Bosley also headlined his own mystery series as a crime-solving priest in the Father Dowling Mysteries which ran for 44 episodes beginning in 1987. In addition he was a prolific voice-over actor, including playing the title role in the animated Wait Till Your Father Gets Home back in 1972 and lending his voice to many other cartoon characters over the years.

A great and long career, a resume full of accomplished performances, and a few honors on your mantel -- not a bad legacy, and I haven't even mentioned the warm place where Tom Bosley, especially as Mr. C, resides in our cultural panorama. Howard Cunningham wasn't Tom Bosley, and Tom Bosley wasn't Howard Cunningham, but the actor informed the character and brought life and spirit to the writers' words. They fit well together, and I'm sure the rest of the guys at the Leopard Lodge are missing their Grand Poohbah big time. So are we.