What was it about the sitcom – Happy Days – that made it sooooo ‘cool’.

Let’s face it – when you look at the sum of its parts, the show had little going for it.

Imagine going to television executives (in an era when Mannix, The Streets of San Francisco, Kojak and Kung Fu were rating their collective scripts off) – with a handful of hotch potch ideas, a single pilot episode (featuring a middle class American family set in the 50’s, a dysfunctional local thug and Japanese diner proprietor) and trying bravely to keep a poker face when looking to sell the concept.

Well – apparently it worked and Milwaukee, Wisconsin was never the same again.

If there were a Sitcom Hall of Fame, “Happy Days” would surely have a cherished spot there.

For 10 years, we followed The Fonz, Richie, Ralph Malph, Potsie and the Cunninghams through an idealised version of American life in the late 50’s and early 60’s.

From some fairly lightweight scripts came some heavyweight ratings – and for the period 1975-1977 – it consistently featured in the Top 10 programs in the US and Australia.

As twee as its formulated characterisations and improvised situational comedy was – audiences loved it.

From The Fonz’s famous ‘Heeeeeyyyy’ to the familiar ‘Sit on It’ catchcry – the program (was at worst) – inoffensive cultural cringe – (at best) – wholesome family humour.

Then it happened . . . .

Having already spawn spinoff’s including Laverne and Shirley as well as Mork and Mindy – the Happy Days lustre began to tarnish.

Having already conceived the modern colloqualism “Nerd” – the program was about to add another (less fortunate – but still enduring term) – ‘Jumping The Shark’.

With ratings falling and producers looking for answers, a plot involving Fonzie performing a water ski jump over a shark in an episode during the show’s fifth season is often cited as the point where the series had passed its peak of quality and popularity.

The phrase ‘jumping the shark’ was later applied to popular culture phenomena in general.

Of course – the series continued – but as cast members gradually drifted the program and spin-offs including Joanie Loves Chachi – became increasingly tragic – the beauty and intent of those early seasons was lost.

If there was ever a case of getting too much of a good thing – unfortunately Happy Days was it.

 Heeeyyyyyyy!

Click Here To View the Opening Sequence to Happy Days

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Remember the Huxtables  from The Cosby show – and how cool they were?

Or how about the Brady’s?

Perhaps The Taylors from Home Improvement or better still maybe The Cunningham’s from Happy Days.

Just about all of us had a favourite TV Family – that we longed to be a part of – for whatever reason.

Ok, so may some weren’t quite up the scatch but even the weirder one scuh as The Beverly Hillbillies, The Munsters or The Addams Family had some redeeming qualities.

Maybe Al and Peg Bundy cracked your top five or Charles and Laura Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie. Perhaps we have to go even further back to the Cleavers or dare I say it – The Waltons?

Of course we can’t discount Homer and Marge’s impact on our lives let alone other classic cartoon families such as The Flintstones or The Jetsons.

So folks – it’s family’s a ten paces . . . choose yours wisely . . .

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From time to time – as you do – I dragged out a copy of the old Happy Days TV series the other day – complete with Richie, The Fonz, Ralph Malph, Potsie and the gang – just to lighten the mood around the palatial Pop Doctor estate.

The sugary sweet, ‘twee’ nature of the whole series had almost been lost on me when one of my kids (who was watching the episodes for the first time) and referring to the quaint timber facade of the Cummingham residence quipped:

“Wouldn’t it be sooooo cool to live in their house.”

Well – come to think of it – I guess (given we only ever saw the lounge, kitchen and two bedrooms) that perhaps it might just be cool to take up digs with Marion and Howard – heyyyyyyyy!

So if you could live in any home on a television series, what would it be?

Perhaps The Addams Family or The Brady Bunch environs were more to your taste – or The Munsters offered your kind of real estate. Perhaps life with a bunch of Desperate Housewives is more your cuppa tea or a weekend with Mr Rourke and Tattoo on Fantasy Island?

Love to hear from you.

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What do the following have in common?

“Just remember it’s not a lie if you believe it.”

“He’s a male bimbo, he’s a mimbo!”

“I’m disturbed, I’m depressed, I’m inadequate, I’ve got it all!”

If you said they were all quotes from the sitcom sensation of the nineties ‘Seinfeld’ – well you’re probably a tragic.

Starring comedian Jerry Seinfeld, the show featured former girlfriend Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) luckless George (Tony Award winner Jason Alexander) and the shock-haired Kramer and seamlessly blends situation comedy with stand-up routines

The pretext of the series and Seinfeild own view of life as a single adult in the ’90s is well documented and its humour grows out of everyday reality making it one of the most poular television shows of all time!

Amidst the classic Seinfeld episodes were The Soup Nazi; The Bubble Boy and The Outing (in which Jerry and George are mistakenly believed to be a gay item – but ask aficionado’s and they will tell you that every episode is indeed a classic.

What you may not know is the amount of Seinfeld trivia which is a business in itself – with buffs frequenting weekly tournaments throughout the US, Canada, the UK and Australia.

Seinfeld on YouTube

Feel free to add to the list – but the good Doctor can at least lay claim to knowing the following:

Seinfeld creator Larry David modelled the show’s character George Costanza after himself.

Seinfeld was set in New York City however the exterior that was used for Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment house is actually in Los Angeles California.

The cereal boxes in Jerry Seinfeld’s cupboard were always in placed alphabetical order.

Elaine Benes wasn’t in the pilot for Seinfeld. After that episode aired they decided that they needed a female character to balance out the three males.

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Last night, while getting my daily dose the Simpson’s – I found my mind wandering at right angles to the rest of the family – before proudly announcing that despite his bumbling nature – Homer was right up there with other TV dads as far as affording us advice about life.

From Mike Brady with his groovy clothes and fortune cookie advice to Howard Cunningham of Happy Days fame – everybody loves TV dads.

After all don’t we all wish we could solve our kids’ problems in 30 minutes or less?

A prerequisite of course is wisdom and sage advice.

From Don Porter who played Sally Field’s father in Gidget to Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster, Brian Keith in “A Family Affair” to Fred McMurray in “My 3 Sons” – TV dads (in the most part) have taught us that with a positive attitude anything is possible.

It wasn’t until I started to think about just how many TV dads there were – that the notion of a “Best Of” almost became too much.

Enter – Charles Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie, Tony Soprano from “The Soprano’s”  Andy Taylor from The Andy Griffith Show, Ward Cleaver from “Leave It to Beaver”, Jed Clampett from “The Beverly Hillbillies”, Ben Cartwright (Bonanza), Tim Taylor (Home Improvement), Gomez Addams (The Addams Family), George Jetson (The Jetsons) – the list goes on and on and on.

So just who is the best TV dad of all time?

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