Starting out as a child actor in Hollywood is almost never a guarantee for a sustainable career, but Ron Howard definitely pulled it off. From starting out with The Andy Griffith Show to becoming a bankable directorial force in the industry, Howard’s trajectory is the kind of story that probably fuels and inspires many young aspirants who are at the very beginning of their own careers.
Although his directorial achievements through projects such as Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind often take the forefront in conversations surrounding his talent, Howard never really lost his acting edge. Whether it be his brilliant cameo in Arrested Development or his recent appearance on Seth Rogen’s The Studio, Howard clearly has still got it and his understanding of acting only further strengthens his craft as a filmmaker.
Maybe because of the success he has achieved as a director, it’s even more interesting to revisit Howard’s origins and see his evolution as an actor in his youth. One striking example of this is the beloved American sitcom Happy Days, where Howard starred as the stereotypical all-American teen Richie Cunningham, who was often preoccupied with getting dates.
Featuring alongside Henry Winkler’s Fonzie, Happy Days served as yet another springboard for Howard’s rise, but there was a time when he was afraid of the role. During a conversation with The New York Times, Howard revealed how the show never really found its way until the third season, when it decided to shoot in the presence of a live audience.
Howard said, “We slipped a lot in our second season, and the decision was made to move to a three-camera show in front of an audience. I had never done that. It terrified me, but it turned out to be an exciting experience. The other idea was to move the Fonzie character front and centre. It was kind of a reckoning for me because the focus of the show shifted, and yet that was our way to win.”
“The only thing I ever said to the bosses or the executives is,” he added, “‘What’s happened here with Fonzie is great. Just make sure that you understand, too, that we have a real chemistry here, and we think of ourselves as an ensemble.’ I’m glad that they made the moves they made, whether I was 100% comfortable with them at the time or not. It was thrilling to see the show take off.”
Looking back, going in that direction was undoubtedly the right move because it altered the entire course of the show and actually transformed Howard into a household name. However, even before the third season pivot, the pilot of Happy Days interested George Lucas so much that he was immediately convinced of Howard’s talent and decided to cast him in a major role in his 1973 masterpiece American Graffiti.
Happy Days will definitely be remembered for more than just Howard and Winkler’s memorable performances (it also hosted Robin Williams’ screen debut), as it’s a quintessential sitcom that is best seen as a time capsule meant to preserve an authentic representation of a certain slice of American society.
