On May 24, 1983, Joanie Loves Chachiaired its final episode—after a very short run. The ABCsitcom, a spin-off of the hit series Happy Days, aired from March 23, 1982, to May 24, 1983, on ABC, for just 17 episodes total.
Starring Erin Moran and Scott Baio, the Joanie Loves Chachi spinoff followed the musical pursuits of Happy Days characters Joanie Cunningham and Chachi Arcola in Chicago. Luckily for the actors, Happy Days left the door open for the characters, who slinked back to Milwaukee after their disastrous run in the Windy City.
Rolling Stoneonce ranked Joanie Loves Chachi one of the worst TV spinoffs of all time, right alongside The Brady Brides and Joey.
“Garry Marshall's Happy Days has given the world some of the very best TV spin-offs; it's also given us this, the absolute nadir of taking people from shows you loved and putting them in shows you loathed,” the outlet noted. “The show tried to sell us on Erin Moran and teen heartthrob Scott Baio relocating to Chicago in the mid-Sixties and trying to make it a singer-songwriter duo — a concept that allowed for all the Moran-Baio singing duets you never, ever wanted to hear. …Joanie may have loved Chachi, but nobody loved this musical disaster.”
Scott Baio and Erin Moran on 'Joanie Loves Chachi.'Photo by Walt Disney Television Photo Archives on Getty Images
RELATED: Henry Winkler Addresses Rumors That ‘Laverne & Shirley’ Stars Were a ‘Nightmare’
Joanie Loves Chachi started off strong. Fueled by the success of Happy Days, the four episodes the spinoff series aired in its abbreviated first season were ratings hits, according to MeTV.
But for its second season, the network moved the show to Thursday nights. Up against the top CBS hit Magnum P.I., Joanie Loves Chachi sunk to No. 70 in the Nielsen ratings before ABC put it out of its misery.
Baio once reflected on the demise of the series, telling the AV Club, “Joanie Loves Chachi doesn’t really count as being my own show, it was such a fiasco. People weren’t all there, and… well, whatever.”
“All the Happy Days people had written the first four episodes, when the show got picked up for series, but then they left to go back to Happy Days, and we were stuck with new writers who didn't know us,” the actor explained. “It just sort of all crumbled and fell apart. In retrospect, if given the choice again, I would not have done that show. ...If I had to do it all over again, I would've waited 'til Happy Days was over until I did anything else.”
In another interview, Baio admitted, “I regret doing Joanie Loves Chachi because, you know, it’s very exciting to have your own show, but if I wouldn’t have done it, I could have done anything I wanted…after [Happy Days].”
Moran, who died in 2017, once admitted she didn’t really want to do Joanie Loves Chachi either. “I liked working with the people. But I didn’t even want to do it,” she said, per The Guardian. “I wanted to stay on Happy Days.”
Joanie and Chachi ultimately got married on the Happy Days series finale in 1984.
RELATED: ‘Happy Days’ Guest Star’s 1978 Debut Changed Everything
Hence then, the article about short lived 80s sitcom ranked among worst tv spinoffs of all time ended 43 years ago today was published today ( ) and is available on Parade ( Saudi Arabia ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Short-Lived ‘80s Sitcom, Ranked Among ‘Worst TV Spinoffs of All Time,’ Ended 43 Years Ago Today )
Also on site :
- Inside the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in DRC as the virus spreads
- White House shooter Naseer Best, 21, who identified himself as Jesus Christ shot dead
- Taylor Swift Makes Unexpected Public Appearance After Unfortunate AMA News