Joanie Loves Chachi

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Joanie Loves Chachi

Joanie Loves Chachi title screen
Format Sitcom
Created by Lowell Ganz
Starring Scott Baio
Erin Moran
Al Molinaro
Ellen Travolta
Art Metrano
Opening theme "You Look at Me," sung by Scott Baio and Erin Moran
Country of origin USA
No. of seasons 2
No. of episodes 17
(4 in Season 1)
(13 in Season 2)
Production
Running time 30 minutes per episode
Broadcast
Original channel ABC
Original run March 23, 1982 – May 24, 1983
Chronology
Preceded by Love, American Style
Happy Days
Related shows Laverne & Shirley
Blansky's Beauties
Mork & Mindy
Out of the Blue
The New Love, American Style
External links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Joanie Loves Chachi was an American TV spin-off of the popular American sitcom Happy Days that was originally broadcast on ABC from March 23, 1982 to September 13, 1983. It starred Scott Baio and Erin Moran as the titular Chachi Arcola and Joanie Cunningham.

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

The series followed the exploits of Joanie and Chachi as they moved to Chicago and tried to make it on their own with a rock band and a music career. It mixed the traditional elements of a sitcom with musical performances on each show by Baio and Moran. In fact, the beginning credit sequence of the show had them singing to each other. Their backup band consists of a spaced-out drummer named Bingo and Chachi's blase cousins Mario and Annette.

The series also starred Ellen Travolta as Louisa Delvecchio, Chachi's mother, and Al Molinaro as Al Delvecchio, Chachi's stepfather (and formerly the owner of Arnold's Drive-In in Happy Days), who opened a restaurant in which Chachi and Joanie performed most of their music. Art Metrano played Chachi's uncle Rico Mastorelli, who was the band's manager and helped Joanie and Chachi advance in their careers. Actress Winifred Freedman played Rico's daughter, Annette, Chachi's cousin, and bandmate. After the show's cancellation, Ms. Freedman would go on to play boarding school student Patty DuPunt Krauss on the short-lived syndicated soap opera, Rituals.

[edit] Cancellation

The format didn't click with viewers, and the series only lasted for two seasons (the first one being abbreviated) before the characters were rolled back into Happy Days for that program's final season.

[edit] Misconceptions

It is not true that the program was the highest-rated show in Korea for a time because "Chachi" is the Korean word for penis . However both series creator Garry Marshall and series star Scott Baio have propagated the myth.[1]

[edit] Main cast

Actor Role
Scott Baio Chachi Arcola
Erin Moran Joanie Cunningham
Al Molinaro Al Delvecchio
Ellen Travolta Louisa Delvecchio
Art Metrano Rico Mastorelli
Robert Pierce Bingo Pierce
Derrel Maury Mario Mastorelli
Winifred Freedman Annette Mastorelli

[edit] References

  1. ^ Barbara and David P. Mikkelson. Fun with Dick and Joan. Snopes.com. Retrieved on 2008-03-14.

[edit] External links