Happy Days star Moran likely died from cancer
Erin Moran, the former child star who played Joanie Cunningham in the sitcoms “Happy Days” and “Joanie Loves Chachi,” has died. She was 56.
Authorities say Moran likely died from cancer at her southern Indiana home.
A statement released Monday by the Harrison County Sheriff ’s Department says an autopsy revealed the 56-year-old actress had Stage-4 cancer, but doesn’t specify what type.
The department says Moran died Saturday in the rural community of New Salisbury, near Louisville, Ky.
Officials say standard toxicology test results are pending but that no illegal narcotics were found at the home.
A Burbank, Calif., native, Moran began acting in TV and movies before she was 10 years old.
She had several years of experience when she was cast in 1974 in “Happy Days” as Joanie Cunningham, the kid sister to high school student Richie Cunningham, played by Ron Howard, who went on to become a successful filmmaker.
Her more recent credits included “The Love Boat” and “Murder, She Wrote,” but she never approached the success of “Happy Days” and was more often in the news for her numerous personal and financial struggles and was reportedly homeless at times.
Other “Happy Days” cast members included Tom Bosley and Marion Ross as Joanie’s parents and Henry Winkler as the lovable tough guy Arthur “The Fonz” Fonzarelli.
In 1982, she was paired off with fellow “Happy Days” performer Scott Baio in the short-lived “Joanie Loves Chachi.”
Moran returned to “Happy Days” in 1984, the show’s final season.
Moran told Xfinity that she had been working on a memoir, called “Happy Days, Depressing Nights.”