Moran of ‘Happy Days’ dies

CORYDON (Indiana): Erin Moran, the former child actress who played the sweet but mischievous Joanie on the television series Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi, has died. She was 56.

The Harrison County Sheriff’s Department in southern Indiana confirmed her death. She was found unresponsive on Saturday, and the authorities said an autopsy was pending.

Moran started acting at 5, and got her first taste of television in a commercial for First Federal Bank. She went on to play minor characters in television and film in the late 1960s and early 1970s. At 12, she landed her biggest role: Joanie, the freckle-faced troublemaker and sister of Richie Cunningham, the all-American teenager played by Ron Howard.

Over the 10-year run of

Joanie transformed from the young teenager who complained about being sent to her room to a major character on the show. Joanie’s love interest with aspiring musician Chachi Arcola became a major storyline.

In 1982, the two characters were given their own show, ,a widely panned comedy that followed their romantic adventures and musical pursuits in Chicago. While

was a No 1 hit, the spinoff with Moran and Scott

Baio, who played Chachi, lasted only 17 episodes.

Moran was only 22 when the end of the show ushered in a swift downfall for her Hollywood career. Despite minor appearances on other shows, she never held another leading role.