Erin Moran

Erin Marie Moran-Fleischmann (October 18, 1960 – April 22, 2017) was an American actress, best known for playing Joanie Cunningham on the television sitcom '' Happy Days'' and its spin-off '' Joanie Loves Chachi''.

Early life

Erin Marie Moran was born on October 18, 1960 in Burbank, California in the Los Angeles metropolitan area and raised in nearby Los Angeles in the North Hollywood district. She was the second youngest of six children born to Sharon and Edward Moran. Her father was a finance manager, and her interest in acting was supported by her mother, who signed her with a talent agent when she was 5 years old. Two of her brothers are also actors, John Moran and Tony Moran, the latter of whom played the unmasked Michael Myers in the movie ''Halloween'' (1978).

Career

Moran's first acting role was at the age of 5 in a television commercial for First Federal Bank. At the age of 6, she was cast as Jenny Jones in the television series '' Daktari'', which ran from 1966 to 1969. She made her feature-film debut in '' How Sweet It Is!'' (1968) with Debbie Reynolds, and made regular appearances on ''The Don Rickles Show'' in 1972, and guest appearances in '' The Courtship of Eddie's Father'', '' My Three Sons'', '' Bearcats!'', '' Family Affair'' and in '' The Waltons'', in an episode titled "The Song", in 1975. She also appeared in the television series ''Gunsmoke''.

In 1974, at the age of 13, Moran was cast to play her best-known role as Joanie Cunningham on the sitcom '' Happy Days'', the younger sister of Richie Cunningham ( Ron Howard). Moran continued the role in 1982 in the short-lived spin-off series '' Joanie Loves Chachi''. Moran later stated that she had only reluctantly agreed to star in the series because she would have preferred to remain with ''Happy Days''. She won the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress in a New Television Series for her role. After ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' cancellation in 1983, she returned to ''Happy Days'' for its final season.

In 1983, Moran said in an interview that the ''Happy Days'' producers had pressured her to change from about the age of 15: They "suddenly wanted me to lose weight and become this sexy thing."

In the following years, Moran made several other television guest appearances, including '' The Love Boat'', ''Murder, She Wrote'', and '' Diagnosis: Murder'', and starred opposite Edward Albert in the cult sci-fi horror film '' Galaxy of Terror'' (1981).

In 2008, she was a contestant on VH1's reality show '' Celebrity Fit Club''. Two years later, she made an appearance in the independent comedy feature ''Not Another B Movie'' (2010). In 2013, despite reports that she would be reunited with ''Happy Days'' co-stars Henry Winkler, Ron Howard, and Scott Baio in the fourth season of '' Arrested Development'', she did not appear in the revamped Netflix series.

''Happy Days'' lawsuit

On April 19, 2011, Moran, three of her ''Happy Days'' co-stars— Don Most, Anson Williams, and Marion Ross—and the estate of Tom Bosley, who died in 2010, filed a $10 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS, which owns the show. The suit claimed that cast members had not been paid merchandising revenues owed under their contracts. Revenues included those from show-related items such as comic books, T-shirts, scrapbooks, trading cards, games, lunch boxes, dolls, toy cars, magnets, greeting cards, and DVDs with cast members' likenesses on the box covers. Their contracts entitled the actors to be paid 5% of the net proceeds of merchandising if a single actor's likeness was used, and half that amount if the cast members were pictured in a group. CBS stated it owed the actors between $8,500 and $9,000 each, most of it from slot-machine revenues, but the group stated they were owed millions. The lawsuit was initiated after Ross was informed by a friend playing slots at a casino of a ''Happy Days'' machine on which players won the jackpot when five Marion Rosses were rolled.

In October 2011, a judge rejected the group's claim of fraud, thereby eliminating the possibility of recouping millions of dollars in damages. On June 5, 2012, a judge denied a motion to dismiss filed by CBS, which meant the case would go to trial on July 17 if not settled by then. In July 2012, the actors settled their lawsuit with CBS; each received a payment of $65,000 and a promise from CBS to continue honoring the terms of their contracts.

Personal life and death

In 1987, Moran married Rocky Ferguson. They divorced in 1993. Later that year, she married Steven Fleischmann.

After ''Happy Days'' and ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' were canceled, Moran moved from Los Angeles to the California mountains. She said in 1988 that she suffered from depression and was unable to get acting roles. Moran confirmed news reports that her California home was foreclosed in 2010, following media claims that she had been served eviction papers and moved into her mother-in-law's trailer home in Indiana. In 2017, ''Variety'' wrote that she "had fallen on hard times in recent years. She was reportedly kicked out of her trailer-park home in Indiana because of her hard-partying ways."

On April 22, 2017, authorities in Corydon, Indiana were alerted about an unresponsive female, later identified as Moran. She later was pronounced dead at the age of 56. An autopsy report from the Harrison County coroner indicated the cause of death to be complications of stage four squamous cell carcinoma of the throat. Toxicology testing showed that no illegal narcotics were involved in her death, and no illegal substances were found in Moran's home. Moran's husband, in an open letter released through her co-star Scott Baio, confirmed that she first experienced symptoms of throat cancer around Thanksgiving 2016 and deteriorated rapidly from that point, and that the facilities that had unsuccessfully attempted to treat her cancer had not made anyone aware of how badly the cancer had metastasized.

Filmography and television appearances

* 1967: '' Who's Minding the Mint?'' as Little Girl on Tricycle (uncredited)
* 1968: '' How Sweet It Is!'' as Laurie
* 1968: ''Stanley vs. the System''
* 1968–69: '' Daktari'' as Jenny Jones
* 1969: '' Death Valley Days'' as Mary Tugwell (2 episodes)
* 1969: ''80 Steps to Jonah'' as Kim
* 1969: ''The Happy Ending'' as Marge Wilson as a Child (uncredited)
* 1970: '' The Courtship of Eddie's Father'' as Emily Ruth Gustafson
* 1970–1973: '' The F.B.I.'' as Vickie Florea / Cindy Marot (2 episodes)
* 1970: '' My Three Sons'' as Victoria Lewis
* 1970: '' Watermelon Man'' as Janice Gerber
* 1970–71: '' Family Affair'' as Amy / Mary Ellen / Janet (3 episodes)
* 1971: ''O'Hara, U.S. Treasury'' as Little Girl
* 1971: '' The Smith Family'' as Julie
* 1971: '' Bearcats!'' as Elisa Tillman
* 1971: ''Gunsmoke'' as Rachel / Jenny (2 episodes)
* 1972: '' The Don Rickles Show'' as Janie Robinson
* 1973: '' Lisa, Bright and Dark'' as Tracy Schilling
* 1973: '' The F.B.I.'' as Morrie Prager's daughter (S9E6)
* 1974–1984: '' Happy Days'' as Joanie Cunningham (234 episodes)
* 1975: '' The Waltons'' as Sally Ann Harper
* 1975: '' Dinah!'' as Herself
* 1976: ''The Captain and Tennille'' as Herself
* 1977: '' The Magic Pony'' (voice)
* 1978–79: '' The Mike Douglas Show'' as Herself (2 episodes)
* 1978–79: '' The Hollywood Squares'' as Herself (6 episodes)
* 1979: ''Greatest Heroes of the Bible'' as Tova
* 1979: ''Sitcom: The Adventures of Garry Marshall'' as Herself (uncredited)
* 1980–1985: '' The Love Boat'' as Carrie Walker / Joanne Morgan / Barbara Blatnick / Janet Reynolds (6 episodes)
* 1980: '' Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve'' as Herself
* 1981: ''Twirl'' as Bonnie Lee Jordan
* 1981: '' Galaxy of Terror'' as Alluma
* 1981: ''38th Golden Globe Awards'' as Herself
* 1982: '' 39th Golden Globe Awards'' as Herself
* 1982–83: '' Joanie Loves Chachi'' as Joanie Cunningham (17 episodes)
* 1983: '' Hotel'' as Karen Donnelly
* 1984: '' Glitter'' as Caroline Mason
* 1984: '' Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour'' as Herself (10 episodes)
* 1986: ''Murder, She Wrote'' as Maggie Roberts
* 1992: '' The Howard Stern Show'' as Herself
* 1996: '' Dear God'' as Herself
* 1998: '' Diagnosis: Murder'' as Cynthia Bennett
* 1998: ''Desperation Boulevard'' as Herself
* 1999: ''Celebrity Profile'' as Herself
* 1999: '' Good vs. Evil'' as Herself
* 1999: ''Entertainment Tonight Presents: Happy Days - Secrets'' as Herself
* 2000: ''I Love 1970's'' as Herself
* 2001: ''TVography: Happy Days'' as Herself
* 2001: '' Weakest Link'' as Herself
* 2001–2003: '' Hollywood Squares'' as Herself (7 episodes)
* 2002: ''Inside TV Land: 40 Greatest Theme Songs'' as Herself
* 2003: '' ABC's 50th Anniversary Celebration'' as Herself
* 2003: '' Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star'' as Herself
* 2004: '' Pyramid'' as Herself
* 2005: '' Happy Days: 30th Anniversary Reunion'' as Herself
* 2006: '' Where Are They Now?'' as Herself
* 2007: '' Scott Baio is 45 and Single'' as Herself
* 2007: '' The Singing Bee'' as Herself
* 2008: '' Today'' as Herself
* 2008: '' Celebrity Fit Club: Boot Camp'' as Herself
* 2008: ''Broken Promise'' as Mrs. Watkins
* 2008: '' The Early Show'' as Herself
* 2008: '' Fox Reality Awards'' as Herself
* 2008: ''Whatever Happened To?'' as Herself
* 2008: ''Mother Goose Parade'' as Herself
* 2009: '' The Bold and the Beautiful'' as Kelly DeMartin
* 2009: '' Catch 21'' as Herself
* 2010: ''Not Another B Movie'' as Mrs. Klien
* 2010: '' Totally Tracked Down'' as Herself
* 2012: '' The Deceit'' as Mrs. Shephard (final film role)
* 2012: ''Celebrity Ghost Stories'' as Herself (final TV role)

Soundtrack

* '' Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star'' (2003) ("Child Stars on Your Television")

References

Further reading

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Moran, Erin
1960 births
2017 deaths
Actresses from Burbank, California
American child actresses
American film actresses
American television actresses
Deaths from throat cancer
Deaths from cancer in Indiana
Participants in American reality television series
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
North Hollywood High School alumni