How TV's 'Happy Days' Got the Story Wrong

Based on my experience, Howard Cunningham had no connection to reality as both a parent and a hardware-store owner

Let’s be honest. Richie probably didn’t know the difference between a hacksaw and a backsaw.

“Happy Days,” a 1950s-era sitcom set in Milwaukee, was one of my favorite TV shows when I was growing up. Lots of people remember Fonzie’s signature move—a double-thumbs and “Ayyyyyy” exclamation. Frequently forgotten, however, is that Howard Cunningham—Mr. C to his son Richie’s friends—owned a hardware store.

It was obvious to me that “Happy Days” was a complete work of fiction for one reason: Richie seldom had to work at his dad’s hardware store. Didn’t Mr. C realize that he could lower his operating costs by exploiting enlisting his children’s service at the store?

Cunningham Hardware made a rare appearance on the show on Feb. 12, 1974, in an episode called “The Hardware Jungle.” In it, Richie buys $6 concert tickets from Fonzie, only to later learn that his father was being admitted into the hospital to have his tonsils removed. As a result, Richie has to return the tickets so he can manage the hardware store for his dad. Richie is preparing to tell his date, Arlene, that the concert is off. But Mr. C instructs his son to close the store early, giving him enough time to make it to the concert.

Later at the hardware store, Potsie brings in Fonzie, who sells Richie another set of tickets. Richie and Potsie eventually get ready to close up the store, but they accidentally lock themselves inside. In trying to unlock the door, they inadvertently broke the glass. Richie gives the tickets to Potsie, staying behind to wait for the window repairman.

As Mr. C recovers, he tells Richie that he appreciates the responsibility he displayed the previous night.

Let’s unpack this narrative for a reality check.

1. $6 concert tickets. In 2023, fans paid $131 each, on average, to see an artist live in concert, according to data-research firm Statistica.

2. A hospital stay for a tonsillectomy. In the United States today, about 10% of the 10 million operating-room procedures done each year are tonsillectomies. And the vast majority of these patients undergo the procedure as an out-patient, meaning they go home the same day.

3. Ticket scalping. How could Fonzie get his hands on available tickets just hours before the start of the concert? In Wisconsin today, if Fonzie resold the tickets for more than face value, he would be facing a fine and possible jail time.

4. Closing the store early. Richie was asked to manage the store on a Saturday, which according to the script was its busiest day of the week. That’s a clear violation in the world of family businesses: You never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever close early. In fact, you can’t start closing up while customers are still in the store—even if it’s well past business hours.