Penny Marshall
Garry Marshall, creator and then part-time writer for "Happy Days", cast Marshall and Cindy Williams to guest on an episode of the show. The installment, titled "A Date with Fonzie", aired on November 11, 1975 and introduced the characters Laverne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney (played by Marshall and Williams, respectively). In that episode, Laverne and Shirley were a pair of wisecracking brewery workers who were dates for Fonzie (Henry Winkler) and Richie (Ron Howard). The pair were such a hit with the studio audience that Garry Marshall decided to co-create and star them in a successful spinoff, "Laverne & Shirley" (1976–1983). The characters of Laverne and Shirley appeared in five more episodes of "Happy Days". In 1982 at the beginning of "Laverne & Shirley"s eighth season, Williams left the show due to her pregnancy. Marshall continued with the show, but it was canceled after the season's final episode aired in May 1983.
Pratt &amp; McClain
That year, the producers of ABC-TV's successful situation comedy "Happy Days" decided to replace its theme song, Bill Haley and the Comets' "Rock Around the Clock", with a new song written especially for the show. The tune was written by Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox, who also wrote themes for "Love, American Style", "Wonder Woman", "Laverne & Shirley", and "The Love Boat". Omartian was chosen to produce the song, and he recommended Pratt & McClain to record it. Multiple short arrangements were produced for the show and its promotional vehicles, and a full-length version was recorded for popular release.