'Love, American Style:' Romantic Sketch Comedy And 'Happy Days' Birthplace

By | December 22, 2017

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Left: John Astin and Carol Wayne on 'Love, American Style.' Right: Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham on the 'Love And Happy Days' episode. Sources: Walt Disney Television via Getty Images Photo Archives/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images; YouTube

Love, American Style was an ABC show that ran from 1969-74 and featured short segments with a romantic comedy spin to them. The cast included a grab-bag of many well-known TV personalities from week to week -- in addition to a core group of Love, American Style Players, you never knew who else might show up. Repeat guests included Carol Wayne, Stefanie Powers, Jo Ann Worley, Rich Little, Larry Storch, Joey Heatherton, and dozens of others over the show's five seasons. In addition to being a popular show in the Friday night time slot (though it initially aired on Mondays for its first four months), Love, American Style has the distinction of being the source of the sitcom Happy Days.

'Love, American Style' Featured Some Regular Players

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LOS ANGELES - DECEMBER 1: Opening credits of LOVE, AMERICAN STYLE. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images)

Each segment began with a quick 10- to 20-second joke clip by the Love, American Style Players. There were many; some of the most prolific were Stuart Margolin, Barbara Minkus, William Callaway, Mary Grover, Tracy Reed, Buzz Cooper, Lynne Marta, and Phyllis Davis. But even this cast frequently changed over the years. Many of them went on to appear on other successful shows -- Margolin became a regular on The Rockford Files, and Davis was a principal cast member on Vega$.

The title Love, American Style was derived from the 1961 Italian-language comedy Divorce, Italian Style, which had crossed over to the American market and received Academy Award nominations for Best Director (Pietro Germi) and Best Actor (Marcello Mastroianni). The title structure was also used by the 1967 comedy Divorce, American Style, starring Dick Van Dyke.