Erin Moran

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erin_Moran

IMDb Bio

Born in Burbank, California, USA on October 18, 1960, Erin Moran is the youngest daughter of Sharon and Edward Moran, who have five other children. She attended Walter Reed Junior High School for one year and North Hollywood High School for another year. Her first professional acting job was in a TV commercial. She played Richie Cunningham's baby sister, Joanie Cunningham, on ABC's Happy Days (1974), however, this was not Erin's first major TV series. She was a regular on the series, Daktari (1966). She has also made guest appearances on TV series such as The Waltons (1971), Family Affair (1966), My Three Sons (1960), The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1969), Gunsmoke (1955), The Smith Family (1971) and The F.B.I. (1965).

Erin Moran has worked on feature films with Debbie Reynolds in How Sweet It Is! (1968), with Godfrey Cambridge in Watermelon Man (1970) and with Wayne Newton in 80 Steps to Jonah (1969).

Actress. She is best known for her recurring role as 'Joanie Cunningham' on the popular and successful television situation comedy series "Happy Days", which ran for 11 seasons between 1974 and 1984. She later co-starred in the short-lived spinoff "Joanie Loves Chachi", which lasted for just two seasons between 1982 and 1983. Moran first appeared on television in 1968, on "How Sweet It Is!" and would go on to have roles on such shows as "Daktari", "The Courtship of Eddie's Father", "My Three Sons", "Family Affair" and "Gunsmoke" before being cast as the youngest Cunningham child on "Happy Days". Among other shows she appeared in were "The Waltons", "Hotel", "Murder, She Wrote", "Diagnosis: Murder" and "Celebrity Fit Club". In April 2011, Moran, along with other former cast members of "Happy Days", filed a lawsuit against the producers of the show, claiming they were owed millions of dollars in merchandising revenue, however later that year a judge dismissed the lawsuit. (bio by: Louis du Mort)

Family links:

Parents:

 Edward Earl Moran (1938 - 1990)

 Sharon Jo Layne Moran (1934 - 2010)

Erin Moran, the actress best known for her role as Joanie Cunningham on the 1970s sitcom “Happy Days,” died Saturday, April 22, 2017. She was 56.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, police in Harrison County, Indiana, responded to an “unresponsive female” call Saturday, identified Moran, and pronounced her dead at the scene.

On Monday, the Harrison County Sheriff's Department said she likely died of cancer complications.

"A subsequent autopsy revealed that Mrs. Moran likely succumbed to complications of stage 4 cancer," the Harrison County Sheriff's Department said in a news release posted on the department's official Facebook page.

The statement said standard toxicology tests were performed; the results are pending. Police said, however, that no illicit narcotics were found at the residence.

“Happy Days,” created by Garry Marshall, was one of the top-rated TV comedies of the 1970s, riding the wave of 1950s teen nostalgia that had become freshly popular with the success of George Lucas’ 1973 movie, “American Graffiti.” The show portrayed the coming-of-age stories of high schooler Richie Cunningham (played by Ron Howard), his friends, and his little sister, Moran’s character Joanie. Tom Bosley and Marion Ross played Howard and Marion Cunningham, the parents of Richie and Joanie.

Moran was active on “Happy Days” through almost every season of its 11-year run. During the 1982-83 season, she left along with co-star Scott Baio to headline their own spinoff series, “Joanie Loves Chachi.” It only lasted a season, after which Moran and Baio returned to “Happy Days” for its final run of episodes.

In 2007, Moran gave an interview to the website PopCultureAddict.com in which she described her feelings about “Happy Days” and its legacy. “It’s a blessing,” she said. “There were shows that changed people’s lives. … I got a letter from a girl saying that she saw an episode in which I was talking to my dad, and she wrote that it had helped her so much –before she saw that episode she never talked to her father, and now they were talking and communicating. That’s excellent! It’s just excellent to have that in my life.”

Following “Happy Days,” Moran guest-starred on several other television shows, including “The Bold and the Beautiful,” “Diagnosis Murder,” “Murder, She Wrote,” and “The Love Boat.” She also co-starred in the 1981 cult-classic sci-fi horror movie “Galaxy of Terror.” In 2008, she appeared on the reality TV series “Celebrity Fit Club.”

Moran most recently made headlines in 2011 along with several of her “Happy Days” co-stars, filing a lawsuit against CBS over disputed merchandising revenues. The suit was settled in 2012.

Moran’s “Happy Days” co-star Henry Winkler posted a lament on Twitter Saturday evening: “Oh Erin… now you will finally have the peace you wanted so badly here on earth… Rest in it serenely now… too soon.”

Fellow actor Willie Aames, of “Charles in Charge” fame, also tweeted a tribute Saturday evening: “I’ve known Erin Moran since childhood doing ‘Gunsmoke.’ More recently as a troubled soul. So saddened to hear of her passing. RIP ERIN xo.”

Another former childhood star, Erin Murphy of “Bewitched,” tweeted: “So sad to share that my friend Erin Moran has passed away. Rest in Peace, sweet girl.”