March 6, 2021
Erin Moran who played Joanie Cunningham on Happy Days died in 2017 at age 56. I am not sure if she really died of cancer. One issue is that medical reports are seldom released to the public. I decided I would look at the facts. But by facts I really mean evidence because I can’t believe things I read without some backing support from other sources.
Fox News Channel in an article used on Wikipedia said she died of stage four throat cancer but the headline said she died of skin cancer. I can’t trust that Fox Report Article and I and discounting it. They can’t agree in the article about which type of cancer.
Next we have the open letter on Facebook written by her husband. I wonder if the death was made up in some way or orchestrated? Even if no drugs were found in system can I trust that this is true? She could have died from drugs or she could have died from years of taking too many drugs and ill health. Cancer could have been used to cover this up. Journalists wanted to cover it, but the husband refused to speak to them or answer the door. The Journalists took what they could get (the open letter) and created articles with this information. Later on Wikipedia used those references to create the cause of death in article. Later a youtuber made a video about her death saying only the information found in the letter.
So, step by step a cover up could be put into place. There are no interviews with any doctors that may have treated her. There is just not enough proof to say she died of cancer. It takes a while for cancer to turn to Stage 4, yet there was no announcement before about cancer. It would have been more believable if there had been some press coverage of the cancer before her death. I had a cat who died of throat cancer and it does progress very rapidly, but coughing up blood is not a sign of throat cancer. The first sign in my cat was wheezing. She became unable to breathe and could not get any air. I tried to help her as much as I could. If I could only gotten her on oxygen, it may have helped, but they don’t do that for cats. Which is why the letter seems made up in the details of throat cancer, unless maybe it was a different cancer? Maybe she never saw a doctor due to cost and lack of insurance? I could believe that, but the husband said she did see doctors. The truth will never be known for sure. I don’t see it as believable. But I can’t make a call either way as a person who has no inside information about Erin Moran.
Moran is not the only actor to have a questionable cause of death Patrick McGoohan star of the tv show The Prisoner had no cause of death. Freddie Mercury of Queen did not announce his HIV until right before his death, but I don’t see cancer as being a stigma that can not be announced. If she was very close to dying I don’t understand why there would be no announcement.
Updated: I heard the Theme Song to the show Happy Days on the Radio and it seemed to be shallow and thoughtless in terms of Erin Moran’s life. The song was written in the 70’s for the show. I had believed it was a 50’s song because it sounded like one. In the 70’s there was a nostalgia craze for the 50’s. The problem was the 50’s were not that great. At the time I was impressed by the poodle skirts that girls worn. The high school girls looked like princesses in their beautiful dresses. But, the lifestyle the song sings about is one of simple compliance to a cookie cutter life. One marries their high school sweetheart and has children. To pay for this the man takes a job that he hates and the woman has to stay home and cook and clean all day. These people sacrificed their own personal happiness and for what? So their kids can have grandkids and also be trapped in dead end lives. Which is fine if that is one’s personal dream, but for many people, it is not their dream. People need options to lead lives that will be personally fulfilling. Erin Moran wanted to be an actress, but drug and other things got in the way. Many people dreams get derailed. The song is unbeat that when listened to in terms of Erin Moran’s life it appears to be a sacractic and cruel joke.
Updated: There is not much information on Roz Kelly who played PInky Tuscadero on Happy Days, but she got into some trouble with shooting at her neighbors and striking a man with her cane. I assume if she had a cane she is disabled in some way, but I don’t know the details of her injury. We all image happily ever after lives (Happy Days) with the perfect soulmate and a house, but often it turns out not to work out the way we wish it would. According to Wikipedia her character was dropped due to discord on the set or drama. But did Fonzie need a steady girlfriend? Fonzie (like Captain Kirk) would have been slowed down by a steady girlfriend. I do remember her character, but she did not make much of an impression on me when I was a child.
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