Marion Ross' Son Would 'Love' a 'Happy Days' Reboot—But With This Change

The son of Happy Days star Marion Ross said that he would "love" to see a reboot of the classic sitcom—though he recommended a major change.

Created by Garry Marshall, the beloved show ran for 11 seasons between 1974 and 1984, and shared an idealized look at life in the 1950s and '60s in the Midwest. It also made stars of Ron Howard, who played Richie Cunningham, and Henry Winkler (Arthur "Fonzie"/"The Fonz" Fonzarelli).

Since the show went off the air 38 years ago, it has continued to live on for new generations thanks to syndicated reruns.

With Ross having enjoyed immense success as the show's matriarch, Marion Cunningham, her real-life son, Jim Meskimen, an actor himself, told Newsweek that he would relish having a hand in breathing some new air into Happy Days, with a careful approach.

When asked if he would ever consider appearing in a Happy Days reboot, Meskimen responded that while he had "never heard anyone say anything like that," he would "absolutely love to be a part of it."

"It was so of the time, though," he added. "I think they would have to do kind of like what they did with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air —they turned that into a drama (Bel-Air). I think that would be an effective way maybe to bring [it back].

"I mean, it's kind of laughable to think about it, though. But [bringing the show back] as a drama or a thriller would be probably pretty hilarious. You know, there was a musical version that was done, that Garry Marshall created. And that still tours around, as far as I know," Meskimen said. "I saw an early iteration of it and it was delightful. But as is the case with a lot of reboots, so much of the magic of the original has to do with the performers. And that recipe is kind of hard to recreate sometimes. But you never know."

In an interview with Yahoo Entertainment in October, Howard said that should there ever be a Happy Days reboot, he's "not sure I would be the one to direct them because I think they also need a contemporary perspective, but the sort of the fundamental reasons that, you know, we made the movie, or told that story, or watched that series, in some instances, it's still kind of relevant."

Meskimen, 63—who recently went viral on social media with his deepfake impressions of a number of Hollywood actors—also appeared on what is widely seen as a notable episode of the show during its run.

"I was in a famous episode of Happy Days when I was 17. The famous Fonzie jumps the shark episode," he told Newsweek. "I was a kid on the beach. I was in great shape, thank God, and I'm the one that says, 'They got a shark out there!' I'm the one who announces the shark."

During the 1977 episode in question, called Hollywood: Part 3, Fonzie is seen jumping over a shark while on water skis. "Jumping the shark" later became a popular term to describe creative outlets' misguided attempts at garnering fresh attention after losing popularity.

Back in the real world, the Los Angeles-based Meskimen is enjoying spending time with his mother, who he describes as one of his "biggest fans" and last month celebrated her 94th birthday.

"My mom is enjoying her retirement," he told Newsweek. "And she loves the hell out of me. I mean, she always tells me how much I mean to her. And she's a treasure to us, and we see her every day and just treasure everything."

"She means so much to people," he went on. "And it's very interesting, because every time I meet someone, and they find out my relationship to Marion, they all say the same thing. They all say, 'Oh, I love your mom!' And it's delightful. I have that in common with most of humanity, apparently. We all love my mom.

"It's a lovely thing to share. I mean, if your mother had made her career by playing a psychopath, it would be so different. You know, people would say, 'Oh, that's your mom? How about that...'

"And you have to understand, too, that Marion Cunningham was a character and my mom was a completely different person. So I was not raised by Marion Cunningham. In some ways other people were more raised by [Marion Cunningham], if you can call it being raised by, to visit someone for a half an hour a week.

"But I was raised by Marion Ross, who was a very ambitious, hardworking single mom with two kids, who was very, very determined to be a working actress. And that's not Marion Cunningham."

"For instance, you wouldn't necessarily want to have one of my mom's home-cooked meals!" Meskimen said with a chuckle. "But Marion Cunningham, apparently, was pretty good at it... I think she'll forgive me for [saying that] and be the first to admit it!"

Whether Happy Days returns in any new form remains to be seen. However, behind the scenes, it would appear that the cast members have remained close.

Describing actor-turned-filmmaker Howard as a "great guy," Meskimen told Newsweek that he "just saw these guys the other day, when they came over to have dinner with my mom. Anson Williams, who played Potsie... is a sweet guy. He's running for mayor of Ojai [California], and I hope he wins.

"Oh, and then there's Don Most, he also was there at the dinner with my mom, he's such a nice guy. We used to call him Donny, but now it's Don because he's grown up. He's now a big jazz singer. And he sings the songs of Cole Porter. He's terrific."

Following Meskimen's interview with Newsweek, it was reported that Williams is leading incumbent Mayor Betsy Stix in his bid to take office.