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Happy Days legend Marion Ross celebrated her 97th birthday this weekend by blowing out her birthday candles. The iconic actress is best known for her role as Mrs. Cunningham on the beloved classic TV series, which ran for 252 episodes. Ross will always be associated with her role as the family matriarch in the series, in which she co-starred with Ron Howard, Tom Bosley, Anson Williams, and Henry Winkler. But she also tackled several other significant Hollywood roles throughout the years on series such as The Drew Carey Show and Gilmore Girls, and in films like The Evening Star, the sequel to Terms of Endearment. These days, Ross is enjoying the quieter life, soaking up her golden years. Luckily, we have her son, actor and impressionist extraordinaire Jim Meskimen, to capture some of her great moments on social media. He took to Instagram on Saturday to share a sweet set of photos of his mom blowing out her birthday candles alongside a delicious white cake covered in blueberries and strawberries. A second photo showed a shelf filled with cards, demonstrating just how many people adore Ross. “My mom and yours, Marion Ross, turns 97 today! She loves you, too!” Meskimen captioned the photo set. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Henry Winkler, who played Fonzie on the iconic series, posted his own birthday wishes for Ross, sharing a photo from her 95th birthday a couple of years ago. Her Role on the Show Grew In the early days of Happy Days, the role of Mrs. Cunningham wasn’t particularly significant. That changed over time as the writers realized how strong the family dynamic was. “When the show started, the mother was very unimportant and had a very small part,” Ross told Pasadena Weekly back in 2018. “When we did the table read, they’d say, ‘Marion, read all the female parts.’ I was constantly auditioning for those writers and showing them what I could do, and my part kept getting better and better. My advice to young actors is, don’t pout over not having enough lines. Keep auditioning for those writers.” Her persistence was successful, and Mrs. Cunningham’s role grew as time went on. On the Show’s Lasting Power Ross looks back on the show’s lengthy run with joy. When it comes to why the show managed to stay on the air so long, she said it simply had to do with the lack of options that were out there back then.
