Taking A Look At The Moment Fonzie 'Jumped The Shark' And Made His Mark On TV Forever

Oct 31, 2019

Many people have heard the phrase “jump the shark” to describe the moment something popular reaches its peak and then starts on a decline. But most people don’t know that it actually came from the show “Happy Days” when the Fonz literally jumped a shark.

The hit television show set in the 1950s and 60s birthed some of the most beloved characters like Ron Howard’s Richie Cunningham, Laverne and Shirley, and of course Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli.

The slick motorcycle-riding greaser became the world’s ultimate cool guy, always chasing girls and hanging out by the jukebox. His signature look of leather jackets and windbreakers became fashion trends and he was never seen without them.

So when the gang headed down to the beach on episode three of season five, Fonzie naturally wore a pair of swim trunks and his signature leather jacket. The plot of the episode revolved around water-skiing, and a pivotal scene was when the Fonz literally took a jump off a ramp over a captive shark. It was an unlikely moment in a TV series that was usually about a pretty mundane family in Milwaukee and had “gimmick” written all over it.

Years later, a young college student named Jon Hein and his roommates were talking about times in television history when they knew the show was starting to go downhill. Some pointed to "The Flintstones'" introduction of The Great Gazoo, or when Vicki left “The Love Boat.”

But the magic moment was when somebody said, “When Fonzie jumped the shark,” and from then on the phrase spread, and the roommates even made a website to list dozens of shows that “jumped the shark.”

While the roommates’ original website doesn’t exist anymore, Rolling Stone published an updated list of more modern shows that they consider to have “jumped the shark” including “Friends,” when Ross says Rachel’s name at his wedding in England, and “The Office,” when Jim and Pam got hitched.

Fred Fox Jr., one of the Happy Days’ episode’s writers came to its defense in the LA Times but relents when he talks about the way the phrase has entered the lexicon. It has been included in the Oxford English Dictionary and has been used to describe not just TV shows but moments in sports, politics, and pop culture.

Watch Henry Winkler talk about the moment with Oprah:

Which TV show do you think “jumped the shark”? Tell us about it below and be sure to pass this on to other TV fans who might not know the interesting story behind the idiom.