Laverne & Shirley (1976–1983) User Reviews

classic girlship sitcom

[SnoopyStyle · 8/10 · 14 June 2017]

It's late 50s. Working class best friends Laverne DeFazio (Penny Marshall) and Shirley Feeney (Cindy Williams) are roommates in a Milwaukee basement apartment. Shirley is the sweet one and Laverne is the tougher one. Laverne's favorite drink is milk and Pepsi. Shirley has her stuffed animals like Boo Boo Kitty. They are Fonzie's friends working at the Shotz Brewery with annoying former classmate Lenny (Michael McKean) and Squiggy (David L. Lander). Laverne's father Frank DeFazio (Phil Foster) owns the Pizza Bowl. He starts dating the girls' landlord Edna Babish (Betty Garrett). Their school friend Carmine Ragusa (Eddie Mekka) is a Golden Gloves boxer, singer, and dance teacher.

This popular sitcom is a spin-off from Happy Days. Over the years, there are cameos and cross-over from the mother show. The girls stay independent modern women as they search for Mr. Right. Laverne is hounded by her father to get married and have children. Shirley has a long running romance with Carmine. The sixth season starts with Frank and Edna in California about four years later. When the bottling department gets replaced with machines, the girls follow them to Burbank. They are joined by Carmine, Lenny & Squiggy. The gang is befriended by their new neighbors Rhonda Lee and Sonny St. Jacques. The show fades a little and the move to California doesn't help. California takes away the midwest working class vibe although the show continues to have fun like the earthquake.

This show is legendary for the fights between Williams and the Marshall clan. It never got into the way of the fun on screen except for the last season. Cindy Williams got pregnant and a lawsuit followed. She would miss most of the last season and is the final nail on the coffin. The girls' friendship is modeled after Lucy and Ethel especially during their physical comedy gags. The gags are always fun. I love getting hung up on the coat rack. It's silly fun.

The girls struggle to move beyond singledom. Even with Carmine, Shirley could never go off with him for fear of splitting the girls apart. That is the Archilles heel of the show. The obvious move is for the girls to have more work situations and marry them off in a double wedding. They could live in connected apartments. The show never got to that point. This is a classic girl friendship show but it couldn't figure out how to get past the single girl stage.

A Lovable Show!

[Sylviastel · 8/10 · 22 April 2007]

Laverne and Shirley was one of my personal favorites growing up. Of course, we had reruns and repeats in those days. I loved Laverne and Shirley. They were the underdogs and perfectly suited as roommates and best friends. They were played brilliantly by Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams. Unfortunately, the show never recovered after Cindy Williams left to have her daughter and who could blame her. She was happily married to Bill Hudson, Kate's father, for twenty years with two children. Penny Marshall and the gang did their best to recover but never fully did. The reason and there are many that this show was so popular was the physical antics that Laverne and Shirley got into. I don't know if I preferred Milwaukee or Burbank but the supporting cast was top notch featuring Lenny and Sqiggy who could have had their own show. The delightful Carmine as the aspiring dancer. Elaine Joyce as the beautiful neighbor in Burbank. Betty Garrett and Al Molinaro as the landlady and Mr. Defazio. The show had plenty of it's moments too and great guest stars. It's certainly still a beloved show even in repeats.

On Your Mark, Get Set and Go Now.

[tfrizzell · 7 June 2004]

"Happy Days" spin-off about the two titled characters (Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams) and their total comedic and romantic misadventures as Milwaukee brewery workers in the 1950s and 1960s. The series seemed to work in spite of itself due to the likable leads and their ever-lasting love interests (scene-stealers Michael McKean and David L. Lander). The characters were silly, but had a reality to them that could not be over-looked. Adequate writing and above average direction were sufficient in keeping the show a ratings winner for a good eight years from 1976 through 1983. Still a show that has a strong following as it survives the years in relatively wide-spread syndication. 4 stars out of 5.

Incredibly hilarious series from the people that bought you Happy Days. Remembering Laverne and Shirley on its golden 40th anniversary

[raysond · 10/10 · 7 September 2016]

Being this was the spin-off to the successful "Happy Days" television series the characters of Laverne and Shirley made their debut premiere in a classic episode "A Date With Fonzie"(Season 3,Episode 10) from the "Happy Days" television series that originally aired on November 11,1975 and from that episode Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams made an astounding impression. The lead characters were introduced in that episode as acquaintances of "The Fonz"(Henry Winkler). It was from that episode and due to the high ratings it achieve,the producers thought it would be a great idea to create a spin-off to "Happy Days" which was at the time the highest rated show on the air not to mention a colossal hit for ABC-TV(which had five of the top ten shows in the Nielsens).

"Laverne and Shirley" was the created brainchild of Garry Marshall along with Mark Rothman, Edward L. Milkis and Thomas L. Miller(who also served as executive producers of this series)along with producers Lowell Ganz, Jeff Franklin, Arthur Silver along with Mark Rothman and Milt Josefburg that premiered on ABC's Tuesday night prime time schedule on January 27,1976 as the mid-season replacement for "Welcome Back Kotter"(which moved to Thursday nights). The series from the first episode was a colossal hit becoming ABC's top-rated sitcom that lasted eight seasons and 178 episodes until May 10,1983. During its eight year-run it went through major changes as the network moved the show to different time slots. For the first four seasons it was on Tuesday nights from January 27,1976 until May 15,1979. Then in Season 5 it moved to Thursday nights from September 13,1979 until December 13,1979 and on January 7,1980 moved to Monday nights until February 11,1980 where it was losing viewers and falling ratings. Then for the next three seasons the network moved it back to its original Tuesday night time slot after "Happy Days" from January 26,1980 until May 10,1983.

Only actress Penny Marshall was with the series for all 178 episodes. Cindy Williams was with the series for 159 episodes from 1976-1982. Williams left the series at the end of Season 7 to pursue other interests. Other recurring characters included actors David L. Lander("Squiggy" for 156 episodes); Michael McKean("Lenny" for 150 episodes),and Eddie Mekka("The Big Ragoo" for 150 episodes). Phil Foster appeared in 149 episodes while actress Betty Garrett appeared in 97 episodes of the series. The series "Laverne and Shirley" started roughly in the same time period as "Happy Days" with the timeline starting in 1958 when the series began through 1967 when the series ended.

Several writers contribute to some of the hilarious hi-jinks and slapstick comedy each week ranging from Lowell Ganz, Garry Marshall, and Mark Rothman(who were the writers for all 178 episodes of the series) along with Jeff Franklin, David W. Duclon, Marc Sotkin, Milt Josefburg, Fred Fox, Ron Leavitt, Winifred Hervey, Babaloo Mandel, Bob Brunner,and Michael Warren. Big time directors ranging from James Burrows, John Tracy, Alan Rafkin, Howard Morris, Joel Zwick, Alan Myerson, Garry Marshall, Jay Sandrich, Jerry Paris, Carl Gottlieb, Chris Thompson, and Tom Trbovich just to name a few. The guest stars who made appearances on this series featured Vicki Lawrence, Ed Begley, Jr., Carrie Fisher, Ed Marinaro, Fred Willard, Billy Sands, Jay Leno, Michael Mann, Anjelica Huston, Laraine Newman, Robert Hays, Roger C. Carmel, Scatman Crothers, Charlene Tilton, Conrad Janis, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Howard Hesseman, Fabian, Pat Carroll, Hans Conried, Troy Donahue, Toni Basil, G.W. Bailey, Severn Darden, Scott Brady, Christopher Guest, Jerry Belson, to Carl Ballantine, Mark Harmon, Fred Dryer, Dennis Haysbert, Ted Danson, and Art Garfunkel. Even had cameos from Jim Lange and Ilene Graff too.

During the peak of the show's run "Laverne and Shirley" got there own Saturday Morning cartoon show that aired on ABC on October 10,1981 with Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams as the voices of there characters where it was part of "The Laverne & Shirley/Fonzie Hour". But with the original series the cast was electric not to mention the adequate writing and above average direction not to mention the slapstick antics made this show a solid ratings winner for the eight seasons it was on the air. Several great episodes do stand out here and I will start with the show's top ten which includes the two-part episodes "Murder on the Moose Jaw Express"(Season 5),"The Bardwell Caper"(Season 6), "We're In The Army Now"(Season 5). Other great episodes included "The Diner" (Season 5), "Look Before You Leap"(Season 2), "The Defiant One"(Season 7),and "Laverne and Shirley Meet Fabian"(Season 3). When the series was suddenly canceled by ABC in 1983 it faced strong competition of NBC's "The A-Team" that crushed it in the ratings. The series that replaced it in the fall of 1983 was "Foul Ups,Bleeps and Blunders" aka "The Dick Clark Show" on ABC's Tuesday night schedule.

A rare combination of hilarity and every day life

[Sweet Charity · 10/10 · 17 May 2002]

Reading through the comments for "Laverne & Shirley," I have seen several remarking that they felt the show was "lacking," "annoying," "dull" and several other negative adjectives. It is obvious to me that these people have yet to indulge themselves in the fantastic world of the 1970's sitcom that jumped on the nostalgia boat. I was all of 12 years old when I first discovered "Laverne & Shirley" on Nick @ Nite (this was circa the summer of 1998). I would be lying if I said that it hadn't shaped my life-- and I know that sounds totally insane, but it broadened my horizons to a world of classic television, classic movies, and the theatre. But enough about me-- the show is a gem. The show was never meant to be a groundbreaker like "All in the Family" or "Maude" (although it did have it's tender moments and morals in episodes such as "Look Before You Leap" and "What Do You Do With a Drunken Sailor", taking a gentle look towards single parenting and alcoholism). It was only meant to do one thing: be funny. And it did so in a way that had only been done by the likes of "The Honeymooners"-- it involved the antics of the blue collar working class. It was meant to entertain, and it does a darned good job of it! The chemistry between Cindy Williams & Penny Marshall is awesome-- comparable, in their own way, to that of Lucy Ricardo & Ethel Mertz, Ralph Kramden & Ed Norton, and those that came before them. Cindy's cute-as-a-button, innocent but never naive portrayal of Shirley Feeney and Penny's tough-as-nails exterior with a heart of gold combined with the desire to be "loose" but the morals to be a "prude" make for one uniquely and incredibly comical friendship. Also, Michael McKean's Lenny & David L. Lander's Squiggy are outlandish but hilarious characters. Who could have played the "guy who's really smart and thinks he's dumb" and "the guy who's really dumb and thinks he's smart" better than these two?! Also in the cast you have outstanding veteran actors like Phil Foster as the gruff but huggable Frank 'Pop' DeFazio and sweet MGM musical star Betty Garrett as the girls' wise landlady (and later, Laverne's stepmother). Eddie Mekka is charming and funny as Carmine Ragusa, Shirley's boxing/dancing/singing boyfriend (is there anything this fella CAN'T do?). The cast is electric. This show's motto should have been "We aim to please." If you're having a bad day, this show is sure to put a smile on your face, your laughter in the air, and a quote in your head! It's one of the greatest examples of classic TV of all time!

Cute show about friends!

[ShelbyTMItchell · 9/10 · 4 March 2013]

Laverne & Shirley are two working women in the 1950's Milwaukee and single as the are trying to make it in a man's world. As it was one of the first shows on single working women who were friends and roommates.

Laverne was known for being the cynic of the pair that wore L's on her shirt and a tomboy. Shirley was the perky positive one of the pair.

Besides working at a brewery they were friends with Lenny and Squeaky their male counterparts as the four either love or despised one another. But made a great foursome.

A show I loved as a kid and still do. Back in the days when TV WAS TV!! As the show had funny kind of chemistry!

Incredibly underrated comedy series

[mnpollio · 8/10 · 1 April 2010]

Laverne & Shirley was one of several spin-offs of the popular 1970s Miller/Milkis series Happy Days and centered on two blue collar women living in Wisconsin in the late 1950s/early 1960s. The show was quite popular although it was dismissed by serious critics at the time and returning to it years after the fact only highlights its success. The women, played to perfection by Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams, were good-hearted, hard-working individuals making their way in the world on their own power. The show features lots of slapstick humor - which was looked down upon at this time - but it is because of it that this show actually holds up better than such controversial critical darlings of the period such as All in the Family or Maude, which come off as far more dated - even annoyingly so. After this show's demise, it would be many years - until the British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, that two talented actresses would again headline a comedy series featuring copious slapstick. Marshall usually got the best lines which she could hit out of the ballpark, but Williams was a tremendous comedienne herself and an able straight man to Marshall's antics - an issue fully realized when the show was without her in its final season. They were ably supported by a venerable cast featuring the idiotic greasers upstairs Lenny & Squiggy (the immortal Michael McKean and David L. Lander), Shirley's steadfast boxer/singer boyfriend Carmine (cute Eddie Mekka), Laverne's bull-headed father Phil Foster, and kind landlady and Laverne's future stepmom Betty Garrett. Guest visits by Carol Ita White as the bane of Laverne's existence - Rosie Greenbaum - were hilarious. Particularly memorable series moments abounded, but two of the best included a murder mystery-themed train trip and a crossover episode with Happy Days featuring a side-splitting square dance. The series started to deteriorate when producers moved the action to save costs from Milkwaukee to California, with all the regulars improbably in tow. New semi-regulars were added to little avail including Leslie Easterbrook as a blonde bombshell named Rhonda Lee and Ed Marinaro as a beefcake neighbor with designs on Laverne. Both actors were perfectly fine, but the writers never seemed to know what to do exactly with Easterbrook and Marinaro ultimately vanished with barely a nod. The talented and criminally underused Garrett left the show with little fanfare as well. Then the final nail was the departure of Williams after acrimonious contract disputes in a ridiculously improbable scenario which left the show without its trademark dynamic. While Marshall was a talented comedic actress, a straight woman was desperately required. A rotating roster of guest stars including Vicky Lawrence, Carrie Fisher and Laraine Newman made their way through, but none of them sparked like Williams did and the show finally whimpered out of existence. Even on that note, the majority of the seasons preceding are definitely filled with hilarity and uplifting fun.

Another Hit From the Master

[Sargebri · 27 June 2003]

When Laverne and Shirley first debuted on Happy Days, little did anyone know that that supposed one off appearance would lead to a classic. Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams were perfect as the wild Laverne and the prissy Shirley. However, the rest of the cast deserves credit for this excellent slice of life comedy, especially Michael McKeon and David Lander as everyone's favorite losers Lenny and Squiggy. But the thing that made this show great was the fact that it was one of the all-time great slapsctick comedies.

One Fun & One Witty and One Boo-Boo-Kitty

[happipuppi13 · 9/10 · 6 April 2007]

FACT : When the series switched to California, the writers changed the year the show was set , from 1962 , to late 1964. Skipping over 2 & 1/2 years in everyone's life. This is why it's 1967 / 1968 by series end.

My review now :

Being a devout fan of Happy Days and having had Arthur Fonzerelli as a hero,it only made sense I would watch "Laverene and Shirley" as well. Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams certainly made an impression on their 1st guest appearance in "Happy Days".

Penny was definitely already "Laverne" but "Shirley" while nice was sort of like Laverene too, thankfully she became the sweet, Boo-Boo Kitty hugging Shirley we know & love. The show debuted in January of 1976 and just took of straight from there. With "Happy Days" as it's lead in of course.

The theme,"Making Our Dreams Come True" by Cyndi Grecco was a top 20 hit (although the music a bit faster than that from the TV version.) After watching the Cunninghams, Fonzie & Ralph & Potsie (etc.) , I sat tight for even bigger, bawdier & sillier slapstick laughs from these two wonderful females.

Those that know this show well, could most likely name of all the best sight gags and stunts. I loved the one with the seemingly alive "Murphy Bed". This was a bed that you could lift up and put away into the wall behind two doors.

The girls open these doors in the apartment of two guys they have dates with (they'll be back later) and the bed hits the floor. They try to put it back but it seems this bed has a mind of it's own!

They walk near it... it lifts itself off the ground. They step back...it goes back. Finally they tackle the bed like football players and it sends them both up into the wall space, then up & down until they come literally 'flipping' out. They land on their feet and slam it back shut!

Laverne: "That thing tried ta eat me"! Lol. If Lucille Ball was tuning in that night, I'm sure she loved the gag and laughed a long time.

Just as important as the physical and verbal humor were the touching stories about the importance friendship and standing by someone through "whatever".

They even stand by the lecherous Lenny & Squiggy ("Hello!"), who are always busting into their apartment and sometimes making inappropriate advances on them. Yet,somehow over the course of the show they become friends.

My favorite episode, before the move to California, was the 2 parter, "The Moosejaw Express". Laverne & Shirley board this train of the same name and end up in the middle of espionage & murder. It's not so much a "funny" episode, it does have that but it shows what had to be the strongest test of their friendship.

The spy / killer on board is trying to sell microfilm to the U. S. S. R. and somehow it's now girls possession. In the climax of part 2, Shirley is seemingly thrown out the door of the luggage car by the villain and Laverne is beyond anger. "You killed her. You killed Shirley!! You killed my best friend!!"

She decks him on the jaw,struggles with him and she's almost thrown off herself but suddenly a hand from outside the car grabs him and he flies out the door. It's Shirley! Who has somehow grabbed onto something outside earlier. She grabs Laverne's hand and they're safe inside again. One of the best shows from between 1976-1980.

Season 5 I have to say, seems to have a direction to "topical" shows that seem more serious and a bit like (hate to say it) 'preaching'. Still good but that's what sort of hurt "Mork & Mindy" in Season 2.

Then comes season six ,the '80-'81 season.

Talk about an overhaul! What in the world possessed producers or whoever to move the girls to Hollywood,California we'll never know. (Unless it was ratings.) Can anyone name more than five of these '80-'83 shows, without using IMDb?

The most telling thing that should have said "end it" was the episode where Shirley has moved out and gone to live with her new husband Walter Meeny (whom she married in the season before,he was in a body cast.) "Shirley Feeny Meeny" leaves Laverne a note letting her know where she's gone so suddenly and why.

So,in the final season we end up with "The Laverne Show" (I called it) with almost forgettable episodes. The worst? There's a ghost in the apartment that is the spirit of an Olympic athlete who cannot ascend until he wins a race that he lost decades ago.

He inhabits Laverne for this race and (this is really stupid)when the race starts we go to slow motion and hear the theme from..."Chariots Of Fire"???!

I will say, a few shows stand out in this era. Shirley dating a man whose only separated from his wife,Squigy's reunited with his con artist father & others. (Watch them on DVD,the good ones do stand out.)

Anyhow,the show by the end, is set in the year 1967. (Happy Days was still somewhere in1963 or 1964 because that show didn't skip ahead in time, like L & S did.) Betty Garrett has departed, Lenny & Squiggy's act has worn thin and Carmine had gotten nowhere in Hollywood.

For those that don't know,the show had no "good-bye" episode and no return visits from Shirley. The last show in May of '83 was about Carmine leaving California.

He heads to New York to try and make it by auditioning for the musical, "Hair". ( I'd only read about this episode, never seen it because, like most, I lost track of the show because it had become almost an "unfunny" series.

(Edit 02/03/2016 : Finally saw ALL of the shows on DVD.)

So, 9 out of 10 stars for mainly 1976 to spring 1980. What many feel are the shows best seasons

(If I rated on '80 to '83 only? 4 stars at best, making those years "Schlemiel/Schlomozzel". (END)

Shlameel, Shlamazel...

[JoyLynn · 22 April 2000]

In the seventies, so many sitcoms were making an effort to change something, to make a point. And this show did it without anybody really ever realizing it. Laverne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney are hardworking girls, out on thier own, putting up with men, work, neighbors, and other life problems. Laverne had her "L", on every single item of clothing that she owned, Shirley had her security Boo-Boo-Kitty, and wrote in her diary. The annoyance and sometimes utter stupidity of Lenny Kosnowski and Andrew Squiggmann just made you have to love the guys. Lenny was the soft one, who looked up to his best friend, had a toy lizard, a slight crush on Laverne, and a tough childhood. Squiggy seemed to be above the world, yet he did show emotions, if you only looked. He loved Lenny more than anything. Laverne and Shirley had their quarrels, but they were always best friends, and Shirley did finally achieve her dream: she married a doctor and lived happily ever after (much to the downfall of the series, but none the less). Laverne and Shirley is my favorite show, as you may have noticed, and there is so much to be seen in it, as there is with many comedies, if we only try to look hard enough!

Doesn't get old

[angelacere · 8/10 · 28 July 2018]

I watch over and over and I still laugh. I feel better after stress. Those two girls are so hilarious. They have great chemistry. The last season wasn't the same without Cindy Williams, however it was okay. The first 5 seasons are the best. But I watch all the way through.

One of the originals...in memory of Penny Marshall...

[justin-fencsak · 7/10 · 18 December 2018]

If you seen the movie Wayne's World, there's a reference to the original show Laverne and Shirley where Wayne and Garth parody the intro to the show by working at a factory in Milwaukee, that's how i know the show and also watched it in reruns on TV Land as I was too young to remember the last episode more than 35 years ago. The success of this show led to a cartoon in which the main characters join the army; that cartoon was made by Hanna Barbera, who also did another show with Paramount called Fonz and the Happy Days Gang which later teamed up with Mork and Mindy for an hour long show on saturday mornings. Before this show came out, the producers of the show came out with the hit show Happy Days which was a spinoff show of Love, American Style. Happy Days also spun off Joannie Love Chachi which featured the late Erin Moran. All of these shows first aired on ABC during ABC's glory years in the late 1970s. It's a funny show!!!

Working girls

[Lejink · 7/10 · 6 January 2016]

Another "Happy Days" spin-off and one fondly remembered from my youth. I've just watched the pilot again and will try to watch more as it lived up to memory of a happy, funny and entertaining show.

The "take two girls" set-up works very well and enables the show to still function in the same time-line as "Happy Days" and yet not seem too similar despite the familiar 50's era surroundings.

Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams make an ideal pairing, Marshall as the louder, brasher Laverne and Williams as the cuter, more sensitive Shirley. Their two dorkish-but-adoring adoring would-be boyfriends Lenny and Squiggy provide more light relief in the background but, as its perky little theme tune says, these two dreamchasers won't give up till they've made at least one dream come true.

Nicely written, with just an occasional touch of risqué humour peeping through and well acted, occasionally benefiting initially from one-shot guest appearances by some of the "Happy Days" crew, the show soon learned to stand on its own and deservedly ran for several series on its own merits.

One of the greatest!

[defazio76 · 12 September 2000]

Laverne & Shirley was one of the best shows on television between 1976-1983 and continues it's popularity on up until today. Some users have commented above that the show was boring. Well, not some. One. I disagree entirely. If you knew enough about the show to be able to give a good review, I would overlook it. But you don't. The show won the Emmy for best television show in the 1976-77 and 1977-78 seasons. I doubt you could consider it boring if it won awards of such prestige. The characters of Lenny and Squiggy supplied a lot of the comedy in the show, but the characters of Laverne and Shirley supplied the plot, comedy, and made the show a comedy, but one with heart. If you took the time to watch the show and get to know the characters, you would begin to love them. It's that way with just about any movie, television show, play, etc. But this one in particular is special for different reasons. Please actually take the time to watch the show a few times before commenting and putting it down. I am only 14 years old and can already tell you that it's a comedy classic that deserves to stay on the air for many years to come.

Classic Olide

[ThunderKing6 · 7/10 · 18 September 2021]

An oldie but goodie. A great show for all ages, no matter if you are a dinosaur or a newb.

If you love a good 70s laugh then this a a show to sit through.

Laverne & Shirley Season 1-8

[celebration72 · 10/10 · 6 January 2015]

****SPOILER ALERT IN THIS I GUESS I MEAN THE SHOW IS 32 YRS OLD*******I am a huge fan of the show Laverne & Shirley that ran 8 seasons from 1976–1983. It's funny in season 1 Shirley has a VERY thick New York accent that she does not have in season 2-8. The characters Laverne,Shirley,Squiggy,Lenny,Carmine,Frank DeFazio,Edna Babish were so lovable, Funny & had Great chemistry. They really showed their chemistry in season 2 & it just got better. In season 6 when the girls lost their jobs @ Shotz They move to California & the show took a very different turn. Seasons 1-5 had one vibe & Seasons 6-8 it felt like a whole new show with new cast members like Rhonda Lee & Sonny St. Jacques(Who was very much like a Carmine character)He didn't stay on the show very long he was only on 10 episodes. Sonny's last episode was on Season 6, Episode 12, He left the show to take a role on Hill ST Blues. In Season 8 Shirley Left the show on Oct 12,1982 Only 3 Episodes in. The 1st Episode without Shirley was called {The Note}Cindy Williams {Shirley Feeney) left the show due to her becoming pregnant & Williams and her manager-husband Bill Hudson presented a list of demands, which Paramount refused. In August, two episodes into the season, Williams left the show and filed a $20,000,000 lawsuit against Paramount.

Paramount went to Penny Marshall{Laverne De Fazio}to return for a ninth Season, but Penny Marshall{Laverne De Fazio}insisted that the show move its production base from Los Angeles to New York. Eying the cost of such an endeavor, and given the age of the show, ABC quietly canceled Laverne & Shirley in May 1983 after 178 episodes. Laverne & Shirley was & Still is & Will forever be a classic show & it will be one of those shows that goes down in History.

Timeless Classic Comedy

[GravediggerMark · 10/10 · 10 March 2021]

I was 15 when this series aired and did not understand it then; I was too young. I don't remember watching any reruns until now. Now, 45 years later, I fully understand it. I'm watching the series starting with Season 1, Episode 1, watching how the characters grow. This show is hilarious. Penny and Cindy's timing are perfect, the dialog is great, and the facial reactions are priceless, something I miss in current comedy series. Bottom line: I love this show. Gotta thank LOGO for showing it again.

One of the BEST shows on TV

[JennLynn · 1 February 2000]

Great show. Laverne and Shirley are great together. Their co-stars are great. In the last season, the show lacked one BIG thing: Shirley. The supporting characters could not make up for this big loss. But it was still good but there was less emphasis on what the show's concept had been.

Women becoming of age.

[robert_ponce · 10/10 · 22 November 2013]

When Lavern & Shirely first aired, America was undergoing historic changes in many areas. So were American families. Values once held dear suddenly were facing new ideas, new challenges. So were Lavern & Shirely. Stereo typing women was not going to be tolerated any longer. Neither in the home, Entertainment, common work place and in politics. Lavern & Shirely's writers were aware of women's rights and wrote accordingly...with taste and humor. I loved watching the show for several reason but mostly on account Cindy Williams was my personal "Girl Next Door" ever since seeing her portrayal of 'Laurie' in American Graffiti (1973). Above all that, I was the same age as Laurie and Steve then Shirely. I could totally relate to what they were up against. Lavern & Shirely just took the experience to a different level and a different city. Gr8 Program.

Laverne & Shirley reruns

[agowin-1 · 10/10 · 18 June 2007]

I wish they would put Laverne & Shirley reruns back on in the evening time- like around 7 or 8 pm-- I need a little Nostalgia in my evening time. Thank you so much-I love Laverne & Shirley.I watched this show with my family all the time - tried to not miss any episodes,it made ya for get the bad day,and let you think back on the good ol' days,the show had style,and respect,honesty, it had a lot of class i always thought anyway.I guess I could go and get the series on DVD but most of the time there isn't much to watch on TV.,but I don't know having it just come on your TV like it used to is a lot better than popping in a DVD.Silly huh---I have some TV programs on DVD set but I never play them -maybe I'm lazy-oh well so please think about putting back on the reruns of Leverne and Shirley--Thank you.

Excellent series

[shawn_cool_great · 10/10 · 26 June 2010]

Here is an example of an excellent television program. This show is a show that can be enjoyed by all without nonsense about sex, drugs, and violence. It's also way funnier than the some of the shows we have on television today. It's a shame that this wonderful program cannot be found in syndication these days. This show also had some great characters even beyond the title characters such as Lenny, Squiggy, Big Rosie Greenbaum, and more. In my eyes, Laverne & Shirley is a classic that will never die and that will be cherished for years to come. If the opportunity ever comes along for you to see this great television show, don't let it pass you by. See Laverne & Shirley if you haven't, you'll be glad you did.

Funny as he**

[njennings-39713 · 10/10 · 23 February 2019]

Love these characters. Glad it won nominations. I binge watch these guys. Poor big Ragu & cold showers.

Loved it as a kid...

[hillary1 · 15 May 2004]

I was 13 when L&S debuted, loved at and followed it faithfully until it jumped the shark when they all moved to California (didn't the same thing happen to Lucy & Ethel?)It actually was a far better show than "Happy Days" other spin-off, "Mork & Mindy", which relied solely on the admittedly generous comedic talents of Robin Williams to generate laughs (the rest of the cast may as well have come from Madam Tussaud's). This was a show where everyone had a role, a chance to stand out-except maybe for Carmine Ragusa, who was the only somewhat weak character. These weren't lily-white folks-on one show Laverne thought she was pregnant-they were working class dreamers who aspired to something better, albeit their dreams were of rich husbands. One of my favorite scenes is where Laverne & Lenny (who now reminds me of Butthead to Squiggey's Beavis) are singing "I Know the Look!" A classic, and I'm glad I had the privilege to see it the first time around!

Were gonna make our dreams come true....

[MiracleMaddox · 29 March 2001]

Awesome show. I like shows that are real like this show. Just 2 average girls who live in a run downed apartment. Its believable and hilarious. Shirley Fenny is my favorite out the 2. She HOT and is very quirky which adds to the hilarity. But I personally thought they should have ended the show with a double wedding. Between you guessed it Laverne and Lenny and Shirley and Squiggy. That would have rocked. But it didn't happen. Thus the show couldn't get passed 1983. I cant believe such a funny show originated from the dull "Happy Days" TV show.

Classic

[katieb06907 · 6 November 2002]

This is a great show. I was thrilled when it was released on video. The characters are hysterical and love all the episodes. "Shirley's Operation is one of my favorites. A "mediocre" show would not last six years on primetime, go into syndication and then get released on video.