Cindy Williams was born in Los Angeles, California, on August 22, 1947, and it didn’t take her long to realize her calling in life. As she told the Archive of American Television, she learned at a young age that she had a gift for comedy, even being voted “Funniest Female” by her peers in high school. Naturally, this led her to pursue a career in entertainment, with her earning her first of many professional acting credits in the 1970s. 1973 brought her to director George Lucas’ “American Graffiti,” and two years after that, she landed the role of Shirley Feeney on “Happy Days,” changing her life trajectory forever.

Williams only portrayed Feeney on “Happy Days” for a mere five episodes before she and Penny Marshall kicked off “Laverne & Shirley” in 1976. The beloved sitcom about the titular friends living life in the 1950s and ’60s stuck around until 1983 and accumulated 178 episodes. Not to mention, it was nominated for numerous awards in its time, including a Primetime Emmy in 1979 for Outstanding Costume Design for a Series. The show even landed Williams a Golden Globe nomination in 1978 for Best Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical.