GLENDALE, Calif. -- Al Molinaro, the character actor known to millions of TV viewers for playing Murray the cop on The Odd Couple and malt shop owner Al Delvecchio on Happy Days, died Friday at Verdugo Hills Hospital in Glendale, his son Michael Molinaro said.
Molinaro, who retired from acting in the 1990s, died of complications of gallstone problems, his son said. He was 96.
The Kenosha, Wis., native was a journeyman performer well into middle age when a comedy improv class led to his breakthrough. Producer Garry Marshall heard about Molinaro and hired him for the part of police officer Murray Greshler on The Odd Couple, the TV version of Neil Simon's play about feuding roommates. It starred Tony Randall as photographer Felix Unger and Jack Klugman as sports writer Oscar Madison and featured Molinaro as one of their buddies, a simpleminded policeman who at times seemed as much a threat to his friends as he did to any crooks.
His next long-running role was that of Al Delvecchio in Happy Days, the 1974-1984 sitcom about 1950s life that starred Ron Howard and Henry Winkler. Molinaro joined the cast in 1976, replacing Pat Morita as the owner of Arnold's Drive-In, and remained until 1982.
Molinaro built on his Happy Days success for years after he left the show. He brought the character of Al to Joanie Loves Chachi, a short-lived Happy Days spinoff that aired from 1982-83. In 1987, he and Anson Williams, who played Potsie on Happy Days, started Big Al's, a Midwestern diner chain.
His first TV job was in production, when he talked an independent TV station manager into hiring him. Then it was on to TV commercials and ads, including a Los Angeles billboard that featured him in a chef's cap. The producers of Get Smart spotted it and hired Molinaro to play Agent 44 for a few episodes in 1969. That was followed by guest roles in such sitcoms as Green Acres, That Girl and Bewitched.
Metro on 11/01/2015