Discover the most popular TV show the year you were born

1978: Mork & Mindy

Looks like those Happy Days spin-offs really took over TV for a few years back in the 1970s! Mork & Mindy aired on ABC from 1978 to 1982. The spin-off was about Mork (an early role for legendary comedian Robin Williams), an extraterrestrial who comes to Earth from the planet Ork, who first appeared on a season 5 episode of Happy Days. Mork tried to take Richie back to his planet as a human specimen, but the ever-cool Fonzie stopped him.

On Mork & Mindy, Mork lands in Boulder, Colorado and meets Mindy, who seems upset, so Mork offers his help. The two become friends and Mindy promises to keep his identity a secret. The two become roommates, and later husband and wife. The show usually focused on Mork’s inability to blend in with human norms, and Robin Williams’ immense comedic talent left everyone in stitches.

The show was a smash hit when it first aired in 1978. Ratings were high, placing it at #3, behind Laverne & Shirley (another Happy Days spin-off) and Three’s Company, all of which were on ABC. The show was even performing better than Happy Days at the time, but when network execs tried to “fix” the show, ratings started to slip. By the time it was canceled after its fourth season, it didn’t even place within the top 50 shows on TV.