Bosley, best known as the often flustered but always fatherly Howard Cunningham on "Happy Days," died Tuesday in Palm Springs. He was 83.
Bosley earned a place as one of the most memorable dads in TV history as the hardware store owner, father to Richie and Joanie Cunningham and landlord to Arthur "Fonzi" Fonzarelli on the long-running sitcom.
Bosley died suffering heart failure at a hospital, his agent Sheryl Abrams said. He was also had lung cancer.
His death brought fond remembrances of the nostalgic ABC show, which ran from 1974 to 1984. On Saturday, TV viewers lost another surrogate parent, Barbara Billingsley, who portrayed June Cleaver in "Leave It To Beaver."
Both shows showcased life in the 1950s - before Vietnam, Watergate and other tumultuous events of the '60s and '70s.
"Kids were watching their parents grow up, and parents were watching themselves grow up. And that was the key to success of that show," Bosley said in a 2000 interview.
Bosley initially turned down the role.
"I changed my mind because of a scene between Howard Cunningham and Richie," he said in 1986. "The father-son situation was written so movingly, I fell in love with the project."
Viewers did too.
"Happy Days," which debuted in 1974, slowly built to hit status, becoming television's top-rated series by its third season.
TV Guide ranked Bosley's Howard Cunningham character at No. 9 on its list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" in 2004. The distinction puts "Mr. C," as his character was affectionately known on the show, right alongside Ward Cleaver, Andy Taylor, Dr. Huxtable and Mike Brady as some of the best-ever TV dads.
"A great father and husband, and a wonderful artist, Tom led by example, and made us all laugh while he was doing it," said a statement from Oscar-winning director Ron Howard, who played both Richie Cunningham and Taylor's son Opie on "The Andy Griffith Show."
"My last conversations with Tom reflected the love of life and peace of mind that he always maintained throughout his full and rewarding life. I miss him already," Howard said.
"He was my husband for 11 years and the father of the company in many ways," said Marion Ross, who played Marion Cunningham on the show. "He was so smart he could fix the end of a joke or a scene on the spot. We made a perfect couple. I played piccolo to his tuba."
Angela Lansbury played Bosley's unfaithful wife in the 1964 Peter Sellers film "The World of Henry Orient." Then, from 1984 to 1988, Bosley played a recurring role in Lansbury's long-running TV series, "Murder, She Wrote," as folksy Sheriff Amos Tupper.
"He was a wonderfully interesting actor, and very much a part of the early success of 'Murder, She Wrote.' Working with him in the early days of the show gave me tremendous confidence," Lansbury said.
Bosley also played the crime-solving priest in television's "The Father Dowling Mysteries," which ran from 1989 to 1991.
LOS ANGELES. California
