Tom Bosley, 1927-2010. R.I.P.

Actor Tom Bosley has died of complications of lung cancer and heart disease. He was 83.

Bosley is, of course, best known for his portrayal of Howard Cunningham on Happy Days. He would later star in Father Dowling Mysteries and also made frequent appearances on Murder She Wrote with Angela Lansbury.

Bosley also appeared with Lansbury in the 1964 movie The World of Henry Orient starring Peter Sellers. I remember seeing that movie on television many years ago and thought it was quite ahead of its time.

I also remember Bosley narrating the story of Chanukah in a television special called A Cup of Light which was probably made sometime in the early to mid-1960s. When I watched this special my Hebrew school teacher wondered aloud what a non-Jew was doing narrating a film about Chanukah. But as it turned out Bosley was Jewish. I guess playing a Catholic priest on TV will convince people you're Catholic.

The death of one of America's most beloved TV Dads comes only days after the passing of Barbara Billingsley, one of America's most beloved TV Moms.