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Gilda Radner was briefly considered for the role of Shirley Feeney in Laverne & Shirley
The SNL actor was nearly the star of the hit sitcom.
Although producer Garry Marshall knew Laverne & Shirley would be a hit from the moment the two characters appeared on Happy Days, it took quite some time to convince people of that fact before the first episode would make it to air.
In her book, My Mother Was Nuts: A Memoir, Penny Marshall explained that Cindy Williams was the most reluctant to accept a role on the series. Today, we know Marshall and Williams as the iconic Laverne and Shirley. However, Marshall revealed that Williams was put off by the idea of a television series because it might prevent her from having a successful film career in the future.
"We couldn't afford any delays if we were going to deliver on time," wrote Marshall. "But there was a major snag right away. Cindy wasn't sure she wanted to do TV. A trained actress, she was concerned that a TV series would sidetrack her film career. Today, it seems like a silly concern. Everyone does everything - TV, movies, commercials, infomercials, YouTube videos. At the time, though, people in the industry thought that if you did movies you couldn't do TV and vice versa. Cindy wanted to be a movie star. I didn't blame her."
As time was scarce during the show's production, Marshall decided it would be better to prepare for the worst as though Williams would reject the role.
"Until she [Cindy] made up her mind, I read with every actress who seemed like she might be able to play Shirley," wrote Marshall. "We auditioned them in Fonzie's apartment. I spent so much time in that garage I should have just moved in."
One very notable actor was also briefly considered for the role of Shirley Feeney.
"Frustrated, I called Gilda Radner in New York, thinking she might be available," wrote Marshall. "She wasn't, and she didn't even want to talk about leaving SNL only weeks after it had started."
Luckily, shortly after that, Williams accepted the role, and the cast and crew were able to set their hit series into motion.
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17 Comments
AFTER the two appearances on HD, Cindy Williams decided she didn't want to do the new show after all, and another mini-pilot/screen test was shot with Marshall and Liberty Williams (no relation.) When network execs wanted to compare the two actresses, a crafty Michael Eisner (Yep...THAT Michael Eisner) reportedly hid LIberty's reel while showing only CINDY Williams to network execs. She relented and obviously did the series...
It WOULD be fun to see/hear if there were any other actress considered. Carrie Fisher was a part of those acting circles back then...maybe Louise Lasseer, although she was a bit older, I think. Perhaps Donna Pescow who would later star in Angie for Marshall....
Aykroyd maybe...Belushi wasn't subtle enough and NEVER would have taken a back seat to two female stars...
