Suzi Quatro

I never could understand why they tried to push her on "Happy Days." Her character had nothing to do with the rest of the show and seemed unbelievably anachronistic in the context of the 1950s.

Not the only thing anachronistic about Happy Days.

It was the haircut.

Classic David Cassidy Shag.

Haven’t thought of the bitch in forty years.

Leather Tuscadero!

The Roz Kelly/Pinky saga is so interesting to me.

I can remember as a kid, it was all kids talked about on the playground for weeks. For summer reruns, they changed the name of Happy Days for a few weeks to "Fonize Loves Pinky" and it was announced she was coming back.

But she never did. The cast hated her. I just don't understand why all the hype when producers had to have known earlier on that she would not be returning to the show.

She turned into Time Travlin' Pinky and showed up on Blansky's Beauties. As Pinky, same age, even though the show was 20 years in the future. And Lynda Goodfriend and Scott Baio were both on it playing different characters. And the show was deliberately placed in the Happy Days universe by having Nancy Walker talk about her "cousin Howard Cunningham."

And, really, looking back, Roz Kelly was no beauty. Not a great actress. Not even much chemistry with Fonzie. What WAS that all about??

Obviously being American you don't really know about Suzi Quatro, except for the miscast stint on some old American TV show. So let me tell you abou Suzi. She was the Queen of Glam Rock in the UK and most of the Europe. Sure, it was a brief reign, sometime between 1973-74 but filled with some great, some iconic songs like the "Can The Can". For few year she has slipped to oblivion until 1978 when she and Chris Norman got to the top of the charts with "Stumblin' In". Around that time she has also released an album "Suzi...And Other Four Letter Words" that shows the real talent this girl has possesed. After the late 70's I have forgotten about her, but few years ago, I have googled her and found the album she has released in 2011. "In the Spotlight" is one of the finiest records I have heard in the last 20 years. Anyone who is remotely curious about this "little" girl from Ditroit ... do yourself a favour and listen to these 2 albums by one of the most underrated artist I have ever heard. Forget that silly, dated show and hear what she should be remembered for. By the way she is not a lesbian, but having a large number of lesibian fans, she is very respectful of it, to the point of dedicating one of her songs to her female admirers. Great talent indeed and a wonderful person.

"Stumblin' In" was a staple on classic rock radio here in the U.S. No one really made the connection that it was Leather at the time.

Is she American? If so, why the success overseas?

This is Suzi at the top of her Glam fame ...

Another of my faves from the second wave of Suzi's European popularity (late 70's). Indeed she is an American, born and raised in Ditroit, but her talent was appreciated overseas more than could have ever been in the US. Why? I don't know ... but after moving to England she has got the top Pop song writers and producers that resulted in songs that are still remembered and enjoyed by my generation.

Many years later ... but still fabulous ... yet still underapreciated ... unfortunately!

Sherilyn Fenn is her niece!

She was iconic... & huge in the UK. Stumblin In is a great song!

Decades later, Suzi showed up in Edina Monsoon's fever dream (at 4:08)

Thanks R15 ... I was unsuccessfully looking for the ABFAB clip to link here ... voila!

I love her girl-next-door cuteness. She was the "safer" Joan Jett. Or, at least that's her image.

And yes, I know she pre-dates Joan.

R17, Well, Suzi was still at the peak of her fame when Joan started rocking with the Runaways, so there is an overlap of years when they would've been on the same bill.

From Roz "Pinky Tuscadero" Kelly's wikipedia page:

[quote] On November 29, 1998, [bold]she was arrested for firing a 12-gauge shotgun into the living room window of a neighbor's house after a car alarm woke her up; she also shot the neighbor's car and another car nearby. [/bold] The neighbor was not home at the time. Pleading no contest to the charge of firing into the house, she received three years' felony probation on October 20, 2000. She was also ordered to receive psychiatric counseling and pay restitution as ordered by the probation department.

[quote] On October 27, 2000, she was sentenced to 120 days in jail after pleading "no contest" to charges stemming from an August 20, 2000, [bold]arrest for hitting a man with her cane.[/bold] She was given credit for the 98 days that she had already spent in jail awaiting sentencing, thus avoiding having to spend any more time in jail.

Hollywood tried really hard to make her a "star", but it never happened. I only knew her as an actress and was surprised to discover that she was an actual recording artist, years later, in my teens.

She thinks she belongs in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

“If you're an organization that prides itself on doing the right thing by the right people, what more can be right than the fact that I was the first? Shouldn't that be honored? To me, it's a no-brainer. I don't begrudge anybody who's in [the Hall] whatsoever; whoever gets it, I applaud you, and I am proud of you. But how can you ignore the first? This is not right.”

“But don't forget, ‘Stumblin' In’ was a million-seller here,” Quatro points out. (That single, a duet with Smokie’s Chris Norman, peaked at No. 4 in the States.) “I did lots and lots of tours here. I was in Happy Days for three years [in the art-imitating-life role as badass band leader Leather Tuscadero]. Talk about household name! Give me a break. It's just plain stupid. Sorry, that's all I can say.”

She was before my time, but I love her music.