Was Leather Tuscadero in the "demolition derby" episode of HAPPY DAYS?

Who's asking: Jennifer Lechner

Jen and Steve spent a rainy day in an Ethiopian hotel room debating this point, because I was not available to provide the answer. In fact, I had to look this one up -- but the answer is no. The "demolition derby" episodes of HAPPY DAYS were a three-part arc called "Fonzie Loves Pinky," and featured not Leather Tuscadero, but her older sister, Pinky, played by Roz Kelly. Leather (Suzi Quatro) didn't show up until several seasons later, by which time the series was already on the decline.

My mother was a fierce opponent of all things "Happy Days," especially Fonzie and the Tuscadero sisters; her word for them was "trashy." "Trashy" was a nebulous concept that included roller rinks, getting one's ears pierced, and chewing gum in public.

As an adult, I too find myself referring to things as "trashy," but I use it more often to mean "disrespectful of the safety and comfort of others." A recent example would be the young woman who was picking her feet at her table the other night at the Azure Cafe in Freeport, right next to the table where Dad and I were eating. I almost said something, but the woman's own boyfriend did; her response was, "What? They're clean, I took a shower."

I'm just speculating, but even Pinky Tuscadero wouldn't have dug under her toenails in public.