Wally
Wally GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
10/12/11 9:15 a.m.

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2011/10/11/aaaay-fonzies-motorcycle-cruising-to-auction/

Now you too can jump the shark, or at least try to clear 14 garbage cans.

One of the motorcycles that was used by "The Fonz" on the classic TV show “Happy Days” will be crossing the auction block at the Bonhams Classic California Sale in Los Angeles on November 12th.

According to the Daily Mail, the 1949 Triumph Trophy TR5 has been sitting the garage of California motorcycle collector Marshall Ehlers since he purchased it in 1995 from famed Hollywood stuntman Bud Ekins.

Ekins had provided and customized the motorcycle for "Happy Days" and kept it after the show ended its run in 1984. Unfortunately, it doesn't run. Bonhams cautions that the Triumph will require a significant amount of work to make it road-worthy again, but estimates that it will still sell for at least $90,000 because it is the only one of the motorcycles that appeared in the show that still exists.

As the story goes, the producers of “Happy Days” added the motorcycle as a prop because executives at ABC thought "Fonzie" looked too much like a troublemaker in his black leather jacket to be a featured character on network TV. With the bike nearby the producers made the excuse that the jacket was merely required safety equipment. One of those jackets now sits in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

Funnily enough, the actor who played "The Fonz," Yale School of Drama grad Henry Winkler, has confessed that he can’t even ride a motorcycle, and that the one time he tried he took a fall.

No, that wasn’t him crashing into Arnold’s fried chicken stand after clearing those garbage cans, but, just like "The Fonz," it sounds like Winkler learned from his own spill that taking foolish risks just isn’t cool.

But owning his motorcycle sure would be.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2011/10/11/aaaay-fonzies-motorcycle-cruising-to-auction/#ixzz1aZpiJNKf

Zomby woof
Zomby woof SuperDork
10/12/11 9:20 a.m.

In the early episodes, the Fonz wore a white windbreaker.

I'm surprised some specialty shop isn't producing a copy of that bike already.

Snowdoggie
Snowdoggie Dork
10/12/11 9:31 a.m.
Zomby woof wrote: In the early episodes, the Fonz wore a white windbreaker. I'm surprised some specialty shop isn't producing a copy of that bike already.

I'm sure you could make one out of a new Bonneville for a whole lot cheaper than they want for the original. I think I would rather have a new one that looks like that but has fuel injection and better electricals.

Gearheadotaku
Gearheadotaku GRM+ Memberand Dork
10/12/11 1:24 p.m.

Never knew what kind of bike they used for the show, now I know.

Tom Heath
Tom Heath Web Manager
10/12/11 2:36 p.m.

In reply to Zomby woof:

That's really a good idea. There are way more well-to-do baby boomers with discretionary spending than Trophy TR5s...

AngryCorvair
AngryCorvair GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
10/13/11 8:35 a.m.
Gearheadotaku wrote: Never knew what kind of bike they used for the show, now I know.

i'm pretty sure that the Fonz rode a sportster for a few seasons as well.

ditchdigger
ditchdigger Dork
10/13/11 9:20 a.m.

But... 90 grand? The show sucked. It started out corny to the point of being embarrasing to watch and then it only got worse.

I like an old triumph as much or more than the next guy but this guys ass print on the seat should make it cost less, not more.

gamby
gamby SuperDork
10/13/11 5:42 p.m.
ditchdigger wrote: I like an old triumph as much or more than the next guy but this guys ass print on the seat should make it cost less, not more.

Hating on the Fonz?! Boo-urns...

Lesley
Lesley SuperDork
10/13/11 6:57 p.m.

He was the bomb when I was in 10th grade.

You'll need to log in to post.

Our Preferred Partners
kdaPnrrpzRhdEL7nVKM1gtQXbxvK3sAbsIffu3z2AEHwoskP4bSBZ3AZHVf6tsfO