In the January 2024 issue of Milwaukee Magazine, they had the 50th anniversary celebration of “Happy Days” and called it “Were Those Days Really that Happy?” plus a sub-section called “’The Rise of the Fonz and the Fall of Ritchie.” It was one of the most comprehensive analyses of that TV show and explained the inside story of those days.
Having grown up on the Northwest Side, also called the Sherman Park neighborhood, I’ve always been miffed that in public relations brochures about Milwaukee—they never mention the real “Happy Days” drive-in”—Petroff’s at 53nd and Burleigh!
They mention The Milky Way in Glendale, now a Kopp’s location, and Gilles on the West Side and Leon’s on the South Side but to me it was Petroff’s. Mr. Petroff was a dark-haired handsome man from Russia who started the drive-in as a custard stand in the early ‘50s and in the ‘60s, tore it down and built a bowling alley and restaurant. When bowling declined, it was torn down again and made into The Burleigh Enterprise Center, with office space and stores. Some of the offices were rented by Rabbi Michel (Michael) Twerski and his Congregation Beth Jehudah, according to long-time resident Gerry Glazer.
Inspiration for Arnold’s
Garry Marshall takes most of the credit for founding the show, but he was actually one of three, along with Edward Milkis and Tom Miller, two names nearly forgotten. But actually, Tom Miller inspired the creation of “Arnold’s,” the “Happy Days” drive-in, and based it on a place he used to hang out—The Milky Way which was on Port Washington Road, south of Silver Spring,…