Cindy Williams, who played Shirley on the popular sitcom “Laverne & Shirley” alongside Penny Marshall’s Laverne, has died. She was 75 years old. Liza Cranis, a family spokesperson, confirmed Williams’ death on Wednesday, Jan. 25, saying she “passed away peacefully after a short illness” in Los Angeles.
Williams’ filmography includes “American Graffiti” and “The Conversation.” However, she was best known for her role as Shirley Feeney on the ABC sitcom “Laverne & Shirley.” In its heyday, the show, a spinoff of “Happy Days,” was one of the most popular shows on television. It was on the air from 1976 to 1983.
The opening theme of “Laverne & Shirley” was almost as well-known as the show itself. The chant of “schlemiel, schlimazel” as Williams and Marshall skipped together became a cultural phenomenon and a frequently invoked piece of nostalgia.
On the show about a pair of roommates who worked at a Milwaukee bottling factory in the 1950s and 1960s, Williams played the strict Shirley to Marshall’s more libertine Laverne. Marshall died in 2018, along with his brother, Garry Marshall, who co-created the series.
“Our kind, hilarious mother, Cindy Williams, died, leaving us with insurmountable sadness that can never truly be expressed. Knowing and loving her has been a joy and a privilege for us “According to a statement issued by her children. “She was one of a kind, beautiful, generous, with a brilliant sense of humor and a sparkling spirit that everyone adored.”
According to her bio on the Hollywood Walk of Fame website, Williams was born in Van Nuys, California, and began her acting career in the early 1970s by appearing in commercials for Foster Grant sunglasses and TWA.
She and Marshall received their stars in 2004 in a “rare and fun double ceremony,” according to the Walk of Fame, which invited fans to place flowers on Williams’ star beginning Tuesday at noon.
