I have wondered for a long time if Smokin’ Ain’t Cool was a reaction to the movie Grease. Grease came out in June 1978 and Smokin’ Ain’t Cool first aired in January 1979.
I’m sure that most people know this but…The T-Birds and the Pink Ladies all smoke in Grease and nonsmoker Sandy smokes on the last day of school.
Henry Winkler liked to use the Fonz to teach kiddies morality lessons. I think it would have been enough that none of the characters smoked. Given the era virtually every character, especially the Fonz, would have been a smoker.
I did notice in Grease that they are all smokers.
in fairness--Winkler himself used to be a smoker but gave it up. Probably bc in addition to health he was concerned about image....what would happen if he was caught photographed smoking.
he knew little kids looked up to the Fonz especially. At least he was trying to encourage kids to not do something he once did.
Winkler seems very far removed from the Fonz or what someone like the Fonz would have really been like. So it makes sense he wouldn't want to influence kids. The show had a squeaky clean image when really for the time period everyone would have had a lot more vices. Drinking would have been more common too.
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