Fred Fox Jr. wrote the episode of Happy days where Fonzie is "Jumping the shark". The idiom "jumping the shark" is almost always used in a pejorative sense. It is most commonly used in reference to gimmicks for promoting entertainment outlets, such as television series, that are declining in popularity.
At first, the phrase was specifically used to describe an episode of a T.V. comedy in which there is a gimmick or unlikely occurrence that is seen as a desperate attempt to keep viewers' interest. Therefore, moments labelled as "jumping the shark" are often considered indications that the writers have run out of ideas; that the show has strayed irretrievably from an older and better formula; and/or even that the series as a whole is declining in quality.
Popularized by radio personality Jon Hein in the 1980s, the phrase is based on a scene from a fifth-season episode of Happy Days where Fonzie jumps over a shark while on water-skis. This was deemed a ratings ploy.
Like his father Fred S. Fox, one of Bob Hope's comedy writers, Fred Fox Jr. is an acclaimed television writer. Junior began his television career in 1976 when he wrote an episode of "Happy Days" spin-off "Laverne & Shirley". A few months later, he was hired as a story consultant on "Happy Days", on which he'd contribute as a story editor, writer, and supervising producer during his seven years on the show. His work on the long-running family sitcom led to work as a writer and co-producer on another "Happy Days" spin-off, "Joanie Loves Chachi", and established his reputation for sitcom savvy. After pulling double duty on '80s re-launch "The New Leave It to Beaver", Fox joined the "Perfect Strangers" spin-off, "Family Matters", as a writer and producer in 1990. During the series' nine-season run, Fox wrote nearly 40 episodes, and moved up to co-executive producer. After the show wrapped in 1998, Fox walked away from television, though he ceremoniously returned in 2005 to write and co-produce the celebratory documentary "Happy Days: 30th Anniversary Reunion".
Fred Makes an appearance in a Happy Days episode called 'Stolen Melodies'. Check Fred out at 5:30 and 18:20 (in the video) You won't miss his gold suit!
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Mark Thompson, Fred Fox Jr. and The Tim Conway Jr.