‘Shrinking’ Star Ted McGinley On Being Labeled the Patron Saint of Jumping the Shark: ‘I Started Losing Jobs’

variety.com:

Jenelle Riley Deputy Awards and Features Editor While most actors pray for a hit show, Ted McGinley has had the luxury of being on several.

From his first TV job on “Happy Days,” to now enjoying a gig on Apple TV+’s “Shrinking,” McGinley spent multiple seasons on such popular 1980s programs as “The Love Boat,” “Dynasty” and “Married… With Children.” But that success came with a dark side when he was unfairly labeled “The Patron Saint of Jumping the Shark,” and associated with the death of popular TV shows.Speaking at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation during a lengthy conversation about his career, McGinley said the phrase hurt. “At first I thought it was kind of funny,” he said. “And then I realized that I started losing jobs.”The nickname came from Joe Hein, the founder of the website JumptheShark.com.

The origins of the phrase referred to an episode in Season 5 of “Happy Days” in which Henry Winkler’s character Fonzie literally jumps over a shark while on water skis.

The term became synonymous for when a show took a turn for the worst, and was eventually canceled. It didn’t matter that McGinley actually joined “Happy Days” in Season 8, long after the literal shark-jumping had occurred, and stayed through four seasons.