Leather and the Suedes

The other night -- while talking with a friend -- I inexplicably began talking about Leather Tuscadero of Happy Days. The singer/songwriter Suzi Quatro portrayed the leather clad, reform school bad-ass, sister of Pinky Tuscadero. Pinky, of course, was one of the few women who truly made Fonzie's heart go pitter patter. This discussion led me to a search on youtube.com(duh). I found plenty of delightful gems featuring the Happy Days gang.

Suzi Quatro only appeared on six episodes of Happy Days, but she left an indelible mark on young men and aspiring rock chicks in the late 70s. My girl friends and I would emulate her trademark double slap to the hip followed by a double 'finger/thumb' gun shoot motion. You know the one. She wore leather. She played guitar. She sang with a raspy voice. We loved her.

Her only hit in the US was Stumblin' In with Chris Norman. Despite her lack of success in the states, she's a big hit abroad and still rockin' at 57. She is, without a doubt, still slinking about on stage with those leather pants, too. According to her official website, she's been on a book reading tour of her autobiography Unzipped.

So, without further delay, I give you one of the memorable performances of Leather on Happy Days.