Robin Williams was a comedic genius, and his role as Mork in ‘Mork and Mindy’ remains iconic. I’m hooked on the series, but Mork and Mindy is certainly more than just Robin Williams.
And when you watch reruns today, you may notice a lot of things I didn’t know back then – the show has its own secrets and details that you may have missed on first viewing.
Let’s take a look at the hidden stories and little details that make ‘Mork and Mindy’ even more fascinating than we might have thought.
If there was a true list of television legends, ‘Mork and Mindy’ would undoubtedly be on it, along with ‘MASH “* and ”Happy Days.’ These shows weren’t just hits – they became cultural milestones.
For those who don’t know or are too young to remember, ‘Mork and Mindy’ was a quirky American sitcom that aired from 1978 to 1982. In it, Robin Williams played the role of Mork, an eccentric alien from the planet Ork sent to Earth to observe human behaviour.
Robin Williams and Pam Dawber / Getty Images
He’s taken in by Mindy (Pam Dawber), a kind-hearted woman who becomes his guide to all things human. The classic TV sitcom combined science fiction and comedy and became an instant hit thanks to Williams’ hilarious improvisational style.
It’s a mixture of slapstick humour, heartwarming moments and a look at what makes us human through the eyes of an alien trying to fit into society.
The only alien who auditioned for the show
The film ‘Mork and Mindy’ was a spin-off of the popular Happy Days episode ‘My Beloved Orcan,’ in which the then-unknown Robin Williams got his big break. And the story of how Robin got the role of Mork is pretty funny.
Producer Garry Marshall was told by his sister about Robin Williams, who she saw while performing at a comedy club. She was so impressed with his alien performance that she said: ‘You’ve got to see this guy – his alien act is amazing!’.
According to Pam Dawber, that’s when they decided to invite him.
During the audition, when Williams was asked to sit down, he plopped into the chair… upside down. Producer Garry Marshall chose him because, in his words, ‘he was the only alien in the audition.’
It was later revealed that the role was offered to Dom DeLuise and Roger Rees, but they turned it down. Richard Lewis and Jeff Altman were also considered for the role.
Pam Dawber: No audition, no problem
If Robin Williams’ auditions for the roles of Mork and Mindy were forgettable, Pam Dawber’s path to the role of Mindy was a bit more unusual. She didn’t audition for the role!
To pitch the show to the network, producer Garry Marshall cleverly edited clips from Dawber’s previous failed series, Sister Terry (1978), with footage from Williams’ guest role on Happy Days as Mork.
ABC loved it and the series was picked up, and Dawber found out about being cast in the role… from Variety.
The real-life setting of the series ‘Mork and Mindy.
Mork and Mindy is set in Boulder, Colorado in the late 1970s and early 1980s, unlike Happy Days, which is set in Milwaukee in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Producer Garry Marshall came up with the basic concept for ‘Mork and Mindy’ during a phone conversation with an ABC executive. He decided to film the series in Boulder after his friend’s child attended the University of Colorado. And the idea for the alien character came from Marshall’s eight-year-old son, who had seen ‘Star Wars’ (1977) and suggested making a TV show about aliens.
The exterior filming of Mindy’s house took place at 1619 Pine Street, near downtown Boulder. Interestingly, Mindy’s father’s music shop was actually filmed in a bookstore located on the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder.
Robin Williams did ‘the nastiest things’ on set
Pam Dawber, Robin Williams’ colleague on “Mork and Mindy,” said Williams often did “the nastiest things” on set, including groping and gaslighting.
But she never took offence, saying, ‘The nastiest things were done to me – to him… I was groped, groped, groped, groped, groped. I think he probably did it to a lot of people … but it was so much fun.’
Dawber explained that Williams had a unique ‘magic’ that made his behaviour seem playful rather than malicious. As director Howard Storm said, ‘It was just Robin being Robin, and he thought it would be funny. He could get away with murder.’
Totally naked on set
Another sign of Robin Williams’ magic? Because of his constant improvisation, the writers of ‘Mork and Mindy’ purposely left gaps in the scripts. This gave Williams the freedom to add his own creative twists, making each scene even more unpredictable and hilarious.
However, many of Robin Williams’ improvisations had to be replaced with pre-written “ad libs” from the big team, because his spontaneous lines were often too edgy for the mainstream television audience.
Garry Marshall also revealed that Robin Williams would often stage outbursts to rouse the actors.
‘He would take off all his clothes, stand completely naked, and she would try to act. His goal in life was to make Pam Dawber blush,’ he said.
Robin Williams’ struggle with cocaine
Unfortunately, despite the success of ‘Mork and Mindy,’ things didn’t go smoothly for Robin Williams.
‘Robin had high highs and low lows,’ said his “Mork and Mindy” colleague Gina Hecht in the documentary ’The Dark Side of Comedy.
Robin admitted that he started using cocaine on set because he didn’t know what to say between takes to all the crew members and celebrities watching the shoot.
This at first small habit developed into a cocaine addiction that he suffered from throughout his life.
The truth about the hand gesture
Mork’s iconic ‘Nanu Nanu’ greeting was actually inspired by the famous ‘Live long and prosper’ hand gesture from the TV series Star Trek, of which Robin Williams was a big fan. Interestingly, Mork’s Orcan spacesuit has a slightly recycled history, as it was originally used in the 1969 Star Trek episode ‘Savage Curtain’.
The series popularised several other memorable phrases, including ‘Shazbat’ (/ˈʃæzbɒt/), a quirky Orcan exclamation that Mork uses frequently. Another unique twist is that Mork says ‘knockout’ instead of the usual ‘OK’.
From triumph in the ratings to time slot problems
Mork & Mindy quickly became a sensation in the ratings, it was extremely popular and was one of the top three shows in its first season.
However, in its second season, ABC decided to move the show to Sundays to compete with CBS’s Sunday comedy lineup, which included Archie Bunker’s Place (1979). Unfortunately, this postponement caused ratings to plummet.
Even when the show returned to its original Thursday night slot mid-season, it was never able to regain the momentum it had in its debut.
Drama Behind the Scenes
Did you know that Fred (Conrad Janis) and Cora (Elizabeth Kerr) were eliminated from ‘Mork and Mindy’ at the beginning of season two because their characters weren’t quite right for the show’s young audience?
Their absence was explained by a fictional orchestra tour. However, viewers didn’t like this, and by the third season, both characters returned, though Cora only appeared occasionally.
Problems with time travel
Mork’s debut in My Favourite Orcan (1978) took place in the 1950s, while the action of the series took place in the present day. Throughout the series, it is revealed that Orcans get younger with age. However, the reason why Mork remained the same age as when he appeared in Happy Days was never explained.
Raquel Welch in Mork and Mindy.
I had no idea that Raquel Welch had also appeared in ‘Mork and Mindy’, and recognising her wasn’t easy at first.
She actually appears in two episodes of the second season, playing Captain Nirvana. In these episodes, three voluptuous aliens from Necroton capture Mork to find out what he has learnt about Earth.
‘Mork vs. the Necrotons’ was originally an hour-long special designed to boost November ratings – and maybe heat things up a bit. Unfortunately, it ended up being a low point for ‘Mork and Mindy,’ and the show’s shift toward a more complex tone made it less appealing to viewers.
In the episode, Mork receives an urgent call from Orson during a political rally from Nelson Flavor (Jim Staal), warning him that the Necrotons, sworn enemies of the Orcs, have come to Earth to find out what Mork knows about the planet they plan to conquer.
Following the Orcan way of avoiding trouble, Mork hides in Mindy’s couch. Raquel Welch plays Captain Nirvana, the leader of the Necrotons, who uses unusual torture techniques such as tickling feathers and hickeys in a hot bath, with the help of guards Kama (Debra Jo Fondren, Playboy’s 1978 Playmate of the Year) and Sutra (Vicki Frederick).
What’s striking about watching old clips and scrutinising Raquel Welch’s acting is how often people forget that Raquel actually loved doing comedy – and she was very good at it.
Raquel was a pain in the arse
Casting director Joel Thurm recalled that Raquel Welch caused a lot of trouble during the filming of ‘Mork and Mindy.’ Jane Fonda was originally cast to play the villainous Captain Nirvana, but after she backed out due to scheduling conflicts, Welch took her place.
At the time, Welch was transitioning from film star to television roles, which Thurm said was an ‘unsettling time’ for her. During filming, she ‘behaved a little inadequately,’ spending extra time on hair and make-up, staying in the trailer longer than necessary, and even refusing to wear a certain costume. Nevertheless, Thurm admitted that she ‘looked spectacular’ in her silver tight-fitting suit.
After completing the second and final episode, the cast and crew threw a small farewell party for her. Welch crawled up to Thurm and the producers and, in a moment he described as ‘very funny and very true,’ confessed, ‘Look, I know I’ve been a bit of a pain in the arse, but wasn’t I worth it?’.
Looking at old photos from the Mork and Mindy series, it’s hard to imagine she was a ‘handful’ behind the scenes. She looks confident, glamorous and in her element – as always!
The Mork and Mindy series wasn’t just a hit sitcom – it was a cultural phenomenon that introduced the world to the unrivalled comedic genius of Robin Williams.
From Mork’s quirky orc phrases to the unexpected twists and turns behind the scenes, the series remains a favourite part of television history. Whether you watched it back in the day or only discovered it now, one thing is for sure: there will never be another show like it. Nanu Nanu!
