Local bar raising funds for bronze Al Molinaro statue

The late Kenosha native Al Molinaro and Henry Winklker pose in 1977 on the set of “Happy Days.”

A third cast member of the classic American sitcom “Happy Days” could be cast in bronze, with a local bar raising funds to create a statue of Kenosha native Al Molinaro.

Craig Pias, owner of the Port of Kenosha Beverage House, 714 50th St., has raised a quarter of his $65,000 goal for the project. The money will go to his efforts to commission a bronze statue of Molinaro, who portrayed drive-in owner Al Delvecchio, for the bar’s front yard.

Pias said the idea came out of a conversation he was having about which famous Kenosha resident deserved their own statue. Molinaro, who died in 2015, seemed the obvious choice, Pias said.

“He was Mr. Kenosha,” Pias said. “He was the guy you’d want at your family reunion. He was someone I grew up with watching television.”

After speaking with Molinaro’s widow, Pias said he began fundraising efforts for the bronze statue. He’s raised about $17,500, roughly 27% of the estimated total. The project is still a few years out including fundraising and creation time.

“Any contribution is welcome, big and small. It all adds up,” Pias said.

The Port is currently selling merchandise to help raise funds. Donations can also be made online at theportofkenosha.com.

“Times like this, when everything seems so bleak, I think that building a statue of Al, it’ll make you smile. It’s something more uplifting,” Pias said.

Other “Happy Days” character statues include the famous Bronze Fonz in Milwaukee and a recently unveiled Marion Ross statue in Albert Lea, Minn.

Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter.

Haribo of America has started production of its gummi candies at its first North American facility in Pleasant Prairie.

Online fundraisers have been launched for the two young adults killed when the truck they were passengers in crashed into the wall of a Kenosh…

PADDOCK LAKE — A Dunkin’ Donuts and Culver’s restaurant are planned to open this fall in the Village of Paddock Lake, according to Village Adm…

A warrant has been issued for the Kenosha man accused of shooting another man multiple times outside an apartment complex on the city’s north …