Laverne & Shirley is a popular American sitcom that first premiered on television on January 27, 1976 and lasted on ABC until May 10, 1983. Penny Marshall played the role of Laverne De Fazio, while Cindy Williams played the role of Shirley Feeney. Both characters were unmarried women who shared a room and worked as bottlecappers at a fictional Milwaukee brewery known as "Shotz Brewery." The sitcom was a spin-off from Happy Days, as the two main characters had first been seen on Happy Days as Fonzie's friends or acquaintances. The timeline was loosely based on the same time period, beginning in approximately 1958, which is when the series began, and ending in 1967, which is when the series came to a conclusion. It was produced by Paramount Television, conceived of by Garry Marshall, and executive produced by Garry Marshall, Edward K. Milkis, and Thomas L. Miller, just like Happy Days was.