By Melissa Rose Bernardo

Daily Theater Editor

Top 10 things you didn't know about Don Most (a.k.a. Ralph Malph from "Happy Days"):

10. He's from Brooklyn.

9. He's seen "The Jolson Story" an estimated 50 times.

8. He was co-captain of his high school swim team.

7. He entered Lehigh University as an engineering major, and later switched to business.

6. He originally screen tested for the role of "Potsie" on "Happy Days."

5. The character of Ralph Malph was actually created for Most.

4. Last fall he had a guest-starring role on "Baywatch."

3. His feature film credits include "Stewardess School."

2. He's performed in a vaudeville act in The Catskills.

1. He's starring in the touring production of "Grease!" at the Fox Theater next week.

That's right, hep cats. Slip into those bobby socks and grease back your coif but don't sneak a ciggie butt in the theater, please. The touring production of the "official" Broadway revival is hully-gullying its way into Detroit, and all the cool cats are gonna be there: The T-birds (Danny Zuko, Kenickie, Sonny, Roger, Doody), the Pink Ladies (Rizzo, Marty, Jan, Frenchie), and good-girl Sandy Dumbrowski.

So where exactly does "Happy Days" alum Don Most fit in, you may ask? No, he's not playing the ultra-cool Danny; that privilege is reserved for "TJ Hooker" alum Adrian Zmed, no stranger to cool cars and leather jackets thanks to his role in "Grease 2."

Most has the smaller role of DJ Vince Fontaine, a part once played on tour by ex-Monkee Davy Jones. Fontaine actually plays a pretty vital role in this revival, from leading a pre-show dance contest to doo-wopping in the burger palace in the final scene. And who knows the era better than Most, after spending seven seasons up to his letterman sweater in cherry cokes on "Happy Days," TV's ultimate tribute to the '50s.

But don't fool yourself into thinking that Most's acting abilities are confined to a single decade. Even as a 20-year-old on TV's most popular sitcom, Most had ambitions beyond soda shops and sock hops. "I had a lot of other things that I wanted to do as an actor," said Most in a recent phone interview.

After the success of "Happy Days," TV offers were rolling in, but Most wanted to go beyond the small screen. "Back then it was a lot harder for people on television -- especially sitcoms -- to cross over into movies. There's more of a bridge that formed in these days," he said, explaining his lack of film prospects back then.

That turned him to theater, productions like "Barefoot in the Park" with Maureen Sullivan and a short tour of "Damn Yankees" with Dick Van Dyke in the early '80s. Most's experience with musicals also includes the West Coast premiere of the Gershwin musical "Strike Up the Band" with fellow "Happy Days" star -- and current "Beauty and the Beast" cast member -- Tom Bosley.

Since then, directing projects -- plays like "Doubles" and "In the Moonlight Eddie" in the L.A. area -- have proved most fruitful for him. "That led to me working with different people and developing projects for film. I'm very close, it appears, to getting a chance to direct my first movie, a small independent movie," he said with anticipation.

But "Grease!" is not the only acting offer that has come Most's way in the past few years. He recently completed work on a CBS movie called "Deadman's Island" (to be aired this fall) and a role in the feature film "Hourglass," which marks C. Thomas Howell's directing debut. And last fall he joined the elite group of actors who have guest-starred on "Baywatch."

Most has been with the tour of "Grease!" since August 8, and plans to leave shortly after the Detroit stint. His enthusiasm for the show, however, will remain.

"I wound up watching it (in New York), to start getting ready for the role -- eight, nine, 10 performances," he said of his encounter with the current production. "Every night I was watching it and I was having just as much fun with it at the end of the week than I was at the beginning. It's that kind of a show. It has a really infectious feel."

"Infectious" only scratches the surface of the feel of this "Grease!," and Most's role is integral to that feeling. He'll be dancing in the aisles as Vince Fontaine, a role pretty similar on many levels to his "Happy Days" persona. "(Fontaine) is a character where the energy level is up there with Ralph," Most acknowledged. "He's way up there -- he's gotta be. He's the DJ; that's his job, to jet-propel everybody into the next song or the next dance or whatever."

And though audiences most fondly remember him cutting loose as the comedic Ralph -- and "Grease!" audiences will see the same comic actor -- Most claims dramatic roles are actually his forte. "I really was pursuing dramatic roles when I first went out to LA. I always felt like, yeah, I could do comedy if I liked the script or if it's right, and I think that's still the case. I can do it if I like the material and it's appropriate or whatever; the irony is that I probably feel more comfortable doing dramatic work," he said with a laugh.

But don't look for Most to be stuck in the doo-wop decade forever; he's keeping his options wide open. "Right now I'm hoping this movie happens for me to direct. I'm hoping to continue my acting, love to do Broadway, love to do more movies. I'm sort of open to seeing wherever it goes now, letting the winds blow me where they're gonna go."

For now, he's at the high school hop, and you'll kick yourself in that shakin' tailfeather if you miss this happenin' time. Be there or be, well, you know ...