Harrison County officials are reporting that Erin Moran likely died of cancer in her New Salisbury, Ind., home.
According to a news release from the Harrison County coroner's and sheriff's offices, an autopsy revealed that the "Happy Days" star was battling stage 4 cancer of an unknown type.
The statement goes on to say that no illegal drugs were found in the home about 20 miles northwest of Louisville.
Officials from the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office said Moran, 56, was found unresponsive Saturday shortly after 4 p.m. when someone called 911.
Born Oct. 18, 1960, in Burbank, Calif., Moran landed her first big role on the children's adventure show "Daktari" when she was 8-years-old. She made her film debut opposite Debbie Reynolds in "How Sweet It Is."
In 1974 she was cast in “Happy Days” as Joanie, the kid sister to Ron Howard’s Richie Cunningham in the sitcom set in the 1950s. She would later appear with Scott Baio in the “Happy Days” spinoff “Joanie Loves Chachi.”
As a child, Moran made guest appearances on shows including “My Three Sons” and “Family Affair.” She made several television appearances years later, and played a supporting role in “Not Another B Movie“ in 2010.
She landed in southern Indiana after she and her husband lost their California home to foreclosure in 2010. The couple moved into a Harrison County trailer park Moran's sick mother-in-law.
After moving around and struggling with homelessness, the last recorded address for Moran's husband was a home in New Salisbury.
In the wake of her passing, her former TV family expressed their sadness. Ron Howard, who played Richie, her big brother on "Happy Days," tweeted, "I will always choose to remember you on our show making scenes better, getting laughs and lighting up TV screens."
"Now you will finally have the peace you wanted so badly here on Earth," added co-star Henry Winkler, who played the Fonz.