Being Henry: The Fonz . . . and Beyond

Henry Winkler recalls attending the first reading at Paramount Studios in October 1973 to play Arthur “the Fonz” Fonzarelli on the series Happy Days. He was nervous and had a quiet and unsure nature, which contrasted with the Fonz’s confident extroversion. Still, Winkler was confident in his acting and became the outgoing and suave Fonz with ease.

He recalls growing up the son of German Jewish immigrants Harry and Ilse Winkler in New York City. He struggled in school, especially with reading, but graduated from Emerson College after four years with a bachelor’s degree in drama and a minor in psychology. Winkler aspired to become an actor from a young age. After graduating from Emerson College, he applied to the Yale School of Drama despite his doubts of whether he could get in. He was accepted and began acting, which grew his confidence.

Winkler discusses his parents, who fled Berlin in 1939. Despite being part of the Jewish refugee community, Harry and Ilse saw themselves as German first and looked down on Eastern European Jews, whom they saw as culturally inferior. They ridiculed Winkler for his difficulties in school, calling him “dummer Hund,” which in German means “dumb dog” (10).