Henry Winkler

Henry Winkler: Biography in Details

Who is Henry Winkler?

Henry Winkler is an actor, author, director, comedian, and producer from America. He is famous for his role as greaser Arthur ‘Fonzie’ Fonzarelli in the 1970s American sitcom ‘Happy Days. He is also recognized as Sy Mittleman in ‘Children’s Hospital’ and as Eddie R. Lawson in ‘Royal Pains’.

He is the winner of two Golden Globe Awards and nominated three times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role in ‘Happy Days.

Who are the parents of Henry Winkler?

He was born in Manhattan, New York on October 30, 1945. His father’s name is Harry Irving Winkler and his mother’s name is Ilse Anna Marie. His father worked in a lumber import-export company president Harry Irving Winkler and his mother was a homemaker.

His parents were shifted to the U.S. from Berlin in 1939 on the eve of World War II. They told me that they were for a six-month business trip but they already knew that they were never going back to Berlin. He has got a sister named Beatrice. He holds American citizenship and his ethnicity is Ashkenazi Jewish.

Due to his undiagnosed dyslexia, he was very anxious and he was considered to be slow, stupid, and not living up to his potential. His dyslexia was treated at the age of 35.

Education, School/College University

He achieved his BA from Emerson College in 1967 and earned an MFA from the Yale School of Drama. He studied in Lausanne, Switzerland. During his high school and college years, he worked in a lumber mill in a small German town. He wanted to be an actor from an early age.

Henry Winkler: Professional Life, Career

He started his first job in television as an extra on a game show in which he was paid $10. Later, he returned to New York City and appeared in television commercials and supported himself with the commercial work so he could do theatre for free at Manhatten Theatre Club.

He was cast in ‘Happy Days’ in January 1974 in the role of Arthur Herbert Fonzarelli and nicknamed The Fonz or Fonzie. His role remained very much a rough-hewn outsider and gradually became the focus of the show as time passed.

He first appeared wearing two different kinds of windbreaker jackets, one of which was green. Marshall argued about the jacket and later it was decided that Winkler could only wear the leather jacket in scenes with his motorcycle and he appeared with his motorcycle until season 2.

During his time on ‘Happy Days’, he made his appearance in ‘The Lords of Flatbush’ in 1974, ‘Heroes’ in 1977, ‘The One and Only’ in 1978, ‘An American Christmas Carol’ in 1979 and hosted also one of the hosts of the 1979 Music for UNICEF Concert.

He collaborated with John Rich and established Winkler-Rich Productions and appeared on several television shows like ‘MacGyver’, ‘So  Weird’, ‘Mr. Sunshine, etc. He directed ‘Memories Of Me’ in 1988 and ‘Cop and a Half’ in 1993.

He returned to acting at the beginning of 1990 and starred in the controversial made-for-television film ‘Absolute Strangers’ in which a husband was forced to make a decision regarding his comatose wife and unborn baby.

Henry appeared in a recurring role in the Fox Television comedy ‘Arrested Development’ and later moved to CBS for one season in ‘Out of Practice’ and made guest appearances on television series such as ‘Numb3rs’, ‘The Bob Newhart Show, ‘The Drew Carey Show, ‘The Simpsons’, ‘Crossing Jordan’, ‘King of the Hill’.

He appeared as a retired cop in the Hallmark Channel movie ‘The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. He also gave his voice to Willard Deutschebog, a suicidal German teacher, in the comedy series ‘Sit Down, Shut Up.

He made his recurring role on USA Network’s ‘Royal Pains’ and later joined the web series ‘Children’s Hospital’ and appeared in 9 episodes of ‘Parks and Recreation; between 2013 and 2015 as Dr. Saperstein.

Henry starred and executive produced the NBC series ‘Better Late Than Never’ from the beginning of the summer of 2016 and appeared in the role of acting coach Gene Cousineau in the HBO comedy ‘Barry’ at the beginning of 2018.

He along with his classmate opened a summer stock theatre named New Haven Free Theatre which included ‘Woyzeck’ play. He was offered to take part in the film ‘The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid’ by Cliff Robertson. But he denied the role and stayed with the Yale Repertory Theatre for a year and a half.

Henry made his first pantomime at the New Wimbledon Theatre, London in 2006 and later reprised the role in ‘Working’ for Christmas 2007. He reprised the role of Captain Hook in Peter Pan at the Richmond Theatre in South West London in December 2013.

Alan Berger suggested Henry to write a children’s book about dyslexia in 1998 and he did not think he would be able to write as he is struggling with a learning disability. Berger again suggested and Winkler agreed and he has written 19 books since then. His book ‘I’ve Never Met an Idiot on the River was published on May 31, 2011.

Awards, Nominations

He was awarded Golden Globe Awards for Best Actor in Television Series Musical or Comedy for ‘Happy Days’ in 1977 and 1978. He won the Critic’s Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in ‘Barry’ in 2019. Henry was also awarded Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for ‘Clifford’s Puppy Days.

How much does Henry Winkler earn?

As of 2023, it is estimated that he has a net worth of around $40 million and his main source of income is from his professional career. He has worked in several TV shows plus movies which has helped him to gain popularity and money.

Henry Winkler: Rumors, Controversy/Scandal

Winkler did not seem to break even a tiny sweat as he hopped around in his dark suit and dress shoes. Also, he could not even ride a bike because his coordination was so poor which was one of the symptoms of dyslexia. For action scenes, he just mounted on a piece of wood on wheels and pulled along.

Body Measurements: Height, Weight

Henry Winkler has a height of 5 ft. 6 inches and weighs 56 kg. He has got salt and pepper hair and green eyes.

Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter

Henry Winkler doesn’t seem to be active on social media like Facebook, and Instagram but he is active on Twitter and has got around 642k followers.

To know more about birth facts, family, childhood, education, profession, awards, net worth, rumors, body measurements and social media profile of Scott Bakula, Larry Hagman, and Tim Robbins, please click on the link.

Henry Winkler's Anniversary Dates

Henry Winkler's Birthday Dates