Henry Winkler recalls audition that launched his iconic role as Fonzie on Happy Days

Henry Winkler became a television icon in the 1970s thanks to his role as Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli on the hit sitcom Happy Days. The character, known simply as “The Fonz,” was cool, confident, and instantly recognizable.

But Winkler, now 79, recently revealed that he wasn’t always sure about the part that would change his career.The actor looked back on his audition during an acting class he led at the Television Academy’s Televerse event in August. Teaching the class was a full-circle moment for Winkler, who played acting teacher Gene Cousineau on the HBO series Barry.Winkler recalled arriving in Los Angeles for the first time on September 18, 1973.

“I landed on terra firma September 18, 1973, in California,” he said, according to Woman’s World. His agent had just opened an office in Los Angeles and met him immediately. Winkler remembered her saying, “You know, it’s going to be hard to sell you.”Only two weeks later, his agent asked him to consider auditioning for a part in a new series called Happy Days. At the time, Winkler had mostly worked on stage productions and appeared in films, so the idea of joining a television show felt like unfamiliar territory.

Still, he decided to give it a chance.“I walked in and said, ‘Please, write anything else for me. I will stand on my head. I just want to be original,’” Winkler recalled of the audition.One line in the script simply instructed, “Comb your hair.” Winkler said he trusted his instincts and played the moment naturally. “I just went with it. I didn’t stop myself, and that one phrase took me on a 50-year journey,” he explained.The small action ended up shaping Fonzie’s larger-than-life personality. Beyond his signature leather jacket, the character became known for physical gestures such as slicking back his hair, snapping his fingers to call over women, and hitting the jukebox to make it start or stop.Happy Days ran from 1974 to 1984, and Fonzie quickly became one of its breakout stars. The role earned Winkler two Golden Globe Awards and three Emmy nominations. Even decades later, “The Fonz” remains one of television’s most enduring characters, while Winkler has gone on to build a diverse career in film, television, and writing.Reflecting on that original audition, Winkler credited the spontaneous decision to lean into the script direction as the spark that launched a role still celebrated 50 years later.