Henry Franklin Winkler, OBE (born October 30, 1945) is an American actor, director, comedian, producer and author. Born in Manhattan, New York, the son of Jewish Immigrants from Berlin, Germany, who came to this country in 1939, Winkler started acting after graduating from high school. He appeared on stage and in small bit parts on shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Bob Newhart Show. He was cast as Arthur Fonzarelli in the 1970s sitcom, Happy Days. Henry Winkler took what was intended to be a minor character in the series and made “The Fonz” in to a major part of the shows success. Winkler’s character became the main focus of the show after Ron Howard, who played Richie Cunningham, left the series. Happy Days, which ran from 1973 to 1984, was so popular, that the leather jacket Henry Winkler wore is now on display in the Smithsonian Museum.
During he Happy Days years, Henry Winkler starred in several films, including The Lords of Flatbush (1974), Heros (1977), The One and Only (1978) and An American Christmas Carol, a TV film in 1979. Also in 1979, Winkler narrated the Oscar-winning documentary, Who are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? A portion of the film was aired on TV and earned an Emmy.
After Happy Days ended, Winkler moved his focus from acting to producing and directing. He formed his production company, Winkler-Rich Productions, with John Rich and produced shows such as MacGyver, So Weird and Mr. Sunshine. Winkler also directed the movies Memories of Me (1988) and Cop and a Half 1993). In the 90s, he returned to acting in films. In 1996, Henry Winkler has an uncredited, but scene-stealing role as a potty mouthed High School Principle in the hit movie, Scream. He became good friends with Adam Sandler, and as a result appeared is several of Sandler’s films, such as Water Boy (1998), Little Nicky (2000) and Don’t Mess With the Zohan (2008). He also played the dad in the critically acclaimed film, Holes (2003), based on the best selling Young Adult novel.
Henry Winkler has dyslexia, which made school difficult for him. Because of this, he has written a series of 19 children’s books dealing with this issue. He is active in helping children with dyslexia, and was appointed an Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his work with children with special educational needs and dyslexia. When he does have free-time, Winkler enjoys fly fishing, especially while on vacation at Yellowstone National Park. Henry Winkler is married with 3 children. His estimated net worth is $20 million.
