For the generation that grew up with “Happy Days,” Henry Winkler’s the Fonz was the embodiment of cool. The sitcom, which aired in the 1970s and ’80s, was set in 1950s Milwaukee and followed the Cunningham family. The Fonz, or Fonzie (real name Arthur Fonzarelli), was a smooth-talking greaser and, eventually, the Cunninghams’ tenant. Initially introduced as a supporting character, Winkler’s Fonzie became the breakout star of “Happy Days” and was given top billing as of the show’s second season.
Discussing his time on “Happy Days” on the “Media Path” podcast, Winkler revealed that some of the Fonz’s catchphrases were his own creation. He also said he never demanded anything, except for one alteration to a Christmas episode. “In the first year [or] the second year, there’s a scene at the dinner table and they asked me to say grace,” Winkler said, recalling the iconic moment. “And the show was being run by a man named Bill, who was very religious,” he added. It’s not clear whether this was in reference to producer William Bickley or the episode’s writer Bill Idelson.
“I understood from the Fonz’s point of view of talking to God. And so I said I grace, I went ‘Hey, God? Whoa,'” said Winkler. “In that ‘whoa,’ I said ‘thank you’ and ‘I’m grateful’ and I argued –- I had to literally stop the filming for a minute -– and argue my case, because he wanted me to say a paragraph … and I thought it all went into ‘Hey, God? Whoa.'”
How Henry Winkler made the Fonz iconic
The episode as it aired featured the Fonz saying “Hey God? Thanks.” Henry Winkler may have misremembered since “Whoa!” was one of the Fonz’s many simple but memorable catchphrases. In an interview with The Guardian, Winkler shared that many of the Fonz’s sayings came from his favorite sport, along with his own approach to the character.
Winkler didn’t want his character to be a cliché, and he sought to do things a little differently. “Everyone who’s ever played a Fonz-like cool character has always done the same things: combed their hair, stuck cigarette packets up the sleeve of their T-shirt. I swore I wouldn’t do any of that,” he explained. “Then, in the pilot, I had to look in a mirror. I told the director: ‘I can’t comb my hair, I made a deal with myself.’ He replied: ‘It’s written. You have to.’ So I walked up, held up my comb, then went: ‘Heeeey … that’s perfect, I don’t need to comb.’ That moment defined the Fonz.” Some of his catchphrases came from an unlikely source. “I got the ‘Heeeey’ and the ‘Whoaaa’ from my favorite sport at the time: horse-riding,” Winkler shared.
Winkler also said that the Fonz’s iconic look was almost shut down by the network. “The network, ABC, thought I’d be associated with crime if I wore a leather jacket,” he revealed. “At first, they had me put on a flimsy-collared golf jacket. It was unbelievably hard to be cool in puce. Garry Marshall, the show’s creator, struck a deal with ABC letting me wear leather.” The Fonz’s leather jacket and simple catchphrases were definitely worth fighting for.