Editor: Keith Davis Writers: Alex Dippold, Dave Maley Publisher: Office of Public Information Volume 22, No. 14  March 27, 2000

Henry Winkler to Deliver Commencement Address With recent appearances in films like The Waterboy and Scream, and reruns of Happy Days airing regularly on the cable channel Nick at Nite, actor Henry Winkler is making himself known to a new generation of fans. What they may not know about the man who played "the Fonz" for a decade, however, is that Winkler has had an active career behind the camera and behind the scenes, producing award-winning television programs and taking leadership roles in organizations dedicated to children’s issues. Winkler, who holds an M.F.A. degree from the Yale University School of Drama, will deliver the main address at Ithaca College’s 105th Commencement on Saturday, May 13. "More than most, Henry Winkler has used his celebrity status to help promote worthy causes, especially on behalf of children," says Ithaca College president Peggy R. Williams. "His efforts with such organizations as the Special Olympics and Children’s Action Network may not receive as much attention as his acting roles, but his message is one that is well worth hearing by our graduating seniors and their guests." Senior class president John Walsh says he is looking forward to Winkler’s address. "Since Ithaca is a college with prominent programs in theater, television, and film, it is certainly appropriate to have someone with his professional background deliver our Commencement address," says Walsh. "It is even more fitting, as Ithaca College continues to emphasize the importance of community service, that we hear from someone who has made such a personal commitment to helping others." Winkler’s acting career first took him to the stage, where he performed in regional theater and had a starring role on Broadway. Following appearances in several feature films and television sitcoms, he was signed to play Arthur "Fonz" Fonzarelli — a slick-haired, motorcycle-riding juvenile delinquent with a heart of gold — on ABC’s Happy Days. The long-running (1974–84) hit comedy about life in the 1950s cemented Winkler’s status as a cultural icon and earned him two Golden Globe Awards, three Emmy Award nominations, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His leather jacket has earned its own prominence: since 1980 it has been displayed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History alongside such items as Archie Bunker’s easy chair and Dorothy’s ruby slippers. But Winkler never relied on his acting career alone to make his mark, forming his own production company in 1979. His first venture was a television documentary, Who Are the DeBolts and Where Did They Get 19 Kids?, about a couple who adopted numerous handicapped children. The program won both an Emmy Award and the Humanitas Prize. He later produced and/or directed programs focusing on the effect of divorce on children (Happily Ever After and the sequel Two Daddies to Love Me on PBS), teen drinking (All the Kids Do It, an Emmy Award–winning CBS Schoolbreak Special), and parents coping with the death of their daughter (A Family Again, an ABC prime-time special). Winkler has also put together less serious fare, producing the ABC action series MacGyver, the Sci-Fi Channel’s Sightings, and So Weird on the Disney Channel as well as the feature film The Sure Thing. In 1986 he directed his first television movie, A Smoky Mountain Christmas, and went on to direct the feature films Memories of Me and Cop and a Half. He is a founding member of the Children’s Action Network, an organization of entertainment industry leaders dedicated to raising the profile of children’s issues through the media. The long list of groups with which he is associated also includes the Epilepsy Foundation of America, Toys for Tots, National Committee for Arts for the Handicapped, United Friends of the Children, and the Los Angeles Music Center’s Very Special Arts Festival for children who are physically challenged. Winkler’s efforts have been widely recognized, earning him such honors as the B’nai B’rith Champion of Youth Award and the United Nations Peace Prize. He and his wife, Stacey, were jointly awarded the Norma Zarky Humanitarian Award from Women in Film and the Helping Hand Award from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Winkler has also been honored abroad, receiving in 1996 the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres from France’s Ministry of Culture.

ITHACA | Back Issues | Table of Contents | NEWS Home | Publication Schedule | Letter to the Editor Created by Andrejs Ozolins. Updated 10. May. 2000