The Fonz makes school cool in Southampton

1:40pm Thursday 3rd July 2008

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By Jon Reeve »

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FOR a whole generation he was the instantly recognisable king of cool who could get anything he wanted with a certain look and a trademark thumbs-up.

But the man behind The Fonz has since revealed he found it tough to even read the Happy Days scripts, having struggled his way through school and adult life battling dyslexia that went undiagnosed until his 30s.

Now aged 62, Henry Winkler is a bestselling children's author in his native USA. Yesterday he visited Southampton to share his experiences with young school pupils.

The actor, who has had numerous film and TV roles but will forever be remembered as Arthur Fonzarelli, charmed youngsters, parents and teachers alike at Foundry Lane Primary School in Shirley.

During a special assembly he chatted openly about the troubles he had at school, how he became an actor and the difficulties he faced, and why he has now decided to write kids' books.

The Hank Zipzer series, which he has cowritten with Lin Oliver, is a massive hit in America and the first six stories are now being launched in Britain. The hero also has dyslexia, and Henry drew on his own personal experiences to show how he copes with difficult situations.

"School was unbelievably hard for me," he said.

"Teachers didn't know what dyslexia was at that time so I was labelled the class clown. I got bad grades in everything - English, maths and science, I got a D in all of them.

"At school the only thing I was good at was lunch - I ate a tuna sandwich better than anyone."

His message to the children as he wandered among them, asking and answering questions with the kind of enthusiasm usually associated with youngsters, was simple.

"You are all wonderful," he told them.

They may be too young to remember him as The Fonz, but Henry was a big hit with the Foundry Lane pupils.

"He was amazing," said nine-year-old Chantelle Woods-Dean. "Sometimes I feel like I'm stupid because I'm not good at reading or writing, but he told me why I'm not."

Ruth Aidoo, ten, said: "It was fantastic. He showed us how to be confident, and told us don't be scared, don't be shy and just believe in yourself."

Henry, currently touring British schools alongside the editor of children's newspaper First News, Nicky Cox, to mark 2008 being the National Year of Reading, said he hopes he can inspire youngsters.

"They believe in Hank Zipzer, and that makes me over the moon," he said.

"What children have to know is if I can do it, they can do it.

"Last week we finished writing book number 15.

If you had told me I would write 15 novels you could have knocked me over with a feather."