The former Happy Days star Henry Winkler celebrated his 80th birthday on October 30. Despite this, he has no plans to retire anytime soon.
Winkler Refuses To Retire
Winkler opened up about his milestone birthday while being interviewed by the former First Lady Michelle Obama on her IMO podcast. The man who played the iconic role of Fonzie explained that Obama, 61, told him that he should celebrate his birthday for an entire year.
“Eighty is one of those that’s where you deserve a year of celebration,” Obama said.
“I deserve new knees,” Winkler joked in response.
Obama pointed out that Winkler is “moving around pretty well” for his age.
“I get out of bed and I go make a cup of coffee,” Winkler stated. “And then I have to go back to the bed and invite my knees to come with me. They’re still lounging.”
When asked how he’s feeling these days, Winkler responded, “I’m very grateful. You know, people keep asking me am I gonna retire. Or ‘Have you retired?’ And I think that is like the furthest thing from my imagination. I will retire when I am not able to do again, more.”
”You know, I just, I think that it is deadly,” Winkler said of retirement.
Winkler went on to say that he needs the work. He confessed that he works “a lot,” noting that he has “several jobs.”
Winkler Talks Therapy
Later in this interview, Winkler credited therapy with helping him get this far in life. He revealed that he started therapy about ten years ago, he was “completely discombobulated.” Indeed, Winkler compared himself to swiss cheese, saying that therapy healed the holes inside of him.
After decades of working in Hollywood, Winkler finally won an Emmy in 2018. He took home the award for his portrayal of acting coach Gene Cousineau on the TV series Barry.
“I don’t know that I could have played Gene Cousineau without going through that process,” Winkler admited. He added that he main thing that he’s learned in therapy was to listen to his “instinct.”
“Your mind, as educated or not as you are, your mind only knows a little,” he said. “Your tummy knows everything.”
On Sunday, Winkler took to Instagram to show the world that age really is just a number by posting a video of himself zip-lining.
“Still zipping at 80,” Winkler captioned the video, which showed him flying through the trees in a forest.
Winkler Refuses To Retire
Winkler previously told People Magazine in 2023 that he isn’t planning to retire.
“I have no license for that,” Winkler said at the time. “I just have that feeling, I will stop when I have to stop.”
Over fifty years after he rose to fame as Fonzie, Winkler revealed what exactly has kept the joy of acting alive for him.
“It’s the puzzle,” he said. “Taking all these pieces and making a human being. Every scene, every year, it is the puzzle.”
Winkler is a true living legend, and there will never be another one like him. While he certainly deserves to be able to rest on his laurels if he wants to, we’re glad for all of our sakes that he isn’t planning to retire.
God bless you, Henry Winkler!