Henry Winkler Took Home a Piece of Plywood from the ‘Happy Days' Set-Here's Why
Henry Winkler took home an unusual souvenir from the Happy Days set when the show wrapped its 11-season run. The actor, who played Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli in the ABCsitcom from 1974 to 1984, told USA Today that he snagged a piece of wood from the set when the show ended more than 40 years ago-and he still has it.
Winkler explained that over the years, he used the piece of wood to write down things that happened during filming.
"There is a piece of plywood that was a shelf just outside the swinging doors of Arnold's," Winkler, 80, told the outlet in reference to the fictional diner that was featured on the series. "I would write (notes on it), for years, like ‘Today, Ron Howard had a red-headed girl named Bryce.' And then I would write down, ‘Today, we had a red-headed girl baby named Zoe.' … 'Today, it starts the eighth year of Happy Days.' ‘Oh, I finally got Scott Baio with a spitball.' And so I have that piece of plywood."
Winkler previously appeared on his daughter's What in the Winkler?! podcast, where he talked about the special memento. "When Ron and I did Happy Days, there was a shelf outside of Arnold's," he said. "And we put our coffee cups or our water bottles on it as we went through the swinging doors before we made our entrance. At the end of Happy Days, I took that shelf."
Howard, who played Richie Cunningham on the classic sitcom, told Winkler he was "so smart" to take the shelf.
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Henry Winkler kept other ‘Happy Days' memorabilia
In addition to the plywood, Winkler was lucky enough to get his character's iconic leather jacket when Happy Days ended. During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Winkler showed off the leather jacket that he still has in his possession.
"That's the Fonz's jacket," he confirmed. "Well, they made five. And they put them under lock and key. And I got one of them."
During Happy Days' heyday, the Fonz was immortalized on all types of memorabilia, from t-shirts to dolls to metal lunch boxes.
Winkler told USA Today that he still has a lot of the merch more than 50 years later. "I have, I think, almost every Fonz action figure and the Funkos now of the different (Happy Days) characters," he shared. "I have the lunch box that is now in the Smithsonian with a leather jacket. The Fonz, he changed my life. He was fun to play."
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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 3:57 AM.