When Travolta Auditioned to Play Fonzie. 

John Travolta would have been good, too, but I can't imagine that now that Henry Winkler played him. John was great as Vinnie Barbarinno and Danny Zucko in Grease. ♥️♥️ Henry is an amazing actor! He made Fonzie! 👍👍

Micky Dolenz would have been wayyyyyyyy too silly as "Fonz".

HENRY will never know how many nerds like me looked up to him,he was true super hero

Looking back, all these years later, I totally could not imagine anyone else playing the part except Henry Winkler👍

I use to love Love American Style !!!!

Henry Winkler was a cast member of The Lords Of Flatbush, a film about a 1950's greaser gang. That really showed how perfect Winkler could pull off the Fonzie character.

Can you ride a motorbike? "Hell no. I'm scared shitless of bikes" Great, you got the part.

What does Fonzie feed his horse? Haaaaaaay

Micky Dolenz as the Fonz, I can’t picture it

Surprised Dolenz didn't get more roles. He was a talent that would only get much better with increased acting variety. If nothing else, he needed a better agent.

I literally did not know that. Thanks for this information. Hard to believe happy days made its debut 50 years ago.

That wouldve been interesting. I loved John Travolta as Vinnie Barbarino!

After seeing Henry Winkler I can't imagine anyone playing the Fonz!

Very interesting video. And here's a little remembered fact. The Love American Style episode was originally titled "Love and the New TV." Only in reruns, with the success of Happy Days, was it renamed "Love and the Happy Days."

The worlds just not the same if John Travolta plays Fonzie and Fonzie plays Danny in Grease. Great video!!

In 1974, a movie came out called The Lords of Flatbush, about a group of biker friends in a neighborhood of NYC. Both Winkler and some guy named Stallone were in it. Shortly after that, Happy Days began.

Having Mickey Dolenz as the Fonz, would’ve been like having Gary Busey play brother Chuck.

The original episode of Love, American Style was titled Love and the Television Set. It was renamed Love and the Happy Days once it went into syndication. I just found this out yesterday!

Henry Winkler doesn't play the Fonz. The Fonz plays Henry Winkler.

Winkler was hilarious in The Dinner Party on Broadway. He couldn't move or speak without making me laugh. At dinner, before the show, a couple sat at the table next to me. They were in a rush and I overheard them oohing when me steak arrived. I was ready with a little slice for them, and they were surprised and chatted with me. They were Gary Sinese's parents Bob and Millie from Idaho, just landed from a flight to see him in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest across the street.

i remember Love American Style 💕 loved the theme music 👍

One of my favorite shows my idols were the fonz and Elvis

Mickey Dolenz too tall for Happy Days, there is another thing that I did not know.

Travolta didn't have the force to back up the Fonzi's cool that Winkler did.

Blonde hair? With the character’s name being Arthur Fonzerelli (who I presume was supposed to be an Italian-American greaser? Why would they want that character to have blonde hair?

Travolta's first on screen TV role, a trauma victim on EMERGENCY

I can't imagine the Fonz played by Travolta Henry Winkler added a lot of traits off his character to play Fonzie.

Coincidentally H. Winkler played an unrelated street thug in a movie with S. Stallone. The Lord's Of Flatbush.

Nobody tops Henry Winkler in this role❤

Gary Marshal wanted actors to put their own personal ad libs to their roles. Winkler in front of the mirror and Robin sitting upside down for example.

I use to watch Happy Days mid 80s, before school. It was on about 7:30am 🥶. All my mates wanted to be like Fonzy! 😂😅 -

Travolta became a TV star anyway. When Saturday Night Fever was being filmed the filming locations were inundated with thousands of screaming girls. Even when SNF was a mega hit, Travolta stayed on Welcome Back, Kotter.

They need to bring back Love American Style. I used to walk past Paramount Studios on my way to Jr. High in the 70's and we could see the A from the Arnolds set location from over the wall of the studio. I have a feeling Travolta's Fonzie would be the same as his Vinnie.

Sometimes it pays to be short. 😂

Mickey Dolenz, was too tall for Happy Days? Using that logic, he’s way too tall be standing next to Davy Jones.

He was so good in Grease!

all I got to say about Travolta as the Fonz... is... "Naaaayyyy!"

HENRY was and is still is the fonze,forever

Henry Winkler is a genuinely good person! Met him in person.

I can imagine John Travolta as Fonzie and I can imagine Henry Winkler saying "Up your nose with a rubber hose" but i cannot imagine Winkler as Danny Zuko or as a Tony Manero type character. Winkler might have done a good job in Pulp Fiction though although now that I think about it, Uma Thurman is tall and would have towered over him during the dance scene. I think everything worked out for the best for Winkler and Travolta. They both have iconic careers.

Love American Style put out a lot of shows.

Not buying the "Mickey Dolenz was too tall for the Fonz" argument. Ron Howard, Anson Williams, and Donny Most were all listed at between 5-9 and 5-10. Winker is about 5-6 to 5-7. Seems like having a taller Fonz would have been better than having a shorter Fonz, considering the Fonz was supposed to be a tough guy.

I love the rare comment streams that are as sweet as the ones here.

It was initially called "Love and the Television Set," on Love, American Style, and its original title was: "New Family in Town."

Henry wrinkler was the Best fonz ever he did a great job

Henry was the perfect pick as Fonzie.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. Thank you for this great channel!

I grew up watching Happy Days and thinking how Cool The Fonz was. Watching it now he’s so small and short! I can’t imagine him winning any Rumbles lol.

Actually, Travolta went back to his Kotter role occasionally AFTER 'Saturday Night Fever' and 'Grease'.

In his new autobiography, Henry Winkler explains that he mostly turned down the role of Danny in the movie “Grease” because he didn’t want to be further typecast as a 1950s greaser.

Crazy! Luckily Travolta made it at a music star. His hit "Let Her In" was Gold and the highlight of his career. LOL

Theres only 1 fonz and thats henry!! And noone could say AYYYYYY as gd cool as him

Well liking girls would have been a prerequisite for being the Fonz. 😂 So no John wouldn't work.

I always thought if a movie were made about Joe Namath in the mid-70s or '80s, John Travolta would have been PERFECT. Now, I would go with Aaron Rodgers for the role of Broadway Joe.

it's simply too hard to imagine anybody but henry winkler in the fonz role now but i can definitely see travolta doing it. Dolenz - NO WAY.

👍 👍 “Heyyyyyyy”!

Oh my goodness I love Mickey! Had no idea he was up for the part, but nobody in this world could have played Fonzie as well as Henry.

Michael Lambreck from One Day at a Time auditioned for the part of The Fonz and, he didn't get the role, but he was about 5'8 or 5'9".

Johnny T was FIRE 🔥 in the Band-Aid commersh!

Good video thanks.

Henry,Winkler was the Fonz

when winkler was asked to play in Grease he said he didnt want to be known for only that type of acting he wanted to do other things but knew he stuffed up when Grease made it big with travoltas career too

Regardless of who could of been ….Happy Days was a great show ….like 99 % of the TV shows …they wouldn’t of have worked so well with a different cast ….same as Gillian’s Island …..Hogans Heroes….Miami Vice….The Musters ….etc …..still great info ….so much I didn’t know ….❤

Travolta definitely had the looks to play Fonzie, and in the real world a tough guy greaser that has everyone scared like Fonzie would likely have been tall like Travolta. I also think Travolta could have grown into playing a controlled and smooth cool guy instead of the goofball cool guy he was known as later. Henry Winkler had some real acting chops though, I believe he studied at Yale, and despite being short, he exuded that small street punk cool guy confidence and charm. It was the way Winkler carried himself as Fonzie that sold it. I do think Travolta could have worked, but he would have been the same age as the younger cast, and you needed someone older than the others like Winkler to play "big brother".

"Yo, I got chills, they're multiplyin'. And the Fonz hates multiplication, whoa."

Henry Winkler also was afraid of being type casted after his roles in Happy Days and Lords of Flatbush...

Missing the part was the best career move ever💪🏻

The picture of Travolta and Winkler now shows how little Travolta has aged!!!

People are saying, "I can't see Micky Dolenz as Fonzie because of his character on The Monkees." For all that Mick, Michael Nesmith, and David Jones more or less played themselves on that show (not so much Peter Tork), it WAS an acting role. Garry Marshall obviously saw something in Micky that would have been perfect for the part. If not for the aforementioned height issue, folks would instead be saying, "I can't imagine anyone BUT Micky Dolenz playing The Fonz!"

I could definitely see Travolta as the Fonz.

I just saw a clip of Jeff Conaway (Kenickie) on Happy Days. I did not remember him showing up on there.

John Travolta would have been miserable if he was stuck in that role. He probably doesn't get Saturday Night Fever or Pulp Fiction. Those two roles made his career.

So John Trovota wanted to be Fonzie? Hmm.

The Love American Style segment was actually the failed pilot. ABC didn't want to waste it so they snuck it in Love American Style. That led to Ron Howard being cast in American Grafitti. which ironically led to Happy Days being green lit.

Did you know Henry Wrinkler's "The Fonz" didn't know how to ride a motorcycle? He tried it one time on set and wrecked the bike and the set then he never tried to ride again. All the scenes of him on a motorcycle is either sitting on it as if he just pulled in somewhere or when you did see him riding it... it was actually tied to a cable and pulled by a car to shoot the scene.

bob ross would have been the best fonz

"What? Where?" -Vinnie Barbarino.

Great video . Travolta grew up in wehawkin NJ.

henry winkler stand up guy by all accounts.

It makes sense because of the similarity with Grease where he'd been doing that on stage

I loved Henry Winkler as Fonzie but I always thought he was to short . Especially playing such a tough guy,

Fonzie Barbarino

Thank God!

Ooh I loved Adam 12, and Mickey Dolenz. god I'm old😅. tiger beat magazine covers. When did they die? Thanks for the walk down memory lane. 😊

Travolta was a right cheesey Gimp, no way for the Fonzie character

i think it would be cool if he got to play fonzie,,,,,,😄😺

Great video. Thank you

I like Travolta or Dolenz as Fonzie.

It's just like Bo and Luke Duke no one can be them. I believe certain people are born for the role they play.

Hank winkla in real life s such a nerd!!

Since Mickey Dolenz was 6' tall and was turned down, at 6' 2" Travolta never had a shot at the part

Fonzi wasn't even supposed to be a major character.

Interesting. Both are great actors.

According to Wikipedia, Mickey Dolenz auditioned for the Fonzie character. I can’t find anything about Travolta auditioning.

Now I know another piece of Monkees trivia. Another: Stephen Stills auditioned for the Monkees, was rejected for bad teeth and thinning hair (TV show, you know), and recommended Peter Tork.

Wow, if Mickey was the Fonz, it would have changed my perception of him completely! I did not understand or notice Fonzie much... his attitude and concerns were alien to me, but Mickey was fun, and funny, and I loved the Monkees TV show. We didn't have cable as a kid, but my friend did, so I got to watch some of the episodes at her house.

I always thought Henry Winkler did good as the Fonz back in the day, there were white T-shirts with a cartoon Fonzie with both thumbs up because they were so popular my sister had one

I use to get off the bus go out in the barn and clean up cow shit put new hay down and then on into the house to watch welcome back Cottet with Vinny Boberino and happy days with the fonz Ayyyy 😊 i miss them programs but i don't miss cleaning up cow shit 😂

I'm soooo confuuused!

Love him or hate him,Henry Winkler was happy days,in till the end