Henry Winkler played fun-loving Fonzie in HAPPY DAYS for 11 seasons, but in-between he reluctantly took a miserly role in AN AMERICAN CHRISTMAS CAROL.
In 1979, the 32-year-old wore a white wig for his role as SCROOGE in the movie.
“What attracted me to the Christmas Carol, I was doing Happy Days and I was approached by Len Hill, who was the executive at that time,” Winkler said. “Len Hill asked me to be Scrooge, and at the same time, Gary Smith from Smith-Hemion, one of the most successful variety producer/directors in television, was part of the production team for this American Christmas Carol.”
“I ran away from the project as fast as I possibly could,” he continued. “It scared me to death, I thought, ‘Who do you think you are trying to be Scrooge when I grew up watching Alistair Sim?’ It scared me. I can’t even begin to tell you how I thought that there was no way I would be able to bring this character to life.”
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But Smith went to work trying to convince Winkler, and he eventually bit the bullet.
“And then I thought to myself, ‘Okay, so you can make up excuses and not take the challenge and be an idiot, or you can go down in flames, or you can soar like an eagle. This is what you’re trained to do why don’t you just shut up and do it?’’’ Winkler recalled. “And I’m telling you with every fiber in my being, it was the most difficult ‘yes’… So this was the most difficult ‘yes,’ maybe in my entire career.”
It’s fortunate for Winkler that the movie has a redemptive ending–Scrooge or “Slade” as he’s known in the movie, isn’t 100% bad guy.
Remind Magazine notes, “Winkler was just approaching his mid 30s when he made this, but for Slade’s “present” scenes he comes across as an aged miser impressively, thanks in part to future Oscar-winning makeup effects artist Rick Baker, who is billed as the film’s ‘special makeup consultant.’”
Rachel’s Reviews says the strengths of the movie lie largely with Winkler and others’ acting, but the story and production value aren’t high.
“Winkler tries his darndest. It’s a shame he wasn’t given better writing… and direction. The sets and costumes are fine and there are some nice messages throughout. I like what they were trying to do but it just doesn’t work,” she says.
AN AMERICAN CHRISTMAS CAROL is currently available to watch on Prime Video.
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