los angeles, ca- early sunday morning henry franklin winkler passed away from pneumonia exacerbated by his diagnosis of guillain-barré syndrome gbs. winkler rose to fame as arthur “fonzie” fonzarelli on the hit tv show happy days in the 70’s and 80’s.  winkler had steadily been working in hollywood up until his death. he was a respected actor and a joy to work worth, according to insiders. there is no known cause of gbs guillain-barré syndrome, but there have been links to digestive track infections days or weeks prior to the onset of gbs. winkler had been to see dr. gregory house the week prior to his passing for abdominal pain and was told to relax and lay off “spicy foods”.  winkler with the cast of happy days.  winkler had been battling gbs in secret for 2yrs. it is said that he wanted to keep his diagnosis secret so that he would not be treated differently. he never wanted any special attention and was always ready to help others at the drop of the hat.  a planned happy days reunion show will now have to go on without arthur fonzarelli. it is said that there is to be a special “arthur fonzarelli day”, on the show in celebration of the character and his impact on pop culture. henry winkler will be missed.
henry “the fonz” winkler, dies at age 74 after secret battle with guillain-barré syndrome gbs.