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Henry Winkler says he and Adam Sandler are “like family” after the the comedian gave him a shout-out in “The Chanukah Song” and Winkler then returned the favor by appearing in Sandler’s 1998 film,The Waterboy.
Sandler, now 59, first performed “The Chanukah Song” on Saturday Night Live in 1994. The song lists fellow celebrities who are Jewish — including Winkler — with Sandler singing, “Guess who eats together at the Carnegie Deli, Bowzer from Sha Na Na and Arthur Fonzarelli.”
Winkler, 80, played Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli on the sitcom Happy Days from 1974 to 1984.
Winkler presented Sandler with an award for career achievement in film at the AARP Movies For Grownups Awards at The Beverly Wilshire Hotel on January 10, 2026.
Speaking to PEOPLE in an exclusive interview ahead of the event, Winkler said of the two, “We are like family since I called him to thank him for making me a lyric in his Chanukah song. And then he invited me to be in The Waterboy.”
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“And we have a connection now,” Winkler added. “He is a man of the world. He is connected to the world. He’s universal. Not just in popularity, his expanse. And I am so happy to be in that organ.”
Winkler added that those around Sandler “learn from him.”
“I will say in my speech that he teaches us how to have generosity of soul. That is his essence,” he said.
And though the two are close, Winkler was quick to admit he never tries to get the best of his friend with a zinger or joke, saying, “Never have I, nor have I even tried.”
“You never know what’s going to come out. You never know what the next moment is going to be with Adam, but it is always filled with warmth,” he said.
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Winkler previously revealed that he got nothing more than “a cookie” for his work in The Waterboy, saying in the Oct. 9 episode of SiriusXM’s Let’s Talk Off-Camera with Kelly Ripa, “I did Waterboy. He called me up in the middle of the night. He said, ‘Henry, I need a favor. My actor didn’t show up. I need you to drive right now to the park.’ It’s in L.A., it is now 11:30 at night. I go and I say, ‘Okay.’ I shave. I drive. I go. I sit. I get makeup until 3:30 in the morning. Do you know what I got? A cookie.”
Winkler has made three total movies with Sandler, including 2006’s Click and 2008’s You Don’t Mess with the Zohan. Winkler also cameos in Sandler’s 2000 movie Little Nicky and his 2017 movie Sandy Wexler.
