Henry Winkler, the much loved American actor and star of the hit show 'Happy Days', has paid tribute to his once co-star Tom Bosley, who died yesterday aged 83. Winker played Arthur 'The Fonz' Fonzarelli on the show, while Bosley played the father of Ron Howard's character, 'Richie Cunningham'.
Speaking to People Magazine, Winkler said his last conversation with the veteran actor was over the phone, saying, "We talked about his strength and that it was coming back", Bosley was suffering from lung cancer at the time. Winkler went on to say, "He had just gone through several bouts of chemo, and you always heard him in a positive, forward attitude. He was always looking forward, you know. At 83, I hope that's me".
Once 'Happy Days' came to an end in 1984, Bosley went on to star in numerous successful television series', including 'Murder, She Wrote', 'That 70's Show', and 'The Father Dowling Mysteries'. His good friend Winkler added that Bosley kept his fighting spirit despite his illness, saying, "He had that wonderful, sprite-like energy of his. It was apparent on the phone when I spoke to him three weeks ago, it was apparent when we saw each other a year ago, it was apparent when we saw each other before that".