Henry Winkler tells how he met Paul McCartney on the street

Happy daysHenry Winkler said he called Paul McCartney dozens of times after the Beatle gave him his number, but the musician never answered.

The 78-year-old actor said he once ran into the music legend in New York and Macca eventually gave him his number and suggested he get in touch. Although Winkler called the number repeatedly throughout the day, he was never able to reach McCartney.

Winkler made the comment on the October 1st episode Fake Doctors, Real Friends with Zach and Donald podcast, in which he also asked McCartney to call him back if he was listening.

The actor who rose to fame as Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli in the sitcom Happy days –He told the presenters that he met most of the Beatles throughout his career. “I met every Beatle except George (Harrison),” he said.

Winkler added: “I was walking with my wife on the street in New York City, and when Paul McCartney came from the other direction, he said, 'The Fonz!'

“We stood there and talked. A woman came out of a shop and gave us each a rose. Another woman came and said, 'Hey, do you mind if I just stand here?' He said, 'We're in the middle of a conversation.'”

“Then he gave me a phone number and said, 'Let's get in touch.' And I, like an idiot, called that number every 10 minutes for 24 hours,” Winkler continued, adding, “Never answered.”

“So if he’s listening, I just want to say, ‘I’m a really good guy. Could you call me back because I'd like to have lunch,'” the star said.

Happy dayswhich starred Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham, began in the 1970s and became a huge success, with Winkler being one of its breakout stars. During his chat on the podcast, the host mentioned that at one point there was even talk of changing the name of the show to Fonzie's happy days because there was so much excitement about his character.

Winkler said he asked her not to do it because “it would be a slap in the face to everyone else.”

Newsweek has emailed representatives for Winkler, McCartney and Howard for comment.

Asked if the focus on Fonzi ever bothered Howard, Winkler replied: “I think he was signed on as the star of the show and we drove home in his VW – the original little Beetle. We drove home from set. We.” We did one of those two-part openings and I said, “Okay, Ron, we need to talk about this.”

“And he said, 'Look, it hurt my feelings. But you didn't do anything. You have no attitude. That's good for the show. You weren't trying to outshine anyone.'”

Winkler added, “But that was the only time we ever talked about it, and he's still like my brother.”