Henry Winkler has a soft spot for one 'Happy Days' souvenir especially

His buddy Bob Odenkirk became an action-movie guy later in life. So why not Henry Winkler?

“Listen, I'm looking forward to being in the superhero sphere. Maybe I was a superhero and now I jump but I can't fly,” Winkler says, wryly referencing his infamous jumping-the-shark “Happy Days” moment.

Arthur Fonzarelli naturally comes up in conversation when chatting with Winkler, but even the Fonz might give some side-eye and a "Whoa" to the 80-year-old Emmy winner’s latest character.

In director Ben Wheatley’s action thriller “Normal” (in theaters now), Ulysses (Odenkirk) is a temporary sheriff in the small Minnesota town of Normal who discovers the place’s darkest secret: It’s the home of riches owned by Japanese Yakuza gangsters. Winkler plays the town’s mayor, an excessively charming, morally questionable fellow who scrambles the town’s cops and residents to keep Ulysses from fouling everything up. 

"I always think, you scratch the front door of any door in America, and there is chaos just behind it," says Winkler, who was called up by Odenkirk himself to costar in "Normal," which filmed in chilly Winnipeg. "There is a woman who sells knitting supplies. The soda shop, the hardware store, the post office. And then little do you know lurking just underneath is this monster waiting to push through the surface.”

This weekend also marks the second-season premiere of “Hazardous History With Henry Winkler” (9 p.m. ET/PT Sundays on History Channel), which digs into aspects of Americana past – from killer crazes to twisted toys – that would never fly these days.

Winkler chats with USA TODAY about his “Normal” baddie and what pushes his nostalgia buttons.

This conversation has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

Q: You’ve played villains from time to time over the years: Dr. Maniac in “Duck Dodgers,” Sharkface on “SpongeBob SquarePants.” For someone known for his cool guys and comedic figures, what do you like about walking on the bad side as the mayor of "Normal"?

Henry Winkler: Well, the honest truth is, I never think of that. People say, “What is your favorite project?” And I always say, “The one I'm gonna do next.” I don't have a favorite. I do have a favorite child, but I can't tell you. But I love my job. It's like a jigsaw puzzle, and pretty much all the same color, the pieces you have to fit together, so there's a gradation.

I hear Winnipeg can be very cold.

My body actually said to me on the night of the blizzard: “You know what? I'm going to go home now. If you want to stay, be my guest." My mouth stopped working. The wind is coming to you from every corner of the compass. And it goes right through your bones.

How many layers were you rocking on a daily basis?

I would say five. I don't have a lot of requests as an actor. One of them is I do not like to be cold. So I had long underwear, and then I had long underwear, and then I had gloves, and then I had gloves, and then I had a jacket, which we had to replace because it did not do the job.

“Hazardous History” is back. Is there anything you've learned from the show that just completely fascinated you?

What got me was the facts. What people do in order to make money or think they're creating entertainment, and it turns out to be hazardous. Babies had a hard time sleeping. They get colicky and then you're kept up all night. So this lovely lady makes a potion in this beautifully shaped bottle. You give a teaspoon to the baby at night, and they sleep through the night. It's a miracle! And then, of course, they are addicted to morphine.

You are a nostalgia fix for so many people who loved and grew up with the Fonz. But are you yourself a nostalgic guy?

I am. There was a game, “Winky Dink and You,” when I was growing up. There was like a cellophane sheet that you put on the television, and then crayons came with it. While they were doing the show, they would put dots on the screen, and you connected the dots on this washable cellophane screen. Years of collecting crap and I found this box, and it took me back to a little television dinner table, (having) a tuna fish salad sandwich on Wonder Bread connecting the dots.

Do you keep a lot of your own memorabilia?

I do. I have, I think, almost every Fonz action figure and the Funkos now of the different (“Happy Days”) characters. I have the lunch box that is now in the Smithsonian with a leather jacket. The Fonz, he changed my life. He was fun to play.

What's your favorite thing in the collection?

There is a piece of plywood that was a shelf just outside the swinging doors of Arnold's. And you would put your coffee cup or your water bottle on it before you walked in. I would write (notes on it), for years, like “Today, Ron Howard had a red-headed girl named Bryce.” And then I would write down, “Today, we had a red-headed girl baby named Zoe.” (Born) months from each other, March to September, and they are friends today. “Today, it starts the eighth year of 'Happy Days.' ” “Oh, I finally got Scott Baio with a spitball.” And so I have that piece of plywood. 

You’ve said “Barry” was a similar redefining career moment. Is the mayor part of this new phase of characters you want to play? 

I don't have a vision of a character I want to play, except that one day I would like to play a character who has to communicate with everything except his voice. But I'm loving (my current roles). I did a scene in a movie about rappers with Owen Wilson. I played his boss. I just did a scene last week with Mary Steenbergen. That was like walking on clouds. I've never really worked with her before. We’ve known each other for 40 or 50 years. It was like magic. So, I really don't think about, “What is it I want to do?” I think about, “Ahhh, I get to do this.”

You say your next project is your favorite one. What is next for you?

I always wanted to be on “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” I was never tapped. And I have to say, I was sad. Larry David has this new show, “The 250th” (a sketch comedy series about the history of America). I got to play John Hancock in the signing of the Declaration of Independence. And it was one of the great moments of my life.

I was 8 years old, lying in my bed in Manhattan, dreaming about being an actor, not even sure why. I'm sitting here with you. I am 80. I'm still at the table. And I'm telling you, I define gratitude.