Sic transit gloria fonzi

A coupla years ago I was at the SCBWI conference in Los Angeles when Henry Winkler spoke about the Hank Zipzer books that he had started co-writing with SCBWI President Lin Oliver. The first two titles had just come out.

I was working the book sales table along with some of the teenagers Lin corrals for that duty. Two girls about thirteen years old pointed to Winkler and whispered to me, "Um. Who is he?"

"Henry Winkler?" I said. I had to pause. "When I was a couple of years younger than you, for American boys this man embodied everything that was cool in the ENTIRE UNIVERSE. Do you understand?"

"Um. No."

Another pause. "He's an actor. He was in The Waterboy and Holes."

"Oh, yeah! We recognize him now."