The beloved “Happy Days” star Henry Winkler recently recounted a remarkable tale of survival and ingenuity from his family’s history. His father’s quick thinking during their escape from Nazi Germany involved concealing precious family heirlooms in an unexpected way that fooled border guards and enabled their journey to freedom.
Growing up, Winkler frequently heard accounts from his parents about life during Hitler’s regime in Germany. These dinner table conversations included the harrowing details of how his mother and father managed to flee the country just in time, securing six-week work visas to the United States before making their daring departure.
A chocolate coating scheme to fool Nazi soldiers
Before leaving Germany, Winkler’s father devised a brilliant strategy to smuggle out family valuables. Knowing that Nazi officials strictly prohibited travelers from taking precious items across borders, he needed a creative solution to preserve his family’s wealth for their new life abroad.
“My father asked his mother for jewelry,” Henry said. “And he bought a box of chocolate, melted the chocolate down, and covered all of the pieces of jewelry in chocolate. Put it in the box, put the box under his arm.”
The disguise worked perfectly. The Nazi soldiers conducting inspections never suspected that the ordinary chocolate box contained valuable jewels and family treasures beneath the sweet exterior.
Building a new life from pawned treasures
Upon reaching New York City, Winkler’s parents faced the challenge of establishing themselves in an unfamiliar country with limited resources. The smuggled jewelry became their lifeline, providing the capital needed to begin again.
His father pawned the jewelry pieces to generate funds for their initial expenses and eventually launched a successful lumber business. Once financially stable, he recovered the family heirlooms that had been temporarily sold.
“…And I have the pocket watch from my great-grandfather that was smuggled out of Germany encased in chocolate. Still works. Just an amazing thing to have to pass down from generation to generation,” he said, showing the golden timepiece he carries in his pocket.
The devastating cost of the Holocaust
Winkler also spoke about the profound loss his family endured during the Holocaust. Because his parents escaped when they did, he never knew most of his extended family members.
The actor revealed that he really did not have any real aunts, uncles, and even grandparents, as they all died in Germany back then. And he also shared stories about one potted plant that had come to mean so much to him and his family over the years.
