Anson Williams
Encyclopedia
Anson Williams is an actor
and director
, best known for his role as gullible but well intentioned singer Warren "Potsie" Weber on the television series Happy Days
.
.
His father Haskell legally changed the original spelling of their family name from "Heimlich", unlike Williams' second cousin, Dr. Henry Heimlich
, namesake of the Heimlich maneuver for treating choking victims.
Williams attended high school, where he was captain of the track team and acted in multiple school productions.
In 1972, Williams landed the role of "Potsie" in a segment of the comedy-anthology series Love, American Style
titled "Love and the Happy Days", which also introduced Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard
), Richie's mother Marion (Marion Ross
), and other characters that would be spun off
into the television series Happy Days
. (Only Williams, Howard and Ross reprised their roles for the spin-off).
The new series' first season, during which Williams received second billing after Howard, was centered mainly on Richie and Potsie. Eventually, as break-out character Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli
(Henry Winkler
) and Richie's mother, father and sister became more popular, Potsie was joined with Ralph (Donny Most, who was merely a side character in season one), and Potsie and Ralph became inseparable.
Unlike Howard and Most, Williams was one of the few to remain through the entire run of the series, although his appearances became less frequent in later seasons. In some episodes, Richie, Potsie and Ralph formed a band combo that performed at Arnold's Drive-In and other places. As Potsie, Williams actually sang lead vocals for the group. Williams' first wife, Lorrie Mahaffey, portrayed Potsie's girlfriend, Jennifer, in later seasons.
After Happy Days, Williams began a much more prolific career as a television director, starting with short programs for adolescent-age children, including after-school specials "No Greater Gift" (1985) and "The Drug Knot
" (1986), and TV-movie Lone Star Kid (1986). He has gone on to direct many episodes for a variety of television shows, including Beverly Hills, 90210
, Melrose Place, seaQuest DSV
, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
, Star Trek: Voyager
, Xena: Warrior Princess
, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
, The Secret Life of the American Teenager
, Sabrina the Teenage Witch
and Charmed
.
Despite his success as a director and producer, Williams has occasionally returned to his work on Happy Days in retrospective ways. He played himself in a 1996 Happy Days-themed Boy Meets World
episode (which also featured former cast-mates Tom Bosley
and Pat Morita
).
While directing a 2003 episode of Sabrina the Teenage Witch titled "Sabrina in Wonderland", he appeared as Potsie in a fantasy sequence.
He also joined his fellow Happy Days cast members for reunion specials in 1992 and 2005.
Williams is also a businessman. He founded Starmaker Products, a cosmetics company, and was a featured speaker at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
's National Trademark Expo in April 2008, at which he talked about the importance of registered trademarks for small business
es (and, of course, signed autographs for Happy Days fans).
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
, best known for his role as gullible but well intentioned singer Warren "Potsie" Weber on the television series Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
.
Biography
Williams was born Anson William Heimlick in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
His father Haskell legally changed the original spelling of their family name from "Heimlich", unlike Williams' second cousin, Dr. Henry Heimlich
Henry Heimlich
Dr. Henry Jay Heimlich , an American physician, has received credit as the inventor of abdominal thrusts, more commonly known as the Heimlich maneuver, though debate continues over his role in the development of the procedure...
, namesake of the Heimlich maneuver for treating choking victims.
Williams attended high school, where he was captain of the track team and acted in multiple school productions.
In 1972, Williams landed the role of "Potsie" in a segment of the comedy-anthology series Love, American Style
Love, American Style
Love, American Style is an hour-long TV anthology produced by Paramount Television and originally aired between September 1969 and January 1974...
titled "Love and the Happy Days", which also introduced Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard
Ron Howard
Ronald William "Ron" Howard is an American actor, director, and producer. He came to prominence as a child actor, playing Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, and later the teenaged Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days for six years...
), Richie's mother Marion (Marion Ross
Marion Ross
Marion Ross is an American actress best known for her role as Marion Cunningham on the television series Happy Days from 1974 to 1984.-Early life:...
), and other characters that would be spun off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
into the television series Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
. (Only Williams, Howard and Ross reprised their roles for the spin-off).
The new series' first season, during which Williams received second billing after Howard, was centered mainly on Richie and Potsie. Eventually, as break-out character Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli
Fonzie
Arthur Herbert Fonzarelli is a fictional character played by Henry Winkler in the American sitcom Happy Days . He was originally a secondary character, but eventually became the lead...
(Henry Winkler
Henry Winkler
Henry Franklin Winkler, OBE is an American actor, director, producer, and author.Winkler is best known for his role as Fonzie on the 1970s American sitcom Happy Days...
) and Richie's mother, father and sister became more popular, Potsie was joined with Ralph (Donny Most, who was merely a side character in season one), and Potsie and Ralph became inseparable.
Unlike Howard and Most, Williams was one of the few to remain through the entire run of the series, although his appearances became less frequent in later seasons. In some episodes, Richie, Potsie and Ralph formed a band combo that performed at Arnold's Drive-In and other places. As Potsie, Williams actually sang lead vocals for the group. Williams' first wife, Lorrie Mahaffey, portrayed Potsie's girlfriend, Jennifer, in later seasons.
After Happy Days, Williams began a much more prolific career as a television director, starting with short programs for adolescent-age children, including after-school specials "No Greater Gift" (1985) and "The Drug Knot
The Drug Knot
The Drug Knot is a 1986 CBS Schoolbreak Special, a cautionary tale about teenage drug dependency.-Plot summary:High-school student Doug Dawson has it all: a loving family , a terrific girlfriend, a rock band he plays in after school...and a drug habit...
" (1986), and TV-movie Lone Star Kid (1986). He has gone on to direct many episodes for a variety of television shows, including Beverly Hills, 90210
Beverly Hills, 90210
Beverly Hills, 90210 is an American drama series that originally aired from October 4, 1990 to May 17, 2000 on Fox and was produced by Spelling Television in the United States, and subsequently on various networks around the world. It is the first series in the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise...
, Melrose Place, seaQuest DSV
SeaQuest DSV
seaQuest DSV is an American science fiction television series created by Rockne S. O'Bannon. It originally aired on NBC between 1993 and 1996. In its final season, it was renamed seaQuest 2032. Set in "the near future", seaQuest mixes high drama with realistic scientific fiction...
, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
, Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
, Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess is an American–New Zealand supernatural fantasy adventure series that aired in syndication from September 4, 1995 until June 18, 2001....
, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys is a television series, filmed in New Zealand and the United States. It was produced from 1995, and was very loosely based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles...
, The Secret Life of the American Teenager
The Secret Life of the American Teenager
The Secret Life of the American Teenager is an American teen drama television series created by Brenda Hampton. It first aired on ABC Family on July 1, 2008. The show was renewed for a second season consisting of 24 episodes on February 9, 2009, which began airing on June 22, 2009...
, Sabrina the Teenage Witch
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (TV series)
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch is an American sitcom based on the Archie comic book series of the same name.The show stars Melissa Joan Hart as Sabrina Spellman, a teenager with magical powers, who lives with her aunts Hilda and Zelda , and their magical talking cat Salem...
and Charmed
Charmed
Charmed is an American television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006, on the now defunct The WB Television Network. The series was created in 1998 by writer Constance M...
.
Despite his success as a director and producer, Williams has occasionally returned to his work on Happy Days in retrospective ways. He played himself in a 1996 Happy Days-themed Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World is an American comedy-drama series that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, played by Ben Savage, a kid from suburban Philadelphia who grows up from a young boy to a married man. The show aired for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000 on ABC, part of the...
episode (which also featured former cast-mates Tom Bosley
Tom Bosley
Thomas Edward "Tom" Bosley was an American actor. Bosley is best known for portraying Howard Cunningham on the long-running ABC sitcom Happy Days. He also was featured in recurring roles on Murder, She Wrote, and Father Dowling Mysteries...
and Pat Morita
Pat Morita
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita was an American actor of Japanese descent who was well-known for playing the roles of Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi on Happy Days and Mr. Miyagi in the The Karate Kid movie series, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1984.-Early life:Pat...
).
While directing a 2003 episode of Sabrina the Teenage Witch titled "Sabrina in Wonderland", he appeared as Potsie in a fantasy sequence.
He also joined his fellow Happy Days cast members for reunion specials in 1992 and 2005.
Williams is also a businessman. He founded Starmaker Products, a cosmetics company, and was a featured speaker at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia,...
's National Trademark Expo in April 2008, at which he talked about the importance of registered trademarks for small business
Small business
A small business is a business that is privately owned and operated, with a small number of employees and relatively low volume of sales. Small businesses are normally privately owned corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships...
es (and, of course, signed autographs for Happy Days fans).