My relatively short career as a professional working in episodic television production took a giant leap forward in 1995, when I was hired to assist the Florida-based producers for NBC, Universal Television and Amblin Entertainment’s SeaQuest 2032. The year before, I had worked on a different series for Fox, BBK Productions and Columbia Pictures TV, where the many producers, directors and talents I met became inspirations for me. Nonetheless, I was very surprised to meet – and have lots of opportunities to work with and get to know – director Anson Williams as one of the many all-stars involved with SeaQuest.
Best known for his Golden Globe-nominated role as Potsie Weber on Happy Days – the single greatest TV series of my youth – Anson is also an award-winning television director, as well as being a writer, singer, producer and entrepreneur. By 2014, Anson has directed over 300 hours of television for scores of world-famous TV series, including Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager, to name but a few. Among his career honors, he has won the prized Humanitas Award for his writing, and served as a USO board member. Anson now lives with his wife and five daughters in Los Angeles, and remains very active in film and television.
Last month, I saw a great review for the new book Anson has written, which has earned this praise from Ron Howard himself (another personal hero that I eventually met and got to work with): “I’ve always known Anson to be a great storyteller as well as a true and generous friend. Now he’s written the most important story of his life… a truly inspirational book of life lessons for the rest of us.”
According to materials from publisher Readers Digest, in “Singing to a Bulldog,” Anson shares never-before-revealed stories from his 40 years in Hollywood, including: being directed by Steven Spielberg in his first dramatic role; getting kidnapped by Gerald Ford’s daughter at the White House; being humbled by a young volunteer for the Cerebral Palsy National Organization; mentoring Shailene Woodley on the set of The Secret Life of the American Teenager; and many more.
“Singing to a Bulldog: From ‘Happy Days’ to Hollywood Director, and the Unlikely Mentor Who Got Me There” is now available from Readers Digest Books in hardcover and Kindle ebook editions. I hope you’ll check it out and support a solid guy who has worked very hard to build his legacy as one of the most successful television directors in history.
