Speaker 1 — Announcer
Let’s remember some of the greatest TV and movie stars of yesteryear with the woman who knew them. Mary Jane Popp hosted radio and TV shows for nearly five decades, meeting these stars and getting them to share their real-life stories. You’ll meet them up close and personal as Mary Jane searches her extensive archives for the best and brightest real star talk on Pop Star Talk. And here she is, Mary Jane Popp!

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Mary Jane at your service — Mary Jane Popp, that is — looking back in time. Welcome once again to Pop Star Talk, as we delve into my archives for another star interview that takes you back in time to some very special times in our lives, times that still influence us after all those years.

So let’s go back to a different time, perhaps a bit more gentle, when we all gathered to watch Happy Days on TV. It was a 1950s-style show, but you know what? It still rings true for friendship and family, and it just made us feel good. I know my producer at Pop Star Talk, Kenneth Zagor, and I still laugh at the antics that remind us of growing up and what we experienced.

If you remember, folks, Potsie — better known as Anson Williams — was a good friend to Richie Cunningham, played by Ron Howard. Well, I had the opportunity to talk with Anson, and have I got some surprises that you’ll want to hear.

Ken, this is going back. Wasn’t it fun watching the show and seeing a lot of the problems the kids ran into during those days? Even though it was set in the 1950s, it still holds true today, doesn’t it?

Speaker 3 — Ken
Yeah. Growing up, you had friends, and Potsie was a character who felt like one of your friends. He was one of the group.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Potsie and Ralph — and that was Don Most. Then of course, Ron Howard as Richie, and you can’t forget Henry Winkler as Fonzie. It’s amazing. But even though we’re talking to Anson Williams, did you know that Anson Williams wasn’t his whole name?

Speaker 3 — Ken
No, I didn’t know that.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I’m not going to tell you the last name yet, because we get into it in the interview, and I thought it was fascinating. I had no idea that it was Anson Williams question mark. So let’s get in the mood for a time with Happy Days and Anson Williams — who?

We all remember those Happy Days. When you hear that theme song, you get a smile on your face and your step is just a little bit higher. We loved this guy on Happy Days, but he has done so much more than just that show. He is also a TV director and has worked on programs like Melrose Place and The Secret Life of the American Teenager.

But did you know that Anson Williams was born Anson William Heimlich? His second cousin was Dr. Henry Heimlich, the man behind the Heimlich maneuver for treating choking victims. Anson has a message that he wants you to know about: drowsy driving.

Have you ever thought about drowsy driving? I’m holding my hand up because I’ve been there and done that many times. I have a pretty long drive every day. Not serious, right? Wrong. Lives are lost, and too many injuries happen. He says it happens more often than drunk driving. Anson, what a pleasure to have you with us on the show.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Thank you. It’s great to be on the show.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Is Dr. Heimlich your uncle or your cousin?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
He’s my second cousin, but I’ve called him uncle my whole life.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Bless your heart. Many moons ago, I actually interviewed him and his wife.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Oh, you interviewed Jane too?

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Yes, absolutely. They were wonderful. Talk about caring people, and that’s the reason I love that you’re with me today, because you are caring about people.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
I was influenced a lot by Dr. Heimlich and Jane. Dr. Heimlich’s whole philosophy in life was that we are all going to die, but we must leave something positive behind that doesn’t.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
That’s wonderful. And look what he left behind. He’s still living through saving lives every day because of the Heimlich maneuver.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Yes, and he inspired me and was very involved in stopping drowsy driving. He even said to me, “Anson, this will save more lives than the Heimlich maneuver.”

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
No kidding.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Drowsy driving is not funny. It is catastrophic. In 2012, they did a study, and it is worse now. There were 168 million drowsy drivers. One out of five accidents was caused by it. One out of five drivers admitted to falling asleep. There were billions of dollars in damages and so many families torn apart. I don’t want to see one more picture of three beautiful children dead and a family with no kids. There is no reason for it.

Dr. Heimlich inspired me to find a very simple solution that could stop drowsy driving and save many lives and many families from being torn apart.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
What is it?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
It started years ago. I was directing a show called Drexell’s Class with Dabney Coleman, and I was driving back from location in the California desert, around the Palmdale area. The next thing I knew, I was bouncing around in the desert. I almost killed myself. I fell asleep at the wheel.

I told Dr. Heimlich what happened, and he said, “Listen, just cut up lemons, leave the lemons in your car, and if you ever feel that again, bite into one.” He explained that the lingual nerve on top of the tongue is sensitive to strong tastes — sour citrus and hot pepper. When it touches the top of the tongue, your body has an automatic reflex reaction of adrenaline. You wake up. Nothing is being put into your system; it’s your own body helping your body.

I did that for years. I kept cut-up lemons with me and never had the problem again. Later, I went into the product business and became familiar with manufacturing products and getting them to market. A few years ago, we were researching and discovered how catastrophic drowsy driving is. I called Dr. Heimlich and said, “Instead of biting into a lemon, what if we create the right combination of citric acid, lemon, and water in a little spray or drops, and spray it on top of the tongue?” He said that would work better than biting into lemons because it would be direct contact and create an instant reflex reaction.

So we spent two years developing Alert Drops. It’s like lemon in a drop spray. When you start feeling drowsy, one little hit on your tongue, and you are up and alert. It can save lives.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Where is it available?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
At alertdrops.com. The site has the science behind it, why it works, doctor approvals, the history of Dr. Heimlich, and information about the product.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
That is wonderful. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been there. I drive about 40 miles, about 40 minutes, because I live in Sacramento, and I can’t tell you how many times your head bobs and it scares you to death. It’s not only you; you could take somebody else out with you.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
That’s the thing that tears me apart. You see families destroyed because a drowsy driver hit them. With all the craziness going on in the world, I asked myself, where can I do something? Where can I pay Dr. Heimlich forward? Where can I have a purpose? This is it. We can stop drowsy driving. We can save lives. We can stop unnecessary tragedies so easily.

The last conversation I had with Dr. Heimlich was a couple of weeks before he passed. He said, “Anson, please make sure you get these out to everybody. It will save more lives than the Heimlich maneuver.”

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
People often think of complicated solutions. They want stimulants, air conditioning, or the radio.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
None of that stuff works. Coffee takes about 20 minutes to take effect, and by then you may already be in danger. Alert Drops are not for saying, “Now I can drive ten hours.” No. They are for when you are dangerous, you take the drops, wake up, and get off the road.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Pull over, nap a little, or stop somewhere.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Exactly. And we have already received testimonials from people whose lives were saved in the test group. It’s old science, and thank goodness for Dr. Heimlich, who understood the sensory connection between the tongue and the brain.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
He had such a sense of caring for people.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
He was selfless. Jane was also a pioneer in alternative health. She was a big influence on Henry, opening him up to alternative ways of solving problems. You don’t always need a pill. He looked further and found natural ways to problem-solve.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Hang in there with us, because we have more to come.

[Ad Break Omitted]

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
It was absolutely amazing talking to him about Alert Drops, but I tried to find those Alert Drops and I don’t think they exist anymore, Ken. I was looking all over the place because this drives my wife crazy when I’m driving and dozing off.

Speaker 3 — Ken
I’m going to carry a bag of lemons with me.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I was just going to say that I’m going to cut up lemons and keep them in the car. There was a time when we would leave Sacramento at midnight to make a seven o’clock call time in Hollywood. We would take turns driving and eating sunflower seeds. I don’t know where that came from, but we thought if you ate sunflower seeds, you’d stay awake. We’d get there and there would be a pile of sunflower seeds on the floor.

This is really amazing. I look at him as Potsie, and then I look at him with admiration because he directed a lot of television.

Speaker 3 — Ken
Oh, yeah.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
He hasn’t done movies as much, but he has done a lot of television. Actor, director, and so many things: Love, American Style, Laverne & Shirley, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island. He worked on so many shows. I wish they still had those drops on the market, but I don’t think they do.

Speaker 3 — Ken
What did you think about his last name being Heimlich? Isn’t that amazing?

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
That’s amazing. I never saw that anyplace until I had the interview with him. We did the interview, I think, in 2017. It was interesting because the story behind how he got to be Potsie is fascinating. Don Most, who played Ralph on Happy Days, had auditioned for Potsie and did not get the part. When Anson Williams showed up, they said he was perfect for it. But they liked Don Most so much that they created Ralph for him.

Whenever you see Anson and Don Most together, they are still really good buddies. Don Most was even best man at Anson’s wedding. Those people stayed good friends. Ron Howard and Henry Winkler too. It was like a real family show that stayed a family.

Speaker 3 — Ken
I first knew about him as a director because he directed Star Trek episodes. Potsie was one of them.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
People don’t know that a lot of these actors go on to do other things, but still in the same business.

Speaker 3 — Ken
You can’t get it out of your blood.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
That’s true. I’ve asked actors and actresses, “If you could have done something else, what would you have done?” And sometimes they can’t answer. I thought about that myself. If I didn’t want to do this, what else would I have done? I have a bachelor’s and a master’s degree and even hours toward a PhD, but I don’t think I would have been happy doing anything else. I started out singing and acting before I started doing talk shows. I thought I would be the one being interviewed, and then somehow I became the one doing the interviews. It was meant to be.

Let’s check in with Anson about challenges and tests in his life, not only drowsy driving, but colon cancer too.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
I did have colon cancer, and I’m very lucky. I’m doing fantastic. They were able to get it. The doctors said that if you’re going to get it, I got the one to get. But it was a wake-up call. Mortality was staring me in the face. I was never scared. I almost felt like I needed this. The doctor thought I was crazy, but I said I needed a kick in the butt. I don’t think I was focused enough. I felt I wasn’t on all cylinders in terms of what I should be doing.

The clarity afterward was phenomenal. My purpose was phenomenal. It was almost like our creator gave me a gift of knowledge of what to do with my years left and what is important. Every cliché is true.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I’ve talked to a lot of people who have had major cancer, heart disease, or other serious conditions, and many of them say it gave them a new lease on life because they appreciate every single day.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
You start looking back and ask, “Why did I make that important?” You realize how much of it was stupid. We narrow everything down into sound bites. I started in a one-bathroom little house. We had no money, just like everybody else back then. I walked out the door at 18 and said I was going into entertainment. What are the odds of getting a job, of getting on a show like Happy Days? You have a better chance at the lottery, and yet it happened.

Then I went into the product business and learned how to manufacture and create products. I believe it all led up to what we are talking about today. The whole reason was to save lives. I believe someone will listen to this program and someone’s life will be saved because of it.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I’m holding my hand up. I’m going to get some for sure.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
It’s how destiny works. All these pieces came together and made today happen. After I got out of the hospital, I was on all cylinders.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Hang in there with us, because we have more to come.

[Ad Break Omitted]

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
They call it synergy. All the bits and pieces come together, and that’s what happened to you. Now look what you’re doing for everybody else. You entertained us, and that’s wonderful, but this is so much more.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
It’s not me taking credit. It’s my purpose. So many people were involved besides me. It’s collaborative. It’s synergy, destiny. Being Anson Williams means people will listen, and that’s part of it. I’m thankful to have the platform, and an uncle like Dr. Heimlich.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
You also did Battle of the Network Stars.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
That was a challenge. My goal after getting operated on was to get in shape, not quit, and do the show. It forced me to get strong enough to compete. I did the relay race, kayaking, basketball, and tug-of-war. I had never been in a kayak in my life, and my first time was on national television. I was competing against Ian Ziering, who I knew because I directed him on 90210. He works out and kayaks, and I had never done it before, so it was funny.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
You’re gutsy. I admire that you tried.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
It felt great. I want to be an inspiration to anyone out there who has cancer or other serious problems. You can beat it, but you’ve got to do your due diligence. Don’t embrace cancer. Say, “Thanks for visiting. Goodbye now.”

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
That’s positive thinking.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Too many people let the word overwhelm them. Failure is the same. I hate that word. If you learn from something and move on, that’s not failure. It’s a lesson. Richard Branson said he got to the top of the mountain because he fell off three times. I don’t call it failure. I call it challenges.

Nothing is easy. If it’s easy, it isn’t fun. Life has to have challenges. They build character, endurance, and a worthwhile life.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I have atrial fibrillation. The first time they told me, I didn’t know what it was. They explained that my heart wasn’t beating the right way, and I wondered what my limitations were. But there weren’t any limitations as long as I didn’t believe there were any.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
We become what we think. We’re not accidents. Everyone has a place if we don’t disconnect from it. We’re powerful. With knowledge and clarity, you can beat most anything and do most anything. We have to live a full-bodied life. Get off the merry-go-round, find who you are, connect with who you are, and move forward.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
People get obstacles, or somebody tells them they can’t do it, and they start believing that. Believe in yourself.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
A lot of times, with our upbringing, we are brainwashed to think others know better. They don’t always know better. Don’t compare yourself to somebody else. You are one of a kind.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
There’s only one Anson Williams. You’re your own person. Do you have family?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
I have five daughters. One of my daughters, Hannah Williams, made her own career at BuzzFeed. Then I have four daughters at home, from 19 to 10.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Talk about being busy.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Talk about staying humble. To them, I’m Dad. They could care less about the rest.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Hang in there with us, because we have more to come.

[Ad Break Omitted]

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Whatever you decide to do, you’re going to be an inspiration to people. You mentioned energy earlier, and you’re right. We are made up of energy. Even after we die, I always say I don’t know what’s over there, but I know there is a continuation because energy never goes away.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Einstein said something along those lines. He questioned how he could believe in death when looking at something dead under a microscope showed life. We know something happens. This is not the end. But you’ve got to live for today. Living in the moment is correct.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I tell people that there’s a big calendar someplace up in the sky, and when my number comes, I go to the next story or whatever I’m supposed to do. But I know there’s a continuation.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
We are marketed into fear. Death is big business. A lot of people are afraid to die because they are afraid to live.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Do you have a website?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
The website is alertdrops.com. I don’t have my own website. I’m not a big social media guy, but I’m on Facebook.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
I’d love to have you on my Facebook page too. I want to thank you for taking the time. Would you make one promise to me? Would you come back?

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Absolutely. Anytime.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
You’ve been the best. I’m going to get some of these Alert Drops.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Tell everybody: alertdrops.com. Have it in your car. It should be in every car in America. Also, any late-night job where people get drowsy — medics, workers, anyone like that — it can help.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Anson, thank you so much for being with us. We’re going to talk again soon.

Speaker 4 — Anson Williams
Absolutely. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
You betcha.

Well, I’ll tell you, Anson Williams was something else. Ken, he married again in 2023. Around 2010, he met his future wife, Sharon MaHarry, when she sold him his house in Ojai, California. She was a real estate broker. He helped her regain the ability to walk because she was recovering from a serious back injury and mourning the loss of her husband of about 35 years to cancer.

The synergy of those two people was amazing. He described the first few months of the relationship as healing, and she said the relationship first healed a body, then a heart. In 2023, they married in the backyard of the house she had sold him. Williams’ Happy Days co-star Don Most served as best man, which again shows how that Happy Days family stayed together.

He said that at his age, to be able to find that kind of full connection for the first time is a miracle. There is no age limit on being loved, and no age limit on living life fully. Very good philosophy, don’t you think, Ken?

Speaker 3 — Ken
That’s amazing. He’s still directing. He has a project he’s doing. The colon story reminded me of when my wife said we both had to go get colonoscopies. She went first and had to come back in five years. Then I went, and the doctor said I didn’t have to come back for ten years. I told her, “The doctor says I’m perfect.”

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
Ken, as always, we have fun listening to these interviews. I’m surprised at some of the things I asked and some of the areas we got into.

Speaker 3 — Ken
When did you do this interview?

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
2017. So it has been about eight years. Anson is still going. I love looking back, but you and I are always still looking forward too. That’s what we have to keep doing.

Speaker 3 — Ken
That’s why we’re doing this.

Speaker 2 — Mary Jane Popp
People looked forward, and look how long they lived and how much hope they gave us. We need hope now more than ever before. I think some of these interviews prove that we can make it through whatever we have to face.

That’s another one for the entertainment history books and what a time to remember. Anson Williams is still with us, and it might be fun to let him hear this interview and maybe update what he’s up to these days.

Ken, as always, it is a pleasure sharing the mic with you and your insights into the past — a past that, ironically, is not all that different from today. Folks, I look forward to our next time together on Pop Star Talk. Until then, live simply, laugh often, love deeply, and always dare to dream. It’s that hope.