Bonnie and William are celebrating his birthday.
William Daniels has left a lasting impression on multiple generations of audiences with his roles as Mr. Feeny, John Adams, Dr. Mark Craig and KITT. Daniels has taken a step back from his celebrated stage, film, and television career to enjoy the simpler things in life now that he is 95.
Daniels told me exclusively this week that he's happy with his life now that he doesn't have to perform or do anything.
Daniels and his wife of 70 years, Bonnie, live in southern California. Daniels and Bartlett have been together ever since Daniels confidently asked out the 92-year-old while they both attended the same university.
When I asked the couple how long they've been married, they said, "So much happens and you live - the good things, you hurt each other." We have hurt each other, but you grow and change, and you adapt. You have to be able to adapt. You need to think of them first. It doesn't happen overnight. It took us a long time to get married.
At first, there is a lot of struggle and there is a lot of uncertainty of whether you are in the right business. You have to learn to respect the other person's feelings and try to live with them as easy as possible.
I wondered if one particular role remained dearest to Daniels' heart, since he has given so many outstanding performances. The Tony Award-winning musical that Daniels played in on Broadway in 1969 was named after him. Jack L. Warner, retired former president of Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures, produced the 1972 film adaptation.
Howard Da Silva and William Daniels played Ben Franklin and John Adams.
While speaking about his mentality toward acting after all these years, Daniels says, "I don't agree that there's two different ways of acting, stage and film." I don't believe that. You don't have to yell on stage. It will go to the back of the house if you understand that you have to enunciate clearly. When I worked with people, I would tell them not to yell and that it was a different way of delivering things. It's not as personal.
Her own impressive legacy is built within the industry, and she is no stranger to Hollywood herself. She played the mother of Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1988 film Twins, she played Tim Allen's mom on the hit series Home Improvement, and she also played the mother on Little House on the Prairie and The Golden Girls. The real-life husband and wife won an award for their performances on St. Elsewhere.
William Daniels and Bonnie Bartlett won individual Emmys in 1986 for their performances.
Both of us have the same goals. There was no jealousy between the two of us. When the other one was working, we were happy.
Daniels' portrayal of Mr. Feeny on Boy Meets World seems to have stuck with audiences most of all. The pilot episode of Boy Meets World was watched by over 16 million viewers, making it the most watched pilot in ABC's history. The entire series of Mr. Feeny is now streaming on Disney Plus, as Daniels continued in his beloved role.
Will Friedle, Rider Strong, Matthew Lawrence, William Daniels, and Ben are pictured.
I look back on it as a pleasant experience, Daniels says.
Bill loved all those kids, he did, and eventually his wife became Mr. Feeny's love interest. We can see them. They are all great.
Rider Strong, Ben Savage, William Daniels, and Bonnie Bartlett are on the show.
The public's growing demand for interactive fan conventions happening all across the country has made it possible for the occasional Boy Meets World reunions to happen. Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, Daniels and Bartlett have taken a slower and more virtual experience over the past couple of years, but now travel to these special events for fans to get to see them and interact with them in-person.
Daniels says that he has been able to see his young Boy Meets World co-stars grow up. They are married and have children. It's a completely different scene.
Rider Strong, Will Friedle, Danielle Fishel, and Ben Savage were at the Fan expo Boston.
When Daniels is seen in public, the fans of the show get very emotional. I asked her why she thinks Mr. Feeny's character continues to have such an impact on people.
Bill could become Mr. Feeny by then. You know, Dr. Craig was kind of mean. John Adams was a tough man. By the time he was Mr. Feeny, Bill had all the good stuff. That is all of his growth.
The Golden-Con in Chicago is a celebration of all things The Golden Girls, and will feature a meet and greet with fans from April 22-24. Barbara Thorndyke was the very rude friend of Bea Arthur's character, and was remembered as a character on the classic sitcom.
The Golden Girls had Bea Arthur and Bonnie Bartlett on it.
The two of them were old friends from New York. We were friends because we both had adopted children and we talked about it. I had no idea that it would be so popular. Barbara Thorndyke will sometimes be called that by people.
Daniels has found a lot of demand on the popular Cameo app, which offers fans to pay for personalized videos from their favorite stars. When Will Friedle told them about the video platform, Daniels asked if he would be interested in creating video messages for his fans.
Bill said yes and Michael helped him do them. Bill does them after he helps to write them. We use the money that we're making now because we don't need anything and we use it to educate our children. Wherever I can, it goes to the Democratic Party. I can write a nice check. I love that.
Both Daniels and Bartlett enjoy working on new acting projects. Daniels is often asked to record lines in KITT-like fashion, similar to the popular voice work he did in the 1980s as the talking car on the television series Knight Rider.
The voice of KITT, the car, on Knight Rider, was made by David and William Daniels.
Daniels says that talking like a car wasn't ridiculous, but it became very popular. KITT! I'm not a judge of anything. I should shut up and do it.
Over the course of 95 years, Daniels has encountered many different roles, with a lifetime of memories and public praise to show for it. What will be the plan for Daniels and Bartlett when they celebrate his birthday on March 31?
Bonnie and William are in California.
He is happy to stay here and we are together.
William Daniels.
I've been very lucky to be able to make a living at this highly-competitive business that I'm in, overly-stocked with actors and would-be actors, says Daniels. If you make a living at it, I want you to be proud of yourself. I'm very content with where we are right now, I'm a very lucky guy.
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