Ron Howard Biography
Summary
"Ronald William Howard" (born March 1, 1954 in Duncan, Oklahoma) is an American actor, and an Academy Award winning film director, and producer, known for his roles on sitcoms, movies and television.
Howard came to prominence in the 1960s as Andy Griffith's son, "Opie Taylor", on "The Andy Griffith Show", and later as Tom Bosley's son and Henry Winkler's best friend, "Richie Cunningham", on "Happy Days" (a role he played from 1974 to 1980).
Early life
Howard was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, to actors Rance Howard and Jean F. Speegle Howard. He has Dutch, Scottish, English, Irish, German and Cherokee Indian ancestry. His younger brother, Clint Howard, is a well-known character actor. Howard attended the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts but did not graduate.
Career
Howard first earned recognition for playing Winthrop Paroo, the child with the lisp in the film version of "The Music Man" with Robert Preston and Shirley Jones. After "The Music Man", he appeared in the role of Opie Taylor in the television series "The Andy Griffith Show". There he portrayed the son of the local sheriff in the fictional town of Mayberry, North Carolina. The credits referred to him as 'Ronny Howard.' He also appeared in 'The Courtship of Eddie's Father' with Glenn Ford.
Howard made a notable guest-star appearance on the popular television series "M*A*S*H" during that show's first season as an underage American soldier serving in the Marines during the Korean War.
Howard is also well known for his role as Richie Cunningham in television's "Happy Days" on which, beginning in 1974, he played the likable 'buttoned down' boy, in contrast to Henry Winkler's Fonz. He attained film success with his role as Steve Bollander in George Lucas' teen movie "American Graffiti". In 1977, while still starring on "Happy Days", he directed his first film, a low-budget comedy/action film called "Grand Theft Auto". After leaving "Happy Days" in 1980, he directed several TV movies. His big theatrical directing break came in 1982 when he directed the bigger budget film "Night Shift" featuring soon-to-be well-known actors such as Michael Keaton and Shelley Long, and reuniting Howard with his "Happy Days" co-star Henry Winkler.
He has since directed a number of high-visibility films, the most acclaimed of which include Curious George, "Splash", "Cocoon", "Apollo 13" (nominated for several Academy Awards), "A Beautiful Mind", for which he won the Oscar for Best Director, and "Cinderella Man". His latest film, "The Da Vinci Code", reteaming Howard with "Splash" and "Apollo 13" star Tom Hanks, has been a box office hit earning more than $700 million at the box office, but was a critical letdown. Howard is the co-chairman, with Brian Grazer, of Imagine Entertainment, a major film and television production company, which has produced notable projects like "Friday Night Lights", "8 Mile", "Inside Deep Throat", and the television series "24" and "Felicity". His last significant on-screen role was when he reprised his famous role as Opie Taylor in the 1986 TV reunion movie "Return to Mayberry" reuniting him with Andy Griffith, the now late Don Knotts, and most of the old cast.
Through his company Imagine Television, Howard continues to have a presence in television, most recently as the executive producer and uncredited narrator of the critically acclaimed FOX sitcom "Arrested Development". The show, despite having won six Emmy awards and near-unanimous praise from critics, did not enjoy high ratings and was limited by Fox Television in 2006. A series finale took place in February 2006, but Howard, on-screen for the first time in the show, suggested a movie version may be in the works.
Howard casts his younger brother Clint with a minor role in most of his movies.
Personal life
On June 7 1975, Howard wed his high-school sweetheart, Cheryl, born Alley, a writer with a degree in geriatric psychology. They have four children; daughters Bryce Dallas Howard (b. 1981), Jocelyn Carlyle (twin, b. 1985), Paige Carlyle (twin, b. 1985), and son Reed Cross (b. 1987). Their daughters Bryce Dallas Howard and Paige Howard are actresses. They live on a 35-acre estate in the exclusive gated community of Conyers Farm in Greenwich, Connecticut. In February 2007, Howard became a grandfather when his daughter, Bryce, gave birth to a son.
In the June 2006 issue of Vanity Fair magazine, Ron Howard was asked, 'What do you consider your greatest achievement?' He replied, 'Forty-eight consecutive years of steady employment in television and film, while preserving a rich family life.'
Howard in popular culture
In the "The Simpsons" episode "When You Dish Upon a Star", Homer meets and befriends Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger and Ron Howard. Later in the episode, Ron Howard is injured when trying to jump from a truck to the RV that Homer was driving. In the end, he pitches Homer's movie idea and gets it greenlit. Another episode ("Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder") Homer and Ron Howard are fighting each other while appearing on 'The Springfield Squares'. Later, Ron gives Homer the inspiration to spend more time with his kids and gives him some money that Homer refuses but takes anyway. Ron yoinks the money back from Homer and then drives away.
When he hosted "Saturday Night Live" in the 1980s, Eddie Murphy called him 'Opie Cunningham'.
In the South Park episode, 'Ginger Kids', Cartman asks a crowd of fellow gingers to name great Americans with the hair color, the first and only name thay can think of is 'Ron Howard', and when asked to name a second, one responds 'Ron Howard' again.
On a VH1 special about the 100 greatest child stars, many of the interviewees considered Ron Howard to be the most successful child star of all time, considering his two major television acting roles and his directing career.
In Season 1 Episode 3 of Stroker and Hoop on Adult Swim, Stroker and Hoop ran a detective agency whose first client needed them to make Ron Howard stop controlling his mind.
Filmography
Directorial
Films
"Old Paint" (1969) (short subject)
"Deed of Daring-Do" (1969) (short subject)
"Cards, Cads, Guns, Gore and Death" (1969) (short subject)
"Grand Theft Auto" (1977)
"Night Shift" (1982)
"Splash" (1984)
"Cocoon" (1985)
"Gung Ho" (1986)
"Willow" (1988)
"Parenthood" (1989)
"Backdraft" (1991)
"Far and Away" (1992)
"The Paper" (1994)
"Apollo 13" (1995)
"Ransom" (1996)
"EDtv" (1999)
"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (2000)
"A Beautiful Mind" (2001)
"The Missing" (2003)
"Cinderella Man" (2005)
"The Da Vinci Code" (2006)
"Angels & Demons" (2008) (in production)
"Frost/Nixon" (2008) (pre-production)
Television
"Cotton Candy" (1978)
"Skyward" (1980)
"Through the Magic Pyramid" (1981)
"Littleshots" (1983)
"Take Five" (1987)
Acting
Film
"Frontier Woman" (1956)
"The Journey" (1959)
"Door-to-Door Maniac" (1961)
"The Music Man" (1962)
"The Courtship of Eddie's Father" (1963)
"Village of the Giants" (1965)
"The Wild Country" (1970)
"American Graffiti" (1973)
"Happy Mother's Day, Love George" (1973)
"The Spikes Gang" (1974)
"The First Nudie Musical" (1976)
"Eat My Dust" (1976)
"The Shootist" (1976) Golden Globe nomination
"Grand Theft Auto" (1977)
"More American Graffiti" (1979)
"The Magical World of Chuck Jones" (1992) (documentary)
"One Vision" (1998) (documentary)
"The Independent" (2000)
"Welcome to Hollywood" (2000)
"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (2000)
"Osmosis Jones" (2001) (voice)
"A Beautiful Mind" (2001)
"Tell Them Who You Are" (2004) (documentary)
"In the Shadow of the Moon" (2007) (documentary)
the da vinci code (2007)
Television
"The Twilight Zone" Episode: Walking Distance (1959)
"The Andy Griffith Show" (1960-1968)
"A Boy Called Nuthin" (1967)
"Gunsmoke Episode: Charlie Noon" (1969)
"Smoke" (1970)
"The Smith Family" (1971-1972)
"M*A*S*H" - Sometimes You Hear the Bullet (1973)
"The Migrants" (1974)
"Happy Days" (cast member from 1974-1980)
"Locusts" (1974)
"Huckleberry Finn" (1975)
"I'm a Fool" (1976)
"Act of Love" (1980)
"The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang" (voice) (1980)
"Bitter Harvest" (1981)
"Fire on the Mountain" (1981)
"Return to Mayberry" (1986)
"Arrested Development" (Narrator) (2003-2006)
Quotes
'As a young adult trying to make the transition from sitcom actor to motion picture director, I was getting a lot of patronizing pats on the head. 'Hey, hang in there. In another ten or 15 years, I'm sure somebody will give you a chance to direct.' That's not what I wanted to hear at all.'
'I really believe that great creative ideas will find their way to the surface.'
External links
(2002 Commencement Address (USC School of Cinema-Television))
(Ron Howard: Imagining the Wonders of "Willow") - Article at (StarWars.com)
Credit
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article about Ron Howard.
