Howard first came to prominence as a child actor, acting in several television series before gaining national attention for playing youngOpie Taylor, the son of SheriffAndy Taylor (played byAndy Griffith) in the sitcomThe Andy Griffith Show from 1960 through 1968. During this time, he also appeared in the musical filmThe Music Man (1962), a critical and commercial success. Howard was cast in one of the lead roles in the influential coming-of-age filmAmerican Graffiti (1973), and became a household name for playingRichie Cunningham in the sitcomHappy Days (1974–1980).[3] He starred in the filmsThe Spikes Gang (1974),The Shootist (1976), andGrand Theft Auto (1977), the latter being his directorial film debut.
Ron Howard was born on March 1, 1954, inDuncan, Oklahoma, the elder of the two sons ofRance Howard, a director, writer, and actor, andJean Speegle, an actress. He is of German, English, Scottish, Irish, and Dutch ancestry.[6][7][8][9][10] His father was born with the surname "Beckenholdt" and took the stage name "Howard" in 1948 for his acting career.[11][12] Rance Howard was serving three years in theUnited States Air Force at the time of Ron's birth.[13][14]
In 1960, Howard was cast asOpie Taylor inThe Andy Griffith Show. Credited as "Ronny Howard", he portrayed the son of the main character (played byAndy Griffith) for all eight seasons of the show. Recalling his experiences as a child actor on set, he commented,
I was five years old. And I was preoccupied with the prop that was in my hand, because it was a toy turtle. But I had to pretend it was a real turtle that the audience just wasn't seeing, and it was dead, so I was supposed to be crying and very emotional, and I remember him looking at that little turtle and talking to me about how it was kind of funny to have to pretend that was dead. So I recall just a very relaxed first impression.[19]
Richie (Ron Howard) takes a turn on Fonzie's (Henry Winkler) motorcycle in a scene fromHappy Days
A role in an installment of seriesLove, American Style, titled "Love and the Television Set",[20] led to his being cast asRichie Cunningham in the TV seriesHappy Days (for syndication, the segment was re-titled "Love and the Happy Days"). Beginning in 1974, he played the likable "buttoned-down" boy, in contrast toHenry Winkler's "greaser"Arthur "Fonzie"/"The Fonz" Fonzarelli. On theHappy Days set, he developed an on- and off-screen chemistry with Winkler.[21] Howard leftHappy Days to become a film director just before the start of its eighth season in 1980, but returned for guest appearances in the show's eleventh season (1983–1984).[21][22]
Howard appeared on the 1969Disneyland Records albumThe Story and Song from the Haunted Mansion. It featured the story of two teenagers, Mike (Howard) and Karen (Robie Lester), who get trapped inside theHaunted Mansion.Thurl Ravenscroft plays the Narrator, Pete Reneday plays the Ghost Host, and Eleanor Audley plays Madame Leota. Some of the effects and ideas that were planned but never permanently made it to the attraction are mentioned here: the Raven speaks in the Stretching Room, and the Hatbox Ghost is mentioned during the Attic scene. It was reissued in 1998 as a cassette tape titledA Spooky Night in Disney's Haunted Mansion and on CD in 2009.
Howard played Steve Bolander inGeorge Lucas's coming-of-age filmAmerican Graffiti in 1973,[3] which was the inspiration for the sitcomHappy Days starring Howard. Howard starred in the film alongsideRichard Dreyfus,Charles Martin Smith, andHarrison Ford. CriticRoger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times praised the film in his four-star review writing, "American Graffiti is not only a great movie but a brilliant work of historical fiction; no sociological treatise could duplicate the movie's success in remembering exactly how it was to be alive at that cultural instant."[23] Howard reprised his role in the sequelMore American Graffiti (1979).
In 1974, Howard guest-starred as Seth Turner, the best friend of Jason Walton (Jon Walmsley), inThe Waltons episode, "The Gift". Featured in the cast as Dr. McIvers is Ron Howard's fatherRance Howard.[24] In 1976, Howard starred alongsideJohn Wayne andLauren Bacall inDon Siegel'sThe Shootist, the story of aWestern gunfighter dying of cancer. (The movie was Wayne's last.)
Howard was the narrator forArrested Development[25] and also appeared as a cameo in later seasons.
Before leavingHappy Days in 1980, Howard made his directing debut with the 1977low-budget comedy/action filmGrand Theft Auto, based on a script he co-wrote with his father, Rance.[3] This came after cutting a deal withRoger Corman, wherein Corman let Howard direct a film in exchange for Howard starring inEat My Dust!, withChristopher Norris.[3] Howard went on to direct several TV movies for NBC between 1978 and 1982, including the 1980 TV movie,Skyward, starringBette Davis.[3] His big directorial break came in 1982, withNight Shift, featuringMichael Keaton,Shelley Long, and Howard'sHappy Days co-starHenry Winkler.[3]
Howard's direction for the 1995docudrama filmApollo 13 received praise from critics.[29][30][31][32] The film starsTom Hanks,Kevin Bacon, andBill Paxton as threeastronauts, members of theApollo 13 flight crew, with supporting performances fromGary Sinise,Ed Harris, andKathleen Quinlan. The film was a massive financial success earning $335 million off a budget of $52 million. The film received widespread critical acclaim withRoger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times praising the film in his review saying: "A powerful story, one of the year's best films, told with great clarity and remarkable technical detail, and acted without pumped-up histrionics."[33] The film went on to receive nineAcademy Award nominations including Best Picture.
Howard showcased the world premiere of hishistorical drama filmFrost/Nixon at theLondon Film Festival in October 2008.[35] The film is based on the taped conversations known as theFrost/Nixon interviews between former United States PresidentRichard Nixon and British talk show hostDavid Frost.Frank Langella portrayed Nixon oppositeMichael Sheen as Frost. The film was based on theplay of the same name byPeter Morgan. The film also featured performances fromMathew Macfadyen,Sam Rockwell,Rebecca Hall,Oliver Platt,Toby Jones, andKevin Bacon. Despite losing money at the box office, the film was a critical success with websiteRotten Tomatoes giving the film an approval rating of 93% with the critical consensus reading, "Frost/Nixon is weighty and eloquent; a cross between a boxing match and a ballet with Oscar-worthy performances."[36]Metacritic gives the film an average score of 80 out of 100, based on 38 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[37] The film received fiveAcademy Award nominations with Howard receiving a nomination for Best Director.The Guardian praised the film declaring, "Frost/Nixon is a riveting film, sharper, more intense than the play". Howard was the recipient of theAustin Film Festival's 2009 Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award.Michael Keaton presented him the Award.
Howard took over directing duties onSolo: A Star Wars Story, a film featuringStar Wars characterHan Solo in his younger years. The film was released on May 23, 2018. Howard officially replaced directorsPhil Lord and Christopher Miller on June 22, 2017; they were let go from their position two days earlier, reportedly due to their refusal to compromise withLucasfilm over the direction of the film; reportedly the directors encouraged significant improvisations by the actors, which was believed by some at Lucasfilm to be "shifting the story off-course".[38] At the time, the film was nearly completed, with three and a half weeks left to film and another five weeks of reshoots scheduled.[38] Howard posted on Twitter, "I'm beyond grateful to add my voice to theStar Wars Universe after being a fan since5/25/77. I hope to honor the great work already done & help deliver on the promise of a Han Solo film."[39]
In July 2012, it was announced that Imagine had put into developmentConquest forShowtime, a period drama based on the16th century conquest of the Aztecs by SpanishConquistadors. To be directed by Howard, the series was originally planned as a feature film before it was decided that the project was more suited to television.[48]
As part of Imagine Entertainment, he appeared in a 1997 print ad forMilk - Where'syour mustache?, in which he wore a cap for Imagine Entertainment and sported a milk mustache. Earlier versions show a younger Ronny Howard on the other side. In 2009, he appeared in theJamie Foxx music video "Blame It".
^McCarthy, Todd (June 23, 1995)."Apollo 13".Variety. Variety Media, LLC. RetrievedOctober 26, 2020.Howard makes all the complicated action clear to the viewer, a feat in itself.
^Gleiberman, Owen (June 30, 1995)."Apollo 13".Entertainment Weekly. Meredith Corporation. RetrievedOctober 26, 2020.One might have expected a director like Howard to play this story at full inspirational throttle. But no, he has made a true docudrama, maintaining fealty to the tiniest facts.
^Brown, Joe (June 30, 1995)."Apollo 13".The Washington Post. RetrievedOctober 26, 2020.Director Ron Howard takes what could have been a claustrophobic's nightmare movie—the basically static scenario of three guys trapped in a can—and makes it ring with action, anxiety and emotion...
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