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Ken Howard

 
American Theater Guide: Ken Howard
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Howard, Ken (b. 1944), actor and singer. The tall, blond, athletic leading man of musicals and plays was born in El Centro, California, and educated at Amherst College and Yale before working in stock. Howard was on Broadway in 1968 in minor roles in Promises, Promises, then gained notice the next year as a reticent, homesick Thomas Jefferson in 1776. His other notable New York performances include the gym teacher Paul Reese in a haunted boys' school in Child's Play (1970); the lawyer Jerry Ryan in love with a kooky New York dancer in Seesaw (1973); the befuddled, dense Tom in The Norman Conquests (1975); several presidents in the ill‐fated 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (1976); and yet another president, Warren G. Harding, in Camping with Henry and Tom (1995).

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Actor: Ken Howard
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Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Mar 28, 1944 in El Centro, California
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '70s-2000s
  • Major Genres: Drama, Mystery
  • Career Highlights: 1776, The Strange Interlude, In Her Shoes
  • First Major Screen Credit: Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1970)

Biography

Actor Ken Howard was 6'5" when he was a junior at Manhasset High School (he would later peak at 6'6"), and it was this physical fact, coupled with his remarkable athletic prowess, that assured him a position in Manhasset's "starting five." Offered several athletic scholarships, Howard turned them all down in favor of a liberal arts education at Amherst College, where he developed a taste for theatre. After two years' graduate work at the Yale School of Drama, he dropped out to accept a small role in the Broadway musical Promises Promises. In 1969, Howard graduated to stage stardom as Thomas Jefferson in the popular musical 1776, a role he would repeat in the 1972 film version. He went on to win a Tony Award for his performance in Child's Play, and to spend his summers essaying his two favorite roles, Billy Bigelow in Carousel and Chance Wayne in Sweet Bird of Youth. His first film was the 1970 Otto Preminger production Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon. In 1973, Howard and his frequent co-star Blythe Danner were cast in the series-TV version of the Tracy-Hepburn picture Adam's Rib (both stars had previously turned down MacMillan and Wife). Neither this series nor Howard's subsequent Manhunter (1974) clicked with the public. He was far more successful as high school basketball coach Ken Hughes on The White Shadow, which ran from 1976 to 1981 (and which, coincidentally, was produced by Blythe Danner's husband Bruce Paltrow). Howard's later TV projects included the title character in the 1984 American Playhouse production of Mark Twain's "Pudd'nhead Wilson;" the recurring role of Garret Boydston on both Dynasty and The Colbys (1985-86); his hosting chores on the syndicated 1986 talent show Dream Girl USA; and another hosting stint on the NBC documentary weekly What Happened? (1992). In recent years, Howard has taught college acting classes and worked as a drama coach when not busy elsewhere. Ken Howard was formerly married to actress Louise Sorel--and never married to Blythe Danner, despite the presumptions of many of his fans. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Wikipedia: Ken Howard
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For other uses, see Ken Howard (disambiguation).
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Ken Howard
Born Kenneth Joseph Howard Jr.
March 28, 1944 (1944-03-28) (age 65)
El Centro, California
Years active 1966—Present

Kenneth Joseph "Ken" Howard, Jr. (born March 28, 1944) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and the television show The White Shadow as basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves. He was elected to be the president of the Screen Actor's Guild in September 2009. [1]

Contents

Early life

Howard was born in El Centro, California, the son of Martha Carey (née McDonald) and Kenneth Joseph Howard, Sr.[2] His younger brother, the late Don Howard, was also an actor. He stands approximately 6'6" (1.98 m) which in high school earned him the nickname "Stork."

He grew up in the Long Island community of Manhasset, New York,[3] He attended Manhasset High School, where he started on the basketball team.[4] He turned down several offers of basketball scholarships after high school in favor of a more focused academic education.[5] He is a graduate of Amherst College where he played varsity basketball and was a member of the a capella singing group, "The Zumbyes". He attended Yale School of Drama[6] but left to make his Broadway debut before completing his master's degree.

Career

Howard began his career on Broadway in Promises, Promises with Jerry Orbach. In 1970, he won a Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) for Child's Play. Howard later starred on Broadway as Thomas Jefferson in 1776 (a role he reprised in the 1972 film) and in Seesaw in 1973 andThe Norman Conquests in 1975. He is known for his portrayal of US Presidents, including the Broadway musical 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in 1976, and as Warren G. Harding in Camping with Harry and Tom in 1995. He has appeared in legitimate theater all over the country, most recently as Tip O'Neill in a one-man show in Boston, According to Tip, at the New Repertory Theater in Watertown.[7]

On television, he appeared as Ken Reeves, a Los Angeles high school basketball coach, in The White Shadow produced by Bruce Paltrow in 1978. (The nickname was given to him in 1961 by the Long Island press when he was the only Caucasian starter on the Manhasset High School varsity basketball team.) In 1981 he won a Daytime Emmy Award for his performance as the ideal father in the CBS afternoon special The Body Human: Facts for Boys. Additional credits include "Sidney Sheldon's Rage of Angels, 1983" and the 2000 miniseries Perfect Murder, Perfect Town and the feature film Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story, both co-starring Kris Kristofferson. Howard has had starring roles in the 1973 TV series Adam's Rib with his good friend, Blythe Danner and The Manhunter in 1974. He played the title character in the 1984 American Playhouse production of Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson. He was a regular on the television series Murder, She Wrote as guest sleuth with Angela Lansbury and later in Crossing Jordan as Jill Hennessey's father in 2001. Later, he starred as Garrett Boydston in Dynasty and its spin-off The Colbys. He was guest villain in Hart to Hart Returns with Stephanie Powers and Robert Wagner a 1993 made for TV movie. Howard appeared in season one of The West Wing as President Bartlett's first choice for U.S. Supreme Court Justice in the episode "The Short List". He has guest starred in The Practice, Boston Legal and in an episode of The Golden Girls as one of Blanche's many lovers. In 2007, he appeared as the primary villain in the critically acclaimed series Cane with Jimmy Smits.

He made his movie debut in 1970 in Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon opposite Liza Minnelli. He has appeared in numerous movies since, in both dramatic and comedy roles, including: Oscar with Sylvester Stallone in 1991, Clear and Present Danger with Harrison Ford in 1994, and The Net with Sandra Bullock in 1995, In Her Shoes in 2005. In 2007, Howard appeared in Rambo again with Sylvester Stallone, and Michael Clayton as the villain to George Clooney's hero.

He gave an acclaimed performance as Phelan Beale in the 2009 HBO film Grey Gardens playing opposite Jessica Lange, for which he received an Emmy Award.[8]

Howard is the author of Act Natural: How to Speak to Any Audience,[9] based on the drama courses he has taught at Harvard University. He is a popular reader for audiobooks.

Personal life

He has been married to Linda Fetters, a stuntwoman, since 1992 and they reside in the Los Angeles, California area. Prior to that he was married to Margo Coleman, known professionally as Margo Howard, the daughter of Ann Landers, from 1977 - 1991, and before that to TV soap opera actress, Louise Sorel, from 1973 - 1976, when they divorced.

Howard is very active and supportive of the National Kidney Foundation, serving as its Chancellor.[10] He had a kidney transplant in 2000.

Ken Howard is the owner of two popular restaurants in the Boston area, Rustic Kitchen and Mario's Place.

Stage Productions

  • According to Tip - 2007
  • In the Moonlight Eddie - 1996
  • Camping with Harry and Tom - 1995
  • Rumors - 1988
  • Equus - 1976 (National Company)
  • 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue- 1976
  • The Norman Conquests: Living Together - 1975
  • The Norman Conquests: Round and Round the Garden - 1975
  • The Norman Conquests: Table Manners - 1975
  • Little Black Sheep - 1975
  • Seesaw - 1973
  • Child's Play - 1970 (1970 Tony Award Best Featured Actor in a Play)
  • 1776 - 1969 (1969 Theatre World Award)
  • Promises, Promises - 1968

Filmography

References

  1. ^ http://www.sag.org/press-releases/september-24-2009/ken-howard-elected-as-screen-actors-guild-presidentamy-aquino-elect
  2. ^ Ken Howard Biography (1944-)
  3. ^ Tarshis, Alex. "Hanging Out in the NBA TV Green Room With ... Ken Howard", NBA.com. Accessed November 23, 2007. "A native of Manhasset, N.Y., Howard had basketball in his blood well before the "The White Shadow" debuted, having played in both high school and college, serving as the captain on his Amherst College team before he attended the Yale School of Drama."
  4. ^ Ken Howard profile, The New York Times. Accessed November 23, 2007.
  5. ^ http://www.starpulse.com/Actors/Howard,_Ken/
  6. ^ http://drama.yale.edu/
  7. ^ http://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/articles/2008/06/14/tipping_point/?page=1
  8. ^ http://cdn.emmys.tv/awards/primetimeawards.php
  9. ^ http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781588363039
  10. ^ http://www.kidney.org/about/board.cfm

External links

v • d • e
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Miniseries or a Movie

Brian Cox (2001) · Michael Moriarty (2002) · Ben Gazzara (2003) · Jeffrey Wright (2004) · Paul Newman (2005) · Jeremy Irons (2006) · Thomas Haden Church (2007) · Tom Wilkinson (2008) · Ken Howard (2009)
v • d • e
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play

Arthur Kennedy (1949) · Eli Wallach (1951) · John Cromwell (1952) · John Williams (1953) · John Kerr (1954) · Francis L. Sullivan (1955) · Ed Begley (1956) · Frank Conroy (1957) · Henry Jones (1958) · Charlie Ruggles (1959) · Roddy McDowall (1960) · Martin Gabel (1961) · Walter Matthau (1962) · Alan Arkin (1963) · Hume Cronyn (1964) · Jack Albertson (1965) · Patrick Magee (1966) · Ian Holm (1967) · James Patterson (1968) · Al Pacino (1969) · Ken Howard (1970) · Paul Sand (1971) · Vincent Gardenia (1972) · John Lithgow (1973) · Ed Flanders (1974) · Frank Langella (1975)
v • d • e
Presidents of the Screen Actors Guild

Ralph Morgan (1933) · Eddie Cantor (1933) · Robert Montgomery (1935) · Ralph Morgan (1938) · Edward Arnold (1940) · James Cagney (1942) · George Murphy (1944) · Robert Montgomery (1946) · Ronald Reagan (1947) · Walter Pidgeon (1952) · Leon Ames (1957) · Howard Keel (1958) · Ronald Reagan (1959) · George Chandler (1960) · Dana Andrews (1963) · Charlton Heston (1965) · John Gavin (1971) · Dennis Weaver (1973) · Kathleen Nolan (1975) · William Schallert (1979) · Edward Asner (1981) · Patty Duke (1985) · Barry Gordon (1988) · Richard Masur (1995) · William Daniels (1999) · Melissa Gilbert (2001) · Alan Rosenberg (2005) · Ken Howard (2009)



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American Theater Guide. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Copyright © 2004 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
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