Ron Howard

I admire and respect Ron Howard as a person. No, I don’t know him but I’ve been a longtime fan of his and think he’s a good guy. He’s been able to emerge from the stigma of being a child actor in Hollywood to becoming one of the most respected directors of our time.

Ronald William Howard was born on March 1, 1954 in Duncan, Oklahoma. He’s a good ole boy. He was in his first movie at 18 months. Lazy ass. What did he do for the first 17 months of his life? Like poop and suck on things? He must have had great parents to get him through the perils of Hollywood. He turned out pretty awesome.

I never watched Andy Griffith, but I have seen some clips from when Opie was very young. What a cutie pie! I did watch Happy Days where he played Richie Cunningham. I loved that show and Laverne & Shirley. Those are like the best shows ever!

Trivia

• Ron attended public school as his parents wanted his childhood to be as normal as possible.
• He took nine months off when he was 15 so he could play during the basketball season.
• He had started shooting films when he was 15 with a Super-8 camera.
• Shares the same birthday with Dukes of Hazzard actress, Catherine Bach.
• Has been married to his wife Cheryl since 1975. To be part of Hollywood and be married for 44 years speaks volumes about who you are and what you value.
• Ron has four children with wife Cheryl.
• He is a grandpa.
• Henry Winkler (Fonzie) is the godfather of one of his children.

Dating Game

Ron Howard was a contestant on The Dating Game in 1971. He was already somewhat famous by that time so I’m not sure why he was on there. I guess it wasn’t uncommon to have known celebrities on there. While we’re talking about The Dating Game, some of the other celebrities to appear on there were: Danny Bonaduce, Sally Field, John Ritter, Tom Selleck, Bill Bixby, Steve Martin, Farrah Fawcett, Ann B. Davis, Maureen McCormick, Barry Williams, Michael Jackson, Butch Patrick, Dick Clark, Willie Aames, Bobby Sherman, and Bob Saget.

I saw one of Ron Howard’s daughters on Ellen. I was kind of watching the show while working on my laptop (probably writing a blog). Even though I didn’t really know who this actress was, I was very impressed with the honesty and sincerity I felt from her. She started talking about Fonzie being her godfather and it was then I figured out it was Ron Howard’s daughter. What beautiful and kind children he and his wife have created. We need more Ron Howard’s (and Ellen’s) in the world.

Gay

Ron was criticized a few years back for refusing to alter a “gay” scene in a movie of his. The scene was taken out of the trailer but left in the movie. The dialogue was Electric cars are gay. I mean, not ‘homosexual’ gay but ‘my parents are chaperoning the dance gay.’ Ron said that he believed in sensitivity but not censorship. “Gay” is a word that is part of today’s vocabulary. It has multiple meanings. I think the people who threw a fit over this (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) were wrong. It’s like the word fat/phat. I don’t get offended when someone says “That’s fat” even though I’m a bit of a chubby butt.  Lighten up and quit being big babies. Gay.

I’m a big fan of Ron Howard (not like fat though). I think he’s a great person and a wonderful role model for many. I look forward to many more great Ron Howard films. Yay.