Ronald William Howard (born March 1, 1954 in Duncan, Oklahoma) is an American actor, film director, and producer.

Ron Howard first obtained recognition as the child with the lisp in the movie The Music Man with Robert Preston and Shirley Jones.

He then appeared in the role of Opie Taylor in the television series The Andy Griffith Show, portraying the son of the local sheriff in Mayberry NC. The credits referred to him as Ronnie Howard.

He attained film success with his role as Steve Bollander in George Lucas' teen movie American Graffiti.

Howard is to many people best known for his role as Richie Cunningham in television's Happy Days where he played the likeable foil to Henry Winkler's Fonz.

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 come 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.

He has since directed a number of high-visibility films, the most acclaimed of which include Splash, Cocoon, Apollo 13 (nominated for several Academy Awards), and most notably A Beautiful Mind, for which he won the Oscar as Best Director.

He is a graduate of the University of Southern California's School of Cinema-Television.

Most recently, Howard has returned to television as the executive producer and narrator of the critically-acclaimed FOX sitcom Arrested Development. The show, despite having won five Emmy awards and the ubiquitous praise of critics, has not enjoyed high ratings.

Married to his high-school sweetheart, Cheryl , a writer, for over 25 years. Their daughter is Bryce Dallas Howard.

Selected directorial filmography

• Grand Theft Auto (1977)
• Night Shift (1982)
• Splash (1984)
• Cocoon (1985)
• Willow (1988)
• Backdraft (1990)
• Far and Away (1992)
• The Paper (1994)
• Apollo 13 (1995) - Academy Award nominee for Best Picture
• EDtv (1999)
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (2000)
• A Beautiful Mind (2001) - Academy Award for Best Director and Best Picture
• The Missing (2003)
• The Cinderella Man (2005)

Selected Acting credits

• The Music Man(1960)
• The Courtship of Eddie's Father(1963)
• The Migrants (1973)
• American Graffiti (1973)
• Huckleberry Finn (1975)
• Eat My Dust (1976)
• The Shootist (1976)
• Grand Theft Auto (1977, also Howard's directing debut)
• More American Graffiti (1979)
• Act of Love (1980)
• Fire on the Mountain (1981)
• Bitter Harvest (1981)

External links

• Ron Howard exclusive interview with online video from Achievement.org