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Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is a BAFTA- and Academy Award-nominated, as well as Golden Globe-winning, American actor. Ford is best known for his performances as the tough, wisecracking space pilot Han Solo in the Star Wars Saga and as the adventurous archaeologist and action hero Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones Jr. in the Indiana Jones film series. He is also known for his role as the haunted android tracker Rick Deckard in Ridley Scott's sci-fi cult film Blade Runner (1982), but his four-decade career also included roles in other Hollywood blockbusters such as Air Force One and The Fugitive. At one point, Ford had roles in the top five box-office hits of all time, though his role in 1982's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (as Elliot's school principal) was deleted from the final cut of the film. Five of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry. He was ranked #1 in Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. As of May 2007, the domestic box office grosses of Ford's films total about US$3.10 billion, with worldwide grosses approaching $6 billion, making Ford the No. 3 domestic box-office star behind Eddie Murphy and Tom Hanks. Ford was born on Monday, July 13, 1942, at 11:41 a.m. Central Time in Chicago, Illinois, at the Swedish Covenant Hospital. His mother, Dorothy (née Dora Nidelman; October 17, 1917–February 10, 2004), was a homemaker and former radio actress, and his father, Christopher Ford (né John William Ford; November 20, 1906–February 10, 1999), was an advertising executive and former actor. Harrison Ford's maternal grandparents, Anna Lifschutz and Harry Nidelman, were Jewish immigrants from Minsk. His paternal grandparents, Florence Veronica Niehaus and John Fitzgerald Ford, were of German and Irish Catholic descent, respectively. When asked in which religion he was raised, Ford jokingly responded, "Democrat"; he has also said that he feels "Irish as a person but I feel Jewish as an actor". Ford was active in the Boy Scouts of America, in which he achieved its second-highest rank, Life Scout, and worked at a Scout Camp as a Reptile Study merit badge counselor. Because of this, he and director Steven Spielberg later decided that the character of young Indiana Jones would be depicted as a Life Scout in the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. They also jokingly reversed Ford's knowledge of reptiles into Jones's fear of snakes. In 1960, Ford graduated from Maine East High School in Park Ridge, Illinois. He was the first student voice broadcast on his high school's new radio station, WMTH-FM, and was its first sportscaster during his senior year, 1959–1960. The radio room still bears his graffiti. He attended Ripon College in Wisconsin, where he was a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity. He took a drama class in his junior year, chiefly as a way to meet women. Ford, a self-described "late bloomer", became fascinated with acting. Toward the end of his college freshman year, he was a member of a folk band called The Brothers Gross, in which he played gutbucket. He did not graduate from Ripon. Once deemed the highest-grossing actor of all time, Harrison Ford almost languished in thankless walk-on roles when he began his career in the early 1960s. Instead of accepting any role that came along, Ford was picky about his choices right from the start, despite a severe lack of Hollywood clout. While he made ends meet as a carpenter, Ford patiently pursued his career, even turning down several roles over the objections of his manager. But his persistence paid off with a memorable supporting role in “American Graffiti” (1973), George Lucas’ 1960s coming-of-age tale. His struggle continued throughout the mid-1970s until Lucas reluctantly cast him as the cocky space pirate Han Solo in “Star Wars” (1977). From that moment on, Ford struggled no more; taking on some of the biggest movies of the 1980s, including genre classics “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981) and “Blade Runner” (1982), as well as the finely crafted “Witness” (1985) – the latter of which earned him his sole Academy Award nomination. By the time he starred in the heart-pounding thriller “The Fugitive” (1993), Ford was widely recognized as being one of the biggest stars in the world and the sole throwback to Golden Age swashbucklers like Clark Gable and Errol Flynn. Despite a few duds like “The Devil’s Own” (1997) and “Hollywood Homicide” (2003) on his resume, Ford continued to remain a top box office draw while generating the excitement of a new generation of fans with the release of a long-awaited fourth installment of Indiana Jones in 2008. Born on July 13, 1942 in Chicago, IL, Ford grew up the son of an advertising executive and homemaker in nearby Park Ridge. He was a quiet, isolated child, picked on by classmates who liked to routinely push him down a steep embankment at school. After surviving Main East High School, where he was president of the Social Science Club and a sportscaster for WMTH, Ford studied philosophy and English at Ripon College in Wisconsin. While looking to boost his sagging grade point average, Ford stumbled upon a drama class, but was surprised to learn that he was required to perform in a play. He went on to appear in several productions, including “The Skin of Our Teeth” and “The Fantasticks.” Unable to maintain passable grades, however, Ford flunked out of Ripon with only a month left to graduate. But he finally had his sights set on the path to becoming an actor. He did local summer stock, performing in productions of “Night of the Iguana” and “Damn Yankees,” then moved to the West Coast in the early-1960s, where he took part in his last play, “John Brown’s Body,” at the Laguna Playhouse. In 1964, Ford travelled to Los Angeles, California to pursue a job in radio voice-overs. He did not get the job, but stayed in California, and eventually signed a $150/week contract with Columbia Pictures's New Talent program, playing bit roles in films. His first known speaking part was an uncredited role as a bellhop in Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966). There is little record of his non-speaking roles (or "extra" work) in film. His speaking roles continued next with Luv (1967) though he was again uncredited. In his next film, he was credited as "Harrison J. Ford" in the 1967 Western film, A Time For Killing, but the "J" didn't stand for anything because he does not have a middle name. It was added to avoid confusion with the silent film actor named Harrison Ford, who appeared in more than 80 films between 1915 and 1932, and who died in 1957. Ford later said that he was unaware of the existence of the earlier Harrison Ford (who is no relation) until he stumbled across a star with his own name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ford soon dropped the "J" from his name and worked for Universal Studios playing minor roles in many television series throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s including Gunsmoke; Ironside; The Virginian; The F.B.I.; Love, American Style; and Kung Fu. Then, he played in the western Journey to Shiloh (1968) and had an uncredited role in Michelangelo Antonioni's 1970 film Zabriskie Point as an airport worker. Not happy with the acting jobs being offered to him, Ford became a self-taught professional carpenter to better support his then-wife and two small sons. Some of Ford's carpentry work remains in the Hollywood Hills area. While working as a carpenter, he became a stagehand for the popular rock band The Doors. He also built a sun deck for Sally Kellerman and a recording studio for Sergio Mendes. He turned to acting again when George Lucas, who had hired him to build cabinets in his home, cast him in a pivotal supporting role for his film American Graffiti (1973). The relation he forged with Lucas was to have a profound effect on Ford's career. After director Francis Ford Coppola's film The Godfather was a success, he hired Ford to do expansions of his office and Harrison was given a small role in his next two films, The Conversation (1974) and Apocalypse Now (1979). In 1965, Ford took his first stab at a film career after signing a seven-year contract with Columbia Pictures for $150 per week – a considerably small sum even for the times. He made his feature debut as a hotel bellboy paging James Coburn in “Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round” (1966). But after an executive saw his performance, Ford was told to give up the business. Instead, he moved over to Universal Studios where he earned $250 per week and began guest starring in episodic television while still making the occasional feature appearance in films like the Civil War drama “Journey to Shiloh” (1968). At the time, however, Ford was married to his first wife, Mary, while adjusting to being a father for the first time. Because of a litany of mediocre films and his new responsibilities, Ford left acting to become a carpenter. He first learned the craft out of necessity when trying to fix up a rundown house he bought in the Hollywood Hills, reading several books while getting hold of some tools. Later, a friend recommended Ford’s services to recording engineer, Sergio Mendes, who wanted a $100,000 recording studio in his home. Satisfied with the work, Mendes recommended Ford to several friends. Ford's work as a carpenter would land the actor his biggest role to date. In 1975, director George Lucas used him to read lines for actors being cast for parts in his upcoming space opera, Star Wars. At the reading, Steven Spielberg noticed that Ford was suited for the part of Han Solo and convinced Lucas to give Harrison the role that would eventually propel him to fame. Ford went on to star as Solo in the next two Star Wars sequels, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, as well as in The Star Wars Holiday Special. He wanted Lucas to write in the death of the iconic Han Solo character at the end of Return of the Jedi, saying "that would have given the whole film a bottom", but Lucas refused. It was through his carpentry work that Ford was able to resuscitate his acting career, even though he never gave up that ambition. In fact, the stability of his carpentry work allowed Ford to be selective in choosing roles rather than taking anything that came his way. In 1970, he signed with respected manger of up-and-coming actors, Patricia McQueeney, who was forced to contend with Ford’s ever-increasing pickiness. He had already begun to develop a reputation for being surly and grumpy, mainly because he went to auditions and acted as if he did not want to be there. He did, however, receive several offers – some well-paying – but he usually turned them down, much to McQueeney’s dismay. But Ford’s determination not to carve a career out of mediocre roles paid off when he was cast by George Lucas in “American Graffiti” (1973), a seminal coming-of-age film set during the last summer night of 1962, when a group of teens face difficult decisions about the directions of their lives. Ford played an older street racer donned in a white cowboy hat (his suggestion) who manages to lure the girlfriend (Cindy Williams) of a college-bound teen (Ron Howard) struggling with his feelings about leaving home. With the success of his first major film, both critically and financially, Ford found his career had finally taken a turn for the better. After Francis Ford Coppola, who had produced “American Graffiti,” cast him for a small role in the paranoid thriller, “The Conversation” (1974), Ford made a brief return to television movies, playing an Ohio frontiersman in “James A. Michener’s ‘Dynasty’” (NBC, 1976). But it was his next project that catapulted the still-struggling actor into an international superstar. By the time Ford was cast as Han Solo in “Star Wars,” director George Lucas had auditioned just about every young actor available for the three lead roles. Originally, Lucas was uninterested in Ford playing Han Solo, as he did not want to recycle actors from his previous films; instead asking him to read lines with actors during the audition process – which included helping Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher land their roles. Eventually, Ford won Lucas over with his cheeky read, earning himself the role. But then there was the shoot, the stories of which became Hollywood legend. From Ford’s perspective, Lucas was distant with his actors, barely talking to them except to give terse direction like “faster” or “more intense,” while the dialogue was painful to say out loud. Though at the time everyone working on the film thought it was doomed to fail, “Star Wars” became an instant cultural phenomenon, with Ford’s turn as the irascible smuggler who gets embroiled in an intergalactic struggle being one of the film’s many indelible elements. Thanks to the international sensation “Star Wars” became during the summer of 1977, Ford had finally reached stardom after a decade and a half of labor. But it would take several more films before he could open a film on his name alone. Meanwhile, he starred in “Force 10 from Navarone” (1978), the unheralded sequel to the blockbuster hit, “The Guns of Navarone” (1961). After a one-scene role as a colonel (whom he named Col. Lucas in honor of his director/friend) who helps brief Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) in “Apocalypse Now” (1979), Ford starred as an American bomber pilot who has an affair with a married British nurse (Lesley-Anne Down) during World War II in “Hanover Street” (1979), perhaps his most forgettable film as a leading actor. After a brief appearance in “More American Graffiti” (1979) and a starring role in the comedy-western “The Frisco Kid” (1979), Ford returned to play Han Solo in “The Empire Strikes Back” (1980), widely considered to be the best of the original three-part series. Though the focus was primarily on Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) becoming a Jedi knight, Han Solo struggles with Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) to escape from the Empire, which hunts them down to the ethereal Cloud City where Solo is tracked by the bounty hunter Boba Fett, frozen in carbonite and used as a trap to lure Skywalker to Darth Vader (David Prowse/James Earl Jones). During the production, Ford was dissatisfied with Han telling Leia he “loved her, too” before he was put into hibernation, feeling that the response was out of character. Director Irvin Kershner agreed and allowed Ford to improvise a take, in which he responded to Leia’s “I love you” with “I know.” Though initially infuriated with the change, Lucas used the take in the finished product, allowing for one of the series’ few truly emotionally connective moments – and one of Ford’s first invaluable off-the-cuff contributions to his projects which would resound w/ viewers. Unlike the first “Star Wars,” the sequel was expected to dominate the box office, which it did to the tune of over $200 million. Meanwhile, Ford was firmly in command of his international stardom, though it came as part of an ensemble cast, along with Hamill and Fisher. But that problem was alleviated with his next film, “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” one of the most successful and beloved films of all time; as well as a nod and wink to 1930s action serials beloved by producer Lucas and director Steven Spielberg as young boys. Ford played Indiana Jones, a hard-scrabble, but all-too-human archeologist who hunts for the fabled Arc of the Covenant with the help of his old flame, Marion (Karen Allen), and old friend, Sallah (John Rhys Davies). Once again, Ford was not the first pick to play Indiana Jones. Lucas wanted Tom Selleck, but could not get the television star because of his contractual agreement with “Magnum P.I.” (CBS, 1980-88). Eventually, Lucas caved, despite not wanting to have a Martin Scorsese-Robert De Niro-type relationship with Ford. But, in the end, Lucas knew he was the right actor for the role. Ford made many movies in the wake of Star Wars. There was Heroes (1977), Force 10 from Navarone (1978), and Hanover Street (1979). Ford also co-starred alongside Gene Wilder in the buddy-western The Frisco Kid (1979), playing a bank robber with a heart of gold. Ford then starred as Indiana Jones in the Lucas/Spielberg collaboration Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), and its hugely successful prequel and sequel to date, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), which turned Ford himself into a blockbuster phenomenon. Unlike many other actors of the same or similar genre, Ford's authenticity as a daring action hero was supported by his willingness to perform many of his own stunts for the Indiana Jones trilogy. During this time, Ford also starred in a number of dramatic-action films: Peter Weir's Witness (1985) and The Mosquito Coast (1986), and Roman Polanski's Frantic (1988). He also starred in Mike Nichols's romantic drama Working Girl (1988) and as Rick Deckard in Ridley Scott's cult sci-fi classic Blade Runner (1982). The 1990s brought Ford the role of Jack Ryan in Tom Clancy's Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, as well as leading roles in Alan Pakula's Presumed Innocent (1990) and The Devil's Own (1997), Andrew Davis's The Fugitive (1993), Sydney Pollack's remake of Sabrina (1995), and Wolfgang Petersen's Air Force One (1997). During production of The Fugitive, he reprised his role as Indiana Jones in an episode of the television series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. Ford has also played straight dramatic roles, including an adulterous husband with a terrible secret in both Presumed Innocent (1990) and What Lies Beneath (2000), and a recovering amnesiac in Mike Nichols's Regarding Henry (1991). Many of Ford's major film roles came to him by default or unusual circumstances: he won the role of Han Solo while reading lines for other actors, was cast as Indiana Jones because Tom Selleck was not available, and took the role of Jack Ryan due to Alec Baldwin's fee demands (Baldwin had previously played the role in The Hunt for Red October). By the time Ford had made “Presumed Innocent,” he was widely considered to be one of the most bankable stars working in Hollywood. Even box office duds like Michael Mann’s “Regarding Henry” (1991) failed to put much of a chink in his armor. In 1992, he took on the role of CIA agent Jack Ryan in “Patriot Games” (1992), a tense action thriller that depicted Ryan trying to protect his family from an IRA fringe group after saving English royals from assassination. Ford followed with “The Fugitive” (1993), arguably one of the most intense and finely-crafted action films of all time. In the film, he played Dr. Richard Kimble, a vascular surgeon wrongly accused of murdering his wife (Sela Ward) after a society dinner. Though his wife was killed by an unknown one-armed man (Andreas Katsulas), all the evidence points to Kimble, who is arrested, tried and convicted of first degree murder, to be punished by lethal injection. But Kimble manages to escape after fellow inmates overturn the bus en route to prison, triggering a manhunt lead by a relentless U.S. marshal (Tommy Lee Jones). “The Fugitive” was yet another huge success for Ford, who only confirmed his status as the biggest box office draw of his generation. While “The Fugitive” represented a high water mark for his career, by no means did Ford put his career on autopilot. He next starred in the third adaptation of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan series, “Clear and Present Danger” (1994), once again delivering a dependable performance in this entertaining thriller that saw Ryan journey to Columbia to rescue a captured paramilitary force from a drug cartel with the aid of a renegade intelligence operative (Willem Dafoe). In what many considered to be a pointless exercise, Ford starred in a remake of Billy Wilder’s “Sabrina” (1995), playing the successful heir to a family fortune who tries to woo the daughter (Julia Ormond) of the chauffeur to spurn his brother (Greg Kinnear), only to find himself failing in love for real. After “Sabrina,” Ford retreated into a series of mediocre films that occasionally did well at the box office, but nonetheless gave fans and critics alike the impression his prowess had begun to diminish. In his next film, “The Devil’s Own” (1997), Ford starred as a New York City police officer who takes in an Irish émigré (Brad Pitt) possessing a dark past and bloody-minded purpose in America. Behind the scenes, Ford and Pitt were dissatisfied with the script, which led to constant rewrites, resulting in a muddled story that never reached fruition onscreen. Once content with playing the action hero, Ford occasionally made the switch to playing the villain, as he did in “What Lies Beneath” (2000), a haunting thriller from director Roger Zemeckis. Ford played Dr. Norman Spencer, a successful genetic scientist who cheated on his wife, Claire (Michelle Pfeiffer), and nearly ruined his marriage. But a year later, they have reconciled and their relationship seems stronger than ever, until his wife begins to hear strange voices and see the mysterious wraith-like image of a young woman. While her husband and her psychiatrist (Joe Morton) dismiss her as delusional, Claire remains steadfast and uncovers the truth about the girl and Norman. In another adventurous turn, Ford played a Russian submarine captain who prevents World War III by forcing his crew to repair a radiation leak after test launching a nuclear missile in “K-19: The Widowmaker” (2002). Unfortunately, the film flat solely based on Ford’s laughable attempt at a Russian accent. After he made forgettable turns in the disastrous buddy comedy “Hollywood Homicide” (2003) and the techno-thriller “Firewall” (2006), it was finally announced after years of rumor, speculation and secretive script rewrites that Ford would revive Indiana Jones for “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” (2008). Set sometime in the 1950s, Jones goes on a quest to find the lost city of Atlantis, aided by Shia LaBoeuf and – back by popular demand – his former “Raiders” flame, Karen Allen. The 2001 edition of the Guinness Book of Records listed Ford as the richest actor alive: his reported salary for the 2002 flop K-19: The Widowmaker was $25 million. The 27 movies that he has starred in have grossed a combined box office of more than $3.3 billion. However, since then he has been overtaken by Eddie Murphy and Tom Hanks as the biggest movie star, and Mel Gibson is now the world's richest living actor. Despite being one of the most financially successful actors of his generation, Ford has received just one Oscar nomination, that of Best Actor for Witness. On June 2, 2003, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. On October 6, 2006, Ford was awarded the Jules Verne Spirit of Nature Award for his work in nature and wildlife preservation. The ceremony took place at the historic Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. Ford's star power has waned in recent years, the result of appearing in numerous critically derided and commercially disappointing movies, including Six Days Seven Nights (1998), Random Hearts (1999), K-19: The Widowmaker (2002), Hollywood Homicide (2003), and Firewall (2006). Although 2000's What Lies Beneath ended up grossing over $155 million in the United States and $300 million world-wide. Ford is a private pilot of both planes and helicopters, and owns an 800-acre (3.2 km²) ranch in Jackson, Wyoming, approximately half of which he has donated as a nature reserve. On several occasions, Ford has personally provided emergency helicopter services at the behest of local authorities, in one instance rescuing a hiker overcome by dehydration. Harrison Ford flies his De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver (N28S) more than any of his other aircraft, and though he dislikes showing favoritism, he has repeatedly stated that he likes this aircraft and the sound of its Pratt & Whitney 985 radial engine. He uses it regularly for impromptu fly-ins at remote airports, and bush strips, as well as gatherings with other Beaver owners and pilots. Ford first encountered the Beaver while filming Six Days Seven Nights, and soon purchased one. Kenmore Air in Kenmore, Washington restored Ford's yellow and green DHC-2 (N28S), a junked former U.S. military Beaver, with updated avionics and an upgraded engine. In 2004, Ford declined a chance to star in the thriller Syriana, later commenting that "I didn't feel strongly enough about the truth of the material and I think I made a mistake." The role eventually went to George Clooney, who won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his work. Ford also turned down leading roles in the critically acclaimed films Traffic and A History of Violence as well as The Patriot. Also in 2004, Ford appeared in the straight-to-video Water to Wine, credited as "Jethro the Bus Driver", as a favor to his son Malcolm. He has just finished shooting a fourth Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, with a story by George Lucas, screenplay by David Koepp, and direction by Steven Spielberg. Shooting began on the movie in June 2007 for a May 22, 2008 release. He has also completed filming on a film called Crossing Over, directed by Wayne Kramer. He will play Immigrations officer Max Brogan alongside Sean Penn and Ray Liotta. Ford has also finished recording narration for the upcoming feature documentary film about the Dalai Lama entitled Dalai Lama Renaissance. |
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