Ron was born in Oklahoma, into an acting family - his father had realized a boyhood dream of acting by attending the University of Oklahoma and majoring in drama, and his mother went through acting school in New York. He was in his first movie at 18 months, Frontier Woman, although his first real part was at the age of 4. Soon a regular on Playhouse 90 he was cast as Opie on The Andy Griffith Show, and later moved from a child in Mayberry to America's teenager as Richie Cunningham in Happy Days. The life of a child star is certainly not routine, but Ron's parents wanted his life to be as normal as possible - he attended public schools and at age 15 even took nine months off to play a basketball season. The transition from child actor to adult actor is always difficult, but for Ron the real transition was from child actor to adult director. There were some film roles, such as The Shootist for which he received a Golden Globe nomination, but his dream and now his focus was directing. He had begun shooting films at age 15 with a Super-8 camera, and after high school spent two years in a film program at the University of Southern California, but then left, feeling he could learn more from actual experience. That first film was the hardest to finance, but he struck a deal with Roger Corman - he would star in _Eat My Dust! (1976)_ and Corman would produce Grand Theft Auto which Howard would direct (he also wrote the script and starred). It was a success, and his directorial career was jump-started. Married since 1975 to his high school sweetheart, he, in 1997, is enjoying a life of telling stories as one of Hollywood's top directors.
A Beautiful Mind (2001): $10,000,000

In 1971, was a contestant on The Dating Game and ended up choosing Bachelorette #2, Nola Green. Son of actor/director Rance Howard and actress Jean Speegle Howard. Brother of Clint Howard. Went to high school with actress Rene Russo. Daughters: Bryce Dallas Howard (b. 1981), Jocelyn Carlyle (twin, b. 1985), Paige Carlyle (twin, b. 1985). Son: Reed Cross (b. 1987). All of Howard's four children are named after the places they were conceived: Bryce Dallas in Dallas, Texas, Paige Carlyle and Jocelyn Carlyle at the Hotel Carlyle in New York City, and Reed Cross after a specific road, according to Bryce Dallas Howard. Acted with Kathleen Quinlan in American Graffiti, then directed her in Apollo 13. Cast both of his parents in Apollo 13. Daughter Bryce also has a cameo appearance. Ranked #26 in Premiere's 2003 annual Power 100 List. Had ranked #29 in 2002. Recipient of a (USA) National Medal of Arts, 2003. Born on the same day as Catherine Bach, who is best known as "Daisy Duke" from The Dukes of Hazzard. Directed 7 different actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Don Ameche, Dianne Wiest, Ed Harris, Kathleen Quinlan, 'Russell Crowe (I)' , Jennifer Connelly, and Paul Giamatti. Ameche and Connelly won Oscars for their performances in one of Howard's movies. Ranked #27 on Premiere's 2005 Power 50 List. Had ranked #30 in 2004. Ranked #7 in Vh1's of the "100 Greatest Kid Stars" Is apparently a big fan of cricket. Attended the final Ashes test match between England vs. Australia on 12th September 2005 whilst filming The Da Vinci Code, and was spotted mingling with players in the Australian dressing room. When he was a child actor, his father was very involved in his career, protecting him from unfair treatment, and being strict with him, (when necessary). As a director, he's known for being versatile and exploring different sorts of movies (e.g.comedy, drama, fantasy, etc.). He was awarded the National Medal of Arts from the National Endowment of the Arts in 2003. Has directed two films on the American Film Institute's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time. They are "A Beautiful Mind" (2001) at #93 and "Apollo 13" (1995) at #12. Ranked #22 on Premiere's 2006 "Power 50" list. Had ranked #27 in 2005. Father-in-law of Seth Gabel Played Winthrop Paroo in The Music Man, and the title role in Huckleberry Finn. Both roles were previously played by Eddie Hodges.