6/24/2012

The Life and Times of Harrison Ford

By Sredna Nesegleh


Harrison Ford is one of the most recognized actors in the entire role. While most people recognize him from his roles of Han Solo and Indiana Jones, he has been in dozens and dozens of other movies that have had success and failure. While he is a great actor, this is not what his whole life is about, however, as he has many varied interests and has a family as well.

Harrison and His Early Life

Harrison Ford was born to a former actress and actor on July 13, 1942. His upbringing was that of a normal child, including being in the Boy Scouts and achieving its second highest rank. Chicago, Illinois was his first home and he was raised in an Irish-Jewish household. His mother, Dorothy, stayed at home with the kids, while his father, Christopher, was an advertising executive. In 1960, Ford graduated from Maine East High School in Park Ridge, Illinois, where he was the first student voice broadcasted on the school's radio station. He then went on to attend college, where he took a drama class during his senior year to get over his shyness.

Starting His Career

Harrison moved to Los Angeles after his graduation from college to apply for voice-over jobs. He did not get a job doing voice-overs, but he did join Columbia Pictures' New Talent program, which gave him access to bit jobs on movies. He played many uncredited roles in movies during the early 1960's, but his first credited role was in 1967 in A Time for Killing, which was a western. Roles in television shows quickly followed and he can be found playing parts in Gunsmoke, American Style, Kung Fu, and Love, American Style. He was not happy with the roles that he was getting, so he became a self-taught carpenter to support his family. He worked for many important people, among those, George Lucas, who would go on to be an important person in his journey to stardom.

From Making Cabinets to Making Movies

George Lucas and Harrison Ford connected while he was building cabinets and Lucas gave him a job reading lines for the actors who were auditioning for Star Wars. While he was not expecting it, his readings led to Lucas offering him the role of Han Solo, which helped to propel him into movie history. This was just the beginning of his career. He then starred in the Indiana Jones series of movies and many other movies, including Air Force One, Patriot Games, Extraordinary Measures, and Cowboys & Aliens.

Harrison and His Personal Life

The thing about Harrison Ford is that he keeps his personal life very personal. While he has put his life out there in films, he keeps his personal life close to the vest. He has been married three times and has five children and three grandchildren. His latest marriage is to Calista Flockhart and they have one child, Liam. Harrison is not just about acting and producing. He has many interests including aviation, environmental causes, politics, archaeology, and community work.

Harrison Ford is much more than the characters of Han Solo and Indiana Jones. He has been in dozens of movies and co-starred with many different stars. This is not all he is about, however, as evidenced in his close to the vest personal life. He has many other skills and interests other than acting and producing, which shows that he is a multi-faceted man that is to be admired. Whether you enjoy his early movies or his more current ones, you are sure to appreciate his wide range of acting abilities and style. Keep an eye out for Harrison Ford and his new movies-you will be glad you did.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment