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HARRISON FORD
July 13, 1942
Chicago, Illinois
Harrison Ford and his brother Terence were raised by their parents Christopher, an advertising
expert, and Dorothy. Practically from day one Harrison Ford showed hardly any interest at all
acadamically, and although he managed to graduate high school, he got booted from Ripon College
a mere three days before graduation.
Being painfully shy, it was a bold step on Harrison Ford's part when he took up acting, but it
was the one profession he could see himself in, and during the summer of '64, he joined the
Belfry Players for a season of summer stock. He was addicted, and a move to California soon
followed.
In the beginning, he landed a seven year deal with Columbia Studios for $150 a week. After playing
numerous bit parts in movies, Harrison Ford was removed from his Columbia contract because according
to a Columbia executive, Ford had no acting talent.
In 1967 he signed a similar contract with Universal Studios, which went on to cast him in numerous
television roles in shows such as the "Ironside", "Gunsmoke", "Kung Fu", and "The Virginian". But
acting wasn't paying the rent for his family, which included a wife and newborn son, Benjamin,
so he turned his back on acting and became a full-time carpenter, learning his trade out of books.
When the money from his carpentry work started to come in, it was then that Harrison Ford began to
again accept acting jobs. His return to the thespian profession paid off when finally his big
break came when he was cast in "American Graffiti", which went on to be a surprise hit. Another
hit soon followed when George Lucas cast him in "Star Wars".
Work was pretty much steady after that, although Ford found himself in roles that didn't do much
for his career. But thanks once again to Lucas, Harrison got the role of a lifetime as Indiana
Jones in "Raiders Of The Lost Ark". It was this character which propelled him to super stardom.
Afraid to be type-cast as a comic book hero, Harrison Ford took a daring chance when he went against
type and starred in the lead role in "Witness" opposite Kelly McGillis. The part went on to win
him an Oscar nomination and to finally put that Columbia executive in their place. Ford was a
talent to be reckoned with.
Photo © Unknown
Bio written by K. Kamarauskas ©2001 - [Please let us know of any errors]
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