Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#15). [1995]
Was a master carpenter before becoming a movie star, a craft he still does as a hobby.
Revealed on the "Late Show with David Letterman" (1993) that he has some false teeth; 2 were pulled by a dentist after some others were damaged when he fell on a gun during a stunt for a TV appearance early in his career.
He provided the whip-cracks on the song "Desperation Samba (Halloween in Tijuana)" for Jimmy Buffett's album "Last Mango in Paris"
Private pilot, single engine fixed wing and helicopter. Owns a Bonanza, Gulfstream IV, DeHavland Beaver, and Bell 407 helicopter. Destroyed first 407 during simulated "engine-out" practice. Regularly flies himself between New York City and Wyoming homes. Has a loft in Tribeca, NYC.
Chosen as People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive. [1998]
Ranked #1 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997]
Chosen by "People" magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [1997]
Listed as one of 50 people barred from entering Tibet. Disney clashed with Chinese officials over the film Kundun (1997), which Ford's second wife, Melissa Mathison, wrote. [19 December 1996]
Studied at Ripon College in Ripon, Wisconsin, but left without obtaining a degree.
His wife, Melissa Mathison, wrote the screenplay for E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).
His "first broadcast" was during his senior year in high school (1960). He was literally the first voice heard over the new radio station, WMTH-FM, located at Maine Township High School in Park Ridge, Illinois, as they came on the air for the first time.
Considers The Mosquito Coast (1986) to be the favorite of all his movies.
Lives in a white-painted ranch house that he built himself in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Has a scar on his chin which he got when he tried to "buckle up" while already driving, and lost control of the car. The scar has been explained in two of his films: in the River Phoenix introductory sequence in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), an inexperienced young Indy hits himself in the chin the first time he tries to use the whip; and in Working Girl (1988), he first says that he got the scar in a knife fight, then admits that the true story is that he knocked his chin on a toilet after fainting during an ear-piercing.
He was billed as Harrison J. Ford until 1970 for less confusion between he and silent-screen actor Harrison Ford. He actually has no middle name.
While in college Ford appeared as Mac the Knife in the musical play, "The Threepenny Opera".
Brother of Terence Ford.
Piloted his helicopter to rescue dehydrated 20-year-old hiker Sarah George from Table Mountain near his ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. [31 July 2000]
Turned down the romance-action film Proof of Life (2000) (the Russell Crowe role), the summer-blockbuster The Perfect Storm (2000) (the George Clooney role), and finally, another summer-blockbuster, the war-epic The Patriot (2000) (the Mel Gibson role). Ford has said "The Patriot" was "too violent" for his tastes, especially considering that many children were killed and endangered throughout the film. He told People Magazine that he also turned down the film because he felt the story was too simple: "The Revolutionary War boiled down to one man seeking revenge."
Replaced Kevin Costner in Air Force One (1997).
Listed in the 2001 Guinness Book of Records as the richest male actor.
Turned down the role of Judge Wakefield in the movie Traffic (2000).
Credited with "creating" what many believe to be the best scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) because he was suffering from a bout of dysentery at the time of filming: during the scene in Cairo with the swordsman in black, the script called for a much longer fight, but because of his condition, he quietly asked director Steven Spielberg if they could shorten the scene. Spielberg's reply was that the only way it could be done would be if Indy pulled out his gun and "just shot the guy." The rest of the crew, not aware of the change, laughed at this, and it remained in the final cut.
Honored for his work with the environment, Ford was asked to name a new breed of butterfly. He named it after his daughter, Georgia.
Dragonfly (2002) was written with Ford in mind for the lead role. He turned it down to take a year off from making movies, and the part was given to Kevin Costner.
Costner's and Ford's casting choices have crossed paths many times before. Ford turned down the Jack Ryan role in The Hunt for Red October (1990) as did Costner. Ford instead made Presumed Innocent (1990) and Costner made his Oscar-winning Dances with Wolves (1990). The Jack Ryan role went to then character-actor Alec Baldwin.
The U.S. box office grosses of all of Ford's films total about $3.18 billion, with worldwide grosses totaling approximately $5.65 billion. No other actor in history has box-office grosses as large as Ford's.
Has a species of Central American ant (Peidole harrisonfordi) and spider (Calponia Harrisonfordi) name3d after him in honor of his conservation work.
He suffered a back injury while filming Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) which required surgery. While he was away Steven Spielberg filmed around him as best he could in the fights and stunt scenes, using Vic Armstrong, a British-born stunt man who looked so much like Ford that members of the crew were always mistaking confusing the two. Ford resumed doing his own stunts upon his return, and his close-ups were added later into the finished film.
Recommended River Phoenix for the role of the young Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). Ford and Phoenix had previously played father and son in The Mosquito Coast (1986).
Ranked #8 in Star TV's Top 10 Box Office Stars of the 1990s (2003)
He was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity in college.
30 May 2003: Received star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Both his Indiana Jones jacket and fedora hat are on display at the Smithsonian Institution.
He nearly turned down the role of Henry in Regarding Henry (1991) because the main character was a trial lawyer. He had just played one in Presumed Innocent (1990), and was afraid of being typecast. He took the role when he realized that Henry would only be functioning as a lawyer for the first ten minutes of the film.
October 2003 - had surgery on a torn-rotator cuff.
Was the second actor to play Tom Clancy's CIA man Jack Ryan (in Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994)) after the first actor, Alec Baldwin backed out after The Hunt for Red October (1990). Ben Affleck is the third to take the part.
Worked as a carpenter in Los Angeles before achieving fame in movies, mainly doing home remodeling work. Had a reputation as one of the best cabinetmakers in the city, and his services were much in demand on Los Angeles' trendy Westside long before he became a movie star.
His divorce from Melissa Mathison turned out to be the most expensive in the history of Hollywood.
Scared director Steven Spielberg and the crew during Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) when, without warning, he ran out across the rope bridge used in the film's climax to test its safety.
During the scene where he is frozen in carbonite in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Carrie Fisher says, "I love you." and Ford was supposed to reply "I love you too." but he suggested changing it to "I know."
Children: with Mary Marquardt, sons Benjamin (b. 22.09.1967) and Willard (b. 14-05-1969); with Melissa Mathison, son Malcolm Ford (b. 10-03- 1987) and daughter Georgia (b. 30-06-1991).
Was offered the part of Mike Stivic on "All in the Family" (1971), but turned it down, citing the bigotry of Archie Bunker was too offensive.
Has been in three films written by Lawrence Kasdan, but never one directed by him. Kasdan wrote Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).
His character, Han Solo, was ranked number 33 in Comedy Central's newest show: 'Mouthing Off: 51 Greatest Smartasses'.
He had a role as the school principal in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) who lectures Elliot about the dangers of alcohol. The scene was cut because director Steven Spielberg felt that Ford's presence would break the flow of the film. The only footage known to exist appeared in The E.T. Storybook released at the same time as the film.
His favorite record is "On the Edge", by his favorite artist, Patrick Rondat.
He was voted the 46th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly.
Said that Blade Runner (1982) was one of the most frustrating films he'd ever done, because the actual shoot was very grueling and because of the post-production changes which were meant to (but didn't) help the film do better at the box office.
Was originally brought in by George Lucas to feed lines to other actors auditioning for Star Wars (1977) because he wasn't allowed to audition (Lucas wanted new faces for the film). He eventually won Lucas over and the role of Han Solo went to him.
Once described Han Solo as "The great rapscallion of the universe."
Out of the three leads of the original Star Wars trilogy, he was the only one to appear in all three films without ever signing a contract.
Was friends with Billy Dee Williams before they appeared together in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). Williams had tested for the role of Han Solo in the original film.
He has acted alongside four actors from "The Lord of the Rings" series before they appeared in the trilogy. John Rhys-Davies in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981); Viggo Mortensen in Witness (1985); Sean Bean in Patriot Games (1992) and Miranda Otto in What Lies Beneath (2000).
When he arrived in England to start filming Star Wars (1977), Alec Guinness helped him find an apartment.
Said in an interview that he felt compelled to do his own stunts for the Indiana Jones trilogy because the film was very "action oriented" and that he felt if he weren't in the middle of it, then were really wasn't much else for him to do.
Said one of the things he enjoyed most about making both Witness (1985) and The Mosquito Coast (1986) was getting to apply his real life skills as a carpenter (example: the barn raising scene from "Witness").
His characters, Han Solo and Indiana Jones respectively, are both brutally tortured in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), the second installments of both trilogies.
Witness (1985) was his first role that broke him away from the science fiction and fantasy genres that made him famous. It does, however, still have a connection to his breakthrough role of Han Solo. One of the cast members was Robert Earl Jones, whose son, James Earl Jones, was the voice of Darth Vader. He also worked with Ford in Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994).
Daughter Georgia attends Wildwood School in Los Angeles, where the children of Demi Moore, Bill Pullman, Bruce Willis, Eddie Murphy, Steven Spielberg and several over music and entertainment personalities attend, and is great friends with Elliot Murphy, son of Eddie.
He was voted the 35th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Premiere Magazine.
While filming Firewall (2006) in Vancouver, British Columbia, he was so impressed with the beauty of Bowen Island that he purchased a $13-million waterfront property upon the request of girlfriend Calista Flockhart.
Indiana Jones was voted the second greatest screen hero of all time by the American Film Institute, just behind Gregory Peck's Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962).
Has been pursued by two generations of the Fett fami
Harrison Ford Detailed Biography
If Harrison Ford had listened to the advice of studio heads early in his career, he would have remained a carpenter and never gone on to star in some of Hollywood's biggest films and become one of the industry's most bankable stars. Born July 13, 1942, in Chicago and raised in a middle-class suburb, he had an average childhood. An introverted loner, he was popular with girls but picked on by school bullies. Harrison Ford quietly endured their everyday tortures until he one day lost his cool and beat the tar out of the gang leader responsible for his being repeatedly thrown off an embankment. He had no special affinity for films and usually only went to see them on dates because they were inexpensive and dark. Following high school graduation, Harrison Ford studied English and Philosophy at Ripon College in Wisconsin. An admittedly lousy student, he began acting while in college and then worked briefly in summer stock. He was expelled from the school three days before graduation because he did not complete his required thesis.
In the mid-'60s, Harrison Ford and his first wife (his college sweetheart) moved to Hollywood, where he signed as a contract player with Columbia and, later, Universal. After debuting onscreen in a bit as a bellboy in Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966), he played secondary roles, typically a cowboy, in several films of the late '60s and in such TV series as Gunsmoke, The Virginian, and Ironside. Discouraged with both the roles he was getting and his difficulty in providing for his young family, he abandoned acting and taught himself carpentry via books borrowed from the local library. Using his recently purchased run-down Hollywood home for practice, Harrison Ford proved himself a talented woodworker, and, after successfully completing his first contract to build an out-building for Sergio Mendez, found himself in demand with other Hollywood residents (it was also during this time that Harrison Ford acquired his famous scar, the result of a minor car accident). Meanwhile, Harrison Ford's luck as an actor began to change when a casting director friend for whom he was doing some construction helped him get a part in George Lucas' American Graffiti (1973). The film became an unexpected blockbuster and greatly increased Harrison Ford's familiarity. Many audience members, particularly women, responded to his turn as the gruffly macho Bob Falfa, the kind of subtly charismatic portrayal that would later become Harrison Ford's trademark. However, Ford's career remained stagnant until Lucas cast him as space pilot Han Solo in the megahit Star Wars (1977), after which he became a minor star. He spent the remainder of the 1970s trapped in mostly forgettable films (such as the comedy Western The Frisco Kid with Gene Wilder), although he did manage to land the small role of Colonel G. Lucas in Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now (1979).
The early '80s elevated Harrison Ford to major stardom with the combined impact of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and his portrayal of action-adventure hero Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), which proved to be an enormous hit. He went on to play "Indy" twice more, in 1984's Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1989. Harrison Ford moved beyond popular acclaim with his role as a big-city police detective who finds himself masquerading as an Amish farmer to protect a young murder witness in Witness (1984), for which he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his work, as well as the praise of critics who had previously ignored his acting ability. Having appeared in several of the biggest money-makers of all time, Harrison Ford was able to pick and choose his roles in the '80s and '90s. Following the success of Witness, Ford re-teamed with the film's director, Peter Weir, to make a film adaptation of Paul Theroux's novel The Mosquito Coast. The film met with mixed critical results, and audiences largely stayed away, unused to the idea of their hero playing a markedly flawed and somewhat insane character. Undeterred, Harrison Ford went on to choose projects that brought him further departure from the action films responsible for his reputation. In 1988 he worked with two of the industry's most celebrated directors, Roman Polanski and Mike Nichols. With Polanski he made Frantic, a dark psychological thriller that fared poorly among critics and audiences alike. He had greater success with Nichols, his director in Working Girl, a saucy comedy in which he co-starred with Melanie Griffith and Sigourney Weaver. The film was a hit, and displayed Ford's largely unexploited comic talent.
Harrison Ford began the 1990s with Alan J. Pakula's courtroom thriller Presumed Innocent, which he followed with another Mike Nichols outing, Regarding Henry (1991). The film was an unmitigated flop with both critics and audiences, but Ford allayed his disappointment the following year when he signed an unprecedented 50-million-dollar contract to play CIA agent Jack Ryan in a series of five movies based upon the novels of Tom Clancy. The first two films of the series, Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994), met with an overwhelming success mirrored by that of Harrison Ford's turn as Dr. Richard Kimball in The Fugitive (1993). Harrison Ford's next effort, Sydney Pollack's 1995 remake of Sabrina, did not meet similar success, and this bad luck continued with The Devil's Own (which reunited him with Pakula), despite Ford's seemingly fault-proof pairing with Brad Pitt. However, Harrison Ford's other 1997 effort, Wolfgang Petersen's Air Force One, more than made up for the critical and commercial shortcomings of his previous two films, proving that Harrison Ford, even at 55, was still a bona fide, butt-kicking action hero. Stranded on an island with Anne Hesche for his next feature, the moderately successful romantic adventure Six DaysSeven Nights (1998), Ford subsequently appeared in the less successful romantic drama Random Hearts. Bouncing back a bit with Robert Zemeckis' horror-flavored thriller What Lies Beneath, the tension would remain at a fever pitch as Ford and crew raced to prevent a nuclear catastrophe in the fact based deep sea thriller K-19: The Widowmaker. Harrison Ford, who does not like doing interviews and has maintained a strict privacy regarding his personal life, made a home with his second wife, screenwriter Melissa Mathison, whose credits include E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), until their separation. Prior to that, they lived quietly with their two children, Malcolm and Georgia (Ford's other children, two sons from his first marriage, are grown and have chosen careers outside of show business), in New York City and on an 800-acre ranch near Jackson Hole, WY; Harrison Ford had clauses inserted in his movie contracts which permitted him to bring his family with him for location shootings.
