Last Updated on March 18, 2023

Rance Howard Biography.

Rance Howard was an American actor who starred in film and on television. He was born Harold Rance Beckenholdt on November 17, 1928, and died November 25, 2017. Rance was the father of actor and filmmaker Ron Howard and actor Clint Howard, and grandfather of the actresses Bryce Dallas Howard and Paige Howard.

He has appeared in numerous movies and TV films in his career.  The actor is widely famous for the portrayal of character Henry Boomhauer in the series Gentle Ben from 1967 to 1969.

Rance Howard Early life.

Rance Howard was born on 17 November 1928, in Duncan, Oklahoma, USA. He is an American by nationality and he is of German, English, Scottish, Irish, and remote Dutch ethnicity.

His birth name is Harold Rance Beckenholdt. He is the son of Engel Beckenholdt and Ethel Cleo Tomlin. Both of his parents were farmers. Howard attended high school in his native place. After that, he enrolled at the University of Oklahoma, where he went to drama school. After university graduation, he served three years in the United States Air Force. He changed his name to Rance Howard after deciding to become an actor.

Rance Howard Career.

Rance Howard began his acting career in 1948. In 1948, he went to New York City for auditions and landed a job in a children’s touring company. After his first role, he became popular and started getting more roles in theaters and movies. After that, he played the part of Lindstrom in the touring company of the play Mister Roberts with Henry Fonda in 1950.

He made his feature film debut with his son Ron in the 1956 western movie Frontier Woman. He then made his TV debut in the series Kraft Theatre in 1956. Howard became widely popular for his role on television in 25 episodes of the 1960s TV series Gentle Ben. He portrayed Henry Boomhauer in the series Gentle Ben from 1967 to 1969. He has appeared in over 100 movies in his career.

In 2013, he played Woody Grant’s brother in Nebraska. He often took parts as a priest or minister, county sheriff, or western marshal, and made numerous appearances in films by Joe Dante.

His final film role, completed in September 2017, is also the largest in his career. He plays the role of Carl Robbins in Michael Worth’s 2018 road trip drama, playing on film for the first time the father of his real-life son Clint Howard.

Rance Howard Family.

Howard married actress Jean Speegle Howard in Burbank, California, in 1949. They remained married until her death, in September 2000. Their sons are actor and filmmaker Ron Howard and actor Clint Howard. He was also the grandfather of actresses Bryce Dallas Howard and Paige Howard. His son Ron was born while he served three years in the United States Air Force.

In 2001, Howard married Judy Howard, a year after his first wife’s death. Judy Howard died in January 2017 in Burbank, ten months before Rance’s death.

Rance Howard Net worth.

He has a net worth of $6 million but her salary is not revealed yet.

Rance Howard Social Media.

The actor was not active in any social media pages.

Rance Howard Death.

Howard died on the morning of November 25, 2017, in Los Angeles, California, eight days after his 89th birthday, from heart failure, spurred on by a West Nile virus infection. He was laid to rest at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Rance Howard Movies and Tv shows.

Films.

Television.

Film and Tv source from Wikipedia