Ron Howard

From Mayberry to the Moon...and Beyond

By: Beverly Gray

Narrated by: Donna Postel

Ron Howard: From Mayberry to the Moon...and Beyond, the first full-length biography of Ron Howard, takes an in-depth look at the Oklahoma boy who gained national fame as a child star, then grew up to be one of Hollywood's most admired directors. Although many show-biz kids founder as they approach adulthood, Ron Howard had the advantage of brains, common sense, and two down-to-earth parents who kept him from having an inflated view of his own accomplishments. He also had a longstanding goal: to trade the glare of the spotlight for a quieter but equally creative life behind the camera. This biography tracks his career from 1960, when he debuted as six-year-old Opie Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show through 2002, when he accepted his Academy Award as Best Director for A Beautiful Mind.

Author Beverly Gray, an entertainment industry veteran, has spoken to teachers, friends, and professional colleagues from all phases of Howard's career. She has also combed the archives to gain further insight into this very private man whose accomplishments have brought pleasure to so many.

©2003 Beverly Gray (P)2021 Tantor

Opie!!

I had no idea Howard is so talented! What a great in depth tale of his life and every cool thing he has done! He is a good human.

Really Good Read

I really enjoyed this book. Loved the information and learning about Ron Howard’s life and career.

Life and Times of Ron Howard

I really enjoyed the book! We,m. and n. what's you and whenever I

I'll call you looking for You know like ll

Opi done good!

This is a nice run down on the work of Ronny Howard and those he brought along throughout his rise to fame. A true man of family values, well grounded by his parents. Its a good read and encourages the American dream, but always stay grounded

From Opie to a Beautiful mind

A well rounded synopsis of a famous child actor who become one of Hollywood’s famous directors. A book that contains nothing more than copied press releases and movie reviews about Ron Howard that encompass his unauthorized biography.

A solid biography ending about 2002

I listened to this immediately after listening to "The Boys." I really can't decide which one is the better book. "The Boys" may be a bit more compelling because it is narrated by Ron Howard and his brother Clint. "The Boys" also goes into a lot more detail about Ron's early life and family. On the other hand, "The Boys" ends around the time of Ron's earliest directing job for Roger Corman.

This book by Beverly Gray has the upper hand in terms of describing Ron's work after Corman. It describes some of the behind-the-scenes goings on in such films as "Splash," "Apollo 13," and "A Beautiful Mind." Unfortunately, the book does not provide as much detail as some readers might like about the making of these movies (and others). Also unfortunate is that the book ends about 2002. Ron has done quite a lot of work since then, though I am not sure any of it has been as remarkable as the work discussed in Gray's book. (I have not seen much of Ron's recent work.)

I feel author Beverly Gray does herself a disservice by stating quite candidly at the beginning that Ron declined to participate in this book. To make matters worse, the Audible sample clip includes Gray's confession on this point. I feel this is going to turn many would-be readers and listeners away from a book that really is a very decent biography. Despite Ron's non-involvement, Gray is very respectful toward him throughout. At times she almost seems fawning.

I found it remarkable how many anecdotes from "The Boys" also appear in this book. Gray's book came out after "The Boys" so I suppose some parts are derived from "The Boys." Of course, there are some stories about Ron's life that have been in circulation for years.

Occasionally, Gray's book can feel a bit superficial and distant. It is necessarily derived largely from previously published material about Ron Howard. Gray also conducted interviews with some people who worked with Ron over the years. Video clips and Ron's work itself also informs her writing. I sometimes felt she spent too much time summarizing the plots of Ron's most important projects.

Despite these few quibbles, overall I thought it was a pretty good book. I think maybe Ron should sit down with Gray so that maybe she can write an expanded and updated edition.

Dissapointing

While some of the book was well done, I should have known that, when the author mentioned the subject did not approve of her writing the book on him, we would be in trouble. But maybe you, as a reader, would like a detailed retelling of the movies and shows Ron Howard was in or directed. To me it seemed the author didn't have enough background to write the details on his life, so she included what she could, then did a retelling of his works to fill in the gaps. I thinks The Boys, by Ron Howard, will be better overall for thie purposof hearing about Mr. . Howard's life and family.

So boring

I adore Ron Howard but I'm not sure if it was the narration or the story, but it was as dull as it gets!