Ron Howard’s Father Rance Dies at 89

Rance Howard, the father of Oscar-winner Ron Howard and character actor Clint Howard, and Bryce Dallas Howard‘s grandfather, died on Saturday. He was 89 years old.

“Clint & I have been blessed to be Rance Howard’s sons. Today he passed at 89,” Ron Howard announced on Twitter. “He stood especially tall 4 his ability to balance ambition w/great personal integrity. A depression-era farm boy, his passion for acting changed the course of our family history. We love & miss U Dad.”

Howard was also an actor, appearing in many of his son’s films, including Parenthood, Splash, Apollo 13, Cocoon, How The Grinch Stole Christmas and the Oscar-winning A Beautiful Mind.

Outside of Ron Howard’s films, Howard appeared in Alexander Payne’s Nebraska and Roman Polanski’s Chinatown. He appeared in over 280 movies and television episodes in a career that began in 1956.

In 1982, Howard earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Children’s Program for Through The Magic Pyramid, a TV movie Ron directed. Howard co-wrote the film, which told the story of a kid who is sent back to Ancient Egypt.

Howard’s other credits include Bones, The X-Files, Kroll Show, The Lone Ranger (2013), Grey’s Anatomy and The Waltons.

Howard was the patriarch of an acting dynasty. In addition to Ron Howard, he is survived by character actor Clint Howard. His grandchildren are Ron’s daughters, Jurassic World star Bryce Dallas Howard and Adventureland actress Paige Howard.

Howard was married twice, first to the late Jean Speegle Howard from 1949 until her death in 2000; then to Judy Howard from 2001 until her death in January 2017.

Photo: Getty/Kevin Kane / Stringer