Harrison Ford
"Never Give Up"
Early Life
Harrison Ford was born on July 13, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois where he lived in the city suburbs. His father was a former actor and an advertising executive and his mother was a radio actress. In his youth, Harrison was a member of the Boy Scouts. Harrison lacked academically as a student at Maine Township High School, he never had above a C average and he was not very athletic. Years later, he dropped out at Ripon College. Ford didn't know what to do with his life and spent a long time trying to figure things out before becoming successful.
A Mediocre Beginning
After dropping out of college, Harrison took a job in summer stock where he did things ranging from building sets to acting and landed his first big roles in the 1966 film Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round. Harrison's first performance left a Columbia executive unimpressed who told him about Tony Curtis's star power. "We took one look at him and said, there's a movie star. But you ain't got it kid. You ain't got it" Harrison says to a reporter, recounting the executive's words.
Building A Reputuation
Shortly afterwards, Ford was dropped and picked up by Universal. For the next several years, Ford played minor roles in shows like The Virginian and Kung-Fu. After the birth of his two sons, Ford realized he needed to take on carpentry work for extra income. It was during this time that Ford played a series of forgettable characters such as the The Mod Squad's "beach patrol cop" and a flower child on Love, American Style. However, Harrison made a better living out of carpentry, which he started out by building a recording studio for Sergio Mendes. Ford worked for many people including Francis Ford Coppola, Sally Kellerman, and James Caan.
A Lucky Break
One client though would change Harrison's acting career for ever. "Lucas hired me for American Graffiti before I really ever was a carpenter. It's hard to remember the chronology of it because it was so long ago, but it didn't have anything to do with me working for him as a carpenter," Ford says. The theory is that Lucas discovered Ford's talent, but this story is unproven.
Success At Last
After starring in American Graffiti, Harrison started to get better roles including Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars. Over the years, Harrison Ford has been in two helicopter crashes and survived. One thing that can be taken away from this is that people should never give up. As Harrison Ford once said: “I’ve been able to have the kind of career I wanted to have and be involved with the people I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with because I just never quit no matter what,”. - See more at: http://www.success.com/mobile/article/harrison-ford-never-give-up#sthash.IAWUqwPJ.dpuf
Harrison Ford - Champions of Obstacles Motivational Video
Works Cited
"Harrison Ford - "The" Original Dr. Jones." Harrison Ford Story. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.
"Harrison Ford: 'Never Give Up.'" SUCCESS. 08 Apr. 2013. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.http://www.etonline.com/news/165284_harrison_ford_flies_again_just_months_after_his_plane_crash/