Birth Day: 1966-12-07
Place of birth: Los Angeles, California, USA
Christopher Thomas Howell (born December 7, 1966), usually credited as C. Thomas Howell, is an American actor and film director. He starred in the films The Outsiders as Ponyboy Curtis and in The Hitcher as Jim Halsey. He has appeared in Soul Man, Red Dawn, Secret Admirer, Gettysburg, H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds, The Day the Earth Stopped and Gods and Generals. Howell was born in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles to Christopher N. and Candice Howell. He has three siblings. His father worked as a stunt coordinator and rodeo performer. He played the role of the Red Knight in Terry Gilliam’s The Fisher King. As a young boy, Howell wanted to be a stuntman and was a child stunt performer. He was also a rodeo star. When Howell was young, his parents divorced. Howell graduated from Saugus High School in 1984. In 1982, Howell made his film debut as Tyler in Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. At the age of 15 in 1981, Howell was cast in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders (1983). Howell played the lead role of Ponyboy Curtis, "the soulful tagalong greaser through whose eyes we see the events of the 1960s-set film unfold." Based on S.E. Hinton's bestselling 1967 novel of the same name,the coming-of-age film went on to become a cult classic. Howell's portrayal of Ponyboy was his breakthrough role, and it earned him a Young Artist Award. In 1984, Howell and his Outsiders co-star Patrick Swayze reunited for Grandview, U.S.A. and Red Dawn. Howell also had a pivotal role in Tank (1984). In 1985, he starred in Secret Admirer. After filming The Outsiders, Howell co-starred in his own television series Two Marriages, which ended after four episodes, but letters of support got it back on air. He later expressed disappointment in the series. Howell was one of two final actors in the running for the lead role of Marty McFly in Back to the Future (1985); the other was Eric Stoltz. Ultimately, Michael J. Fox was cast as Marty after Stoltz was deemed wrong for the part. In 1986, Howell was a hitchhiker's target in the film The Hitcher. He also starred in the sequel, which was released in 2003. In 1986, Howell starred in Soul Man, a film in which Howell appears in Blackface. Rounding out the 1980s , Howell played the young Arturo Toscanini in Franco Zeffirelli's 1988 film Young Toscanini.
Credits
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As John Hawkins -
As Caspar Weinberger -
As Mr. Sapp -
As Ed Cameron -
As Frank -
As Peter -
As Dr. Eric Peselowe -
As Breen Nash -
As Self -
As Captain Miles Browning -
As Control (voice) -
As The Stranger -
As Blake -
As Carter -
As Eobard Thawne / Professor Zoom (voice) -
As Jim Craft -
As Ted -
As Jenkins -
As Narrator -
As Kaine -
As John Danielson -
As Walter Jenkins -
As Robert Crawford -
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As Ben Wilkins -
As Nathan Shapiro -
As Ryan -
As Officer Roberts -
As Dr. Will Magnus (voice) -
As Tom Worthy -
As Sheriff Quentin -
As Silent Cal -
As Keith -
As Jack Carter -
As Jack
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As George 'Shorty' White -
As Tony -
As Zeke -
As Jack Carter -
As Charlie DuPuis -
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As Rad -
As Rex Everhart -
As Jack -
As Mitch Fielding -
As Delbert Furgeson -
As Nathan Detrick -
As Professor Eobard 'Zoom' Thawne / Reverse-Flash (voice) -
As Russ -
As Double -
As Patrick Cole -
As Paul Jordan -
As Jack's Father -
As Ray -
As Self -
As Jake -
As Sheriff Beaumont -
As John Youngstown -
As Chief Grasso -
As Professor Grimes -
As David -
As Luke -
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As Frost Michaels -
As Alumnus Guy #2 -
As Seth Delray -
As Jed -
As George Herbert -
As Stone
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As Horn -
As LIttle Joe -
As Thomas -
As Josh Myron -
As Sully -
As Captain Williams -
As K.C. Corcoran -
As Clayton Connelly -
As Michael Archer -
As David Settles -
As Doctor Ballard -
As George Herbert -
As Coach Fielding -
As Jim Powell -
As Curtis -
As Kuratha -
As Self -
As Capt. Baskin -
As Kenneth Bianchi -
As Hedion -
As Addison Terrill -
As Preston Webb -
As Zack -
As Sgt. Thomas Chamberlain -
As Jim Halsey -
As Adam Vance -
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As Nat Wolff -
As Sheriff Lyndon Harris -
As Sheriff Wade Messer -
As Nathan Devine -
As Concierge -
As Joss Mckinley -
As Geoffrey Liddy -
As Tom Milton -
As Dean Riley -
As Valentino -
As Officer Roberts -
As Tom Holly -
As Malcolm 'Mack' Maddox -
As J.B. Gaines -
As Jack -
As John Reed -
As Dean -
As Dakota -
As Boris Dakota -
As Detective Mick Cullen
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As Michael D'Angelo -
As Evan -
As Blaise Rybeck -
As Tucker -
As Michael Jardine -
As Thomas 'Quin' Quinlan -
As Aaron -
As Sanchez Boon -
As Evan Marino -
As Mark Goddard -
As Baby Face Nelson -
As Johnie Dean -
As Dan Jericho -
As Oscar Bonsetter -
As Mike -
As Jim Lomax -
As Ben Braden / Alex Connelly -
As Carl -
As Bernard Sprat -
As Micky Stewert -
As Lieut. Thomas D. Chamberlain -
As Paul Stevens -
As Sergeant Lee Teffler -
As Gene Michaels -
As Egan -
As Jack Stone -
As Rick -
As Cat Thomas -
As Himself -
As Kid -
As Monroe Clark -
As Jenner Brading -
As Raoul -
As Arturo Toscanini -
As Bubber Drumm -
As Tripp Wilson -
As Mark Watson -
As Jim Halsey -
As Michael Ryan -
As Tim Pearson -
As Robert -
As Billy -
As Ponyboy Curtis -
As Tyler -
As Stanley Dixon
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As Self -
As Nathan -
As Stanley Dixon