It's not always easy being a towering figure in Hollywood -- just ask 6-foot-6 veteran character actor Ken Howard.
For one of his first jobs in Hollywood, the wardrobe department tried to put him in an old Union Army uniform that had been worn by John Wayne in "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon," but the sleeves were too short. More recently, when the 65-year-old was cast as New York white-shoe lawyer Phelan Beale in the HBO film "Grey Gardens," the costumers had to sew round the clock because they couldn't find real 1930s suits that fit.
Yet in politics, "height helps," says Howard, with a laugh. And he'll need any advantage he can get for his new role as president of the fractious Screen Actors Guild.
The former college basketball player -- who famously played a basketball coach in the cult favorite TV series "The White Shadow" -- knows he can always stand out in a crowd, even in Hollywood's largest union. Late last month, days after winning an Emmy for "Grey Gardens," Howard was decisively elected head of Hollywood's biggest dysfunctional family, backed by a wing of moderates whose famous faces include Tom Hanks and George Clooney. Howard's main campaign pledge was to reunite SAG with its longtime collective bargaining partner, the smaller American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, which also represents recording artists and news announcers. He also wants to bring a tone of civility back to a union beset by destabilizing infighting under the leadership of the scrappier -- and, yes, shorter -- Alan Rosenberg. In contrast to his predecessor, Howard has a decidedly more low-key style.
"One of the things that make actors good is their capacity to listen," says Howard in a restaurant near his Santa Clarita home. "I'll keep reminding myself that. If ever there was a job that requires a lot of listening, it's this one. To be in any way tone deaf or have a tin ear is disastrous at this point."
A bear-like presence in black trousers and a black vest, Howard exudes easygoing confidence and a gift for gab. He's also keenly aware that his mug, with its distinctive hang-dog eyes, is probably more famous than his name, given 40 years in showbiz, seven series (including "Dynasty" and "Crossing Jordan"), multiple movies and plays too numerous to count. He might be the SAG member with the most U.S. presidents on his resume, including portraying George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and even Warren G. Harding on a camping trip.
