Jim Houghton (born James Carter Houghton; November 7, 1948), is an American actor and soap opera writer. He is best known as an original cast member of CBS prime time soap opera '' Knots Landing'' and played the role of Kenny Ward during seasons one through four (1979-1983).

Biography and career

Houghton was born in Los Angeles, California. He is the son of producer

Buck Houghton Archible Ernest "Buck" Houghton (May 4, 1915 – May 14, 1999) was an American television producer and writer best known for producing the first three seasons of ''The Twilight Zone'', as well as many other television programs and independen ...

. He began his acting career with appearances in the television shows ''Man With A Camera'', ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

,'' and '' McKeever & the Colonel''. He was an original cast member of

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

daytime soap opera ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, ...

'' where he played Greg Foster from 1973 to 1976. After leaving daytime, Houghton was cast in a leading role in the short-lived CBS action series ''

Code R ''Code R'' is an American action-adventure television series that aired on CBS from January 21 to June 10, 1977. ''Code R'' focuses on the emergency services (police, fire, and ocean rescue) of the California Channel Islands. The series starred ...

'' in 1977.Alex McNeil, ''Total Television'', New York: Penguin Books, 1996, 4th ed., p. 169, 779 His most prominent role is that of Kenny Ward,

Kim Lankford Kim Lankford (born June 14, 1954) is an American businesswoman and retired actress, best known for her role as Ginger Ward on ''Knots Landing'' from 1979 to 1983. Life and career Lankford was born in Montebello, California. She made her screen ...

's character's husband, on the long-running CBS prime time soap opera '' Knots Landing ''from 1979 to 1983. During the 1980s, he also guest-starred on ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. ...

'', ''Hotel'', ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pa ...

'', and ''

Remington Steele ''Remington Steele'' is an American television series co-created by Robert Butler and Michael Gleason. The series, starring Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan, was produced by MTM Enterprises and first broadcast on the NBC network from O ...

''. In 1986, he had a small role in the ABC miniseries '' North and South, Book II'' and went on to play Cash Cassidy on the ABC prime time soap opera ''

The Colbys ''The Colbys'' (originally titled ''Dynasty II: The Colbys'') is an American prime time television soap opera that originally aired on ABC from November 20, 1985, to March 26, 1987. Created by Richard and Esther Shapiro and Eileen and Robert ...

''(1986–87). Houghton has appeared in a number of films, including, '' Sweet Sugar'' (1972), '' One on One'' (1977), '' I Wanna Hold Your Hand'' (1978), ''

More American Graffiti ''More American Graffiti'' is a 1979 American coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by Bill L. Norton, produced by Howard Kazanjian. It is the sequel to the 1973 film ''American Graffiti''. Whereas the first film followed a group of frie ...

'' (1979), '' Superstition'' (1982) and ''

Purple People Eater Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by Additive color, mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used b ...

'' (1988). In the 1990s, Houghton returned to '' The Young and the Restless ''and also ''

The Bold and the Beautiful ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (often referred to as ''B&B'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. It premiered on March 23, 1987, as a sister show to the Bells' other soap opera ''The Yo ...

'' as a script writer, a position he held into the 2000’s. He is also credited along with his sister, Mona Houghton, for writing several episodes of the long-running series, '' Knots Landing.''

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Awards The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (N ...

*WINS (1992, 1997, 2000, 2006; Best Writing Team; The Young And The Restless) *NOMINATIONS (1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004 & 2005; Best Writing; Y&R) Writers Guild of America Award *WGA WINS (2002 & 2005 Season; The Young and The Restless) *WGA NOMINATIONS (1999 & 2001 Season; Young and The Restless)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Houghton, Jim American soap opera writers American male screenwriters American television producers Daytime Emmy Award winners American male television actors American male soap opera actors Writers Guild of America Award winners 1948 births Living people American male television writers