Steven Meigs Ford (born May 19, 1956) is an American actor, and son of former U.S. President

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

and former First Lady

Betty Ford Elizabeth Anne Ford (; formerly Warren; April 8, 1918 – July 8, 2011) was the first lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977, as the wife of President Gerald Ford. As first lady, she was active in social policy and set a precedent as a p ...

Early life

First Lady Betty Ford and her son Steve - NARA - 7027906

Ford is the third child and youngest son of former President

and former First Lady

. Ford graduated from

T. C. Williams High School Alexandria City High School (formerly named T. C. Williams High School) is a public high school in the City of Alexandria, Virginia, United States, just outside of Washington, D.C. The school has an enrollment of over 4,100 students. The high s ...

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...

, on June 13, 1974, at which his father, then Vice President, gave the commencement address. Ford attended

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah ...

, studying range management; while his older brother John Gardner (Jack) Ford studied

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

. Ford also attended

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona, CPP, or Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo. See the ''name'' section of this article for more infor ...

and

California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt in Arcata, California or California State Polytechnic Univ ...

, where he studied equine studies.

Career

Ford was cast in the film '' Grease'' (1978) as Tom Chisum, but dropped out before filming began and was replaced by Lorenzo Lamas, citing

stage fright Stage fright or performance anxiety is the anxiety, fear, or persistent phobia which may be aroused in an individual by the requirement to perform in front of an audience, real or imagined, whether actually or potentially (for example, when perf ...

. Ford joined the cast of ''

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, Wi ...

'' in 1981, creating the role of

Private Investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

Andy Richards. He was a regular member of the cast from 1981 to 1987 and briefly from 2002 to 2003. Ford has since appeared in minor roles in a number of films and television series, including ''

Escape From New York ''Escape from New York'' is a 1981 American science fiction film, science fiction action film co-written, co-scored and directed by John Carpenter. It stars Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence, Isaac Hayes, Adrienne B ...

'', '' Babylon 5: In the Beginning'', ''

Armageddon According to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Armageddon (, from grc, Ἁρμαγεδών ''Harmagedōn'', Late Latin: , from Hebrew: ''Har Məgīddō'') is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies ...

'', '' Black Hawk Down'', ''

Starship Troopers ''Starship Troopers'' is a military science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. Written in a few weeks in reaction to the US suspending nuclear tests, the story was first published as a two-part serial in ''The Magazine of F ...

'', '' When Harry Met Sally...'', ''

Heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is ...

'', ''

Contact Contact may refer to: Interaction Physical interaction * Contact (geology), a common geological feature * Contact lens or contact, a lens placed on the eye * Contact sport, a sport in which players make contact with other players or objects * C ...

'', ''

Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the Autobots and the Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, ...

''. From 1992 to 1993, he hosted the short-lived series ''

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. Fo ...

''.

Personal life

Ford serves on the board of trustees for the Gerald R. Ford Foundation in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is th ...

. He describes himself as a "moderate Republican" and a "fiscal conservative". He also acknowledged that he suffered from

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Although he still takes on occasional acting assignments, he spends most of his time raising money for charitable organizations and giving speeches and motivational talks to student groups on alcoholism. He has never been married. In 1991, he announced his engagement to Laura Carlos. Later, he said that the marriage plans did not go forward as he was working on his

sobriety Sobriety is the condition of not having any measurable levels or effects from alcohol or drugs. Sobriety is also considered to be the natural state of a human being at birth. A person in a state of sobriety is considered sober. Organization ...

. On February 14, 1980,"Steve Ford Asks Child's Custody", ''The Modesto Bee'', February 23, 1980 he filed a lawsuit in California to determine if he was the legal father of a boy named Lawrence, born on December 16, 1979, to Joy Malken. He also filed for custody and/or

visitation rights In family law, contact, visitation and access are synonym terms that denotes the time that a child spends with the noncustodial parent, according to an agreed or court specified parenting schedule.Cambridge DictionaryVisitation/ref> The visitatio ...

. There was "a complete and amicable settlement" very shortly afterward, details being kept private.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Steven 1956 births American male soap opera actors American male television actors California Polytechnic State University alumni Children of presidents of the United States Children of vice presidents of the United States Gerald Ford family Living people Male actors from Grand Rapids, Michigan Utah State University alumni 20th-century American male actors American male film actors 21st-century American male actors Michigan Republicans People from East Grand Rapids, Michigan T. C. Williams High School alumni