1976 democratic national convention ron kovic biography

(1946-)

Who Is Ron Kovic?

In 1968, Ron Kovic was paralyzed while fighting in the Vietnam War. Once home, he stayed in veteran hospitals where conditions were poor, and sought an outlet for his outrage in activism. In 1976, he published Born on the Fourth of July. A film of same title, directed by Oliver Stone and starring Tom Cruise as Kovic, was released in 1989. Kovic continues to fight against war and in support of veterans' rights.

Early Life

Ron Kovic was born on July 4, 1946, in Ladysmith, Wisconsin but was raised in Massapequa, Long Island, New York. When Kovic was growing up, his father worked as a supermarket clerk, while his mother was a stay-at-home mom to Ron and his five younger siblings.

As a high school student, Kovic didn’t excel in academics. He was, however, a respected athlete in wrestling and track. He was considering a career as a professional baseball player after graduation, but a speech by a local military recruiter inspired him to enlis

•

Anti-War Activist Kovic in Spotlight igen With Movie

NEW YORK — Ron Kovic was an all-American boy from suburban New York who grew up to be a “Gung Ho” Marine, was paralyzed in Vietnam and returned to became a passionate anti-war activist.

His story fryst vatten now being told in a new film that opens around the country this week. Called “Born on the Fourth of July,” it stars Tom Cruise and was directed by Oscar-winning Vietnam veteran Oliver Stone, who also directed “Platoon.”

“I never thought I’d be saying this but my wound has become a blessing in disguise,” the 43-year-old Kovic says. “It’s enabled me to reach millions of people with a message of peace and hope.”

The film was to have been made in 1978 by producer Martin Bregman with Al Pacino playing the role of Kovic. But last minute financing difficulties canceled the project.

Bob Muller, founder of the influential Vietnam Veterans of America and the man who first coaxed Kovic into actively opposing the Vietnam War in 196

•

Ron Kovic

American activist and writer (born 1946)

Ronald Lawrence Kovic (born July 4, 1946)^[1] is an American anti-war activist, author, and United States Marine Corps sergeant who was wounded and paralyzed in the Vietnam War. His best selling 1976 memoir Born on the Fourth of July was made into the film of the same name which starred actor Tom Cruise as Kovic, and was co-written by Kovic and directed by Oliver Stone.^[2]

Kovic received the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay on January 20, 1990, 22 years to the day that he was wounded in Vietnam, and was nominated for an Academy Award in the same category.^[3]

Early life

[edit]

Kovic was born in Ladysmith, Wisconsin, the second of six children^[1] of Patricia Ann Lamb (January 6, 1923 – June 30, 2006) and Eli Thomas Kovic (August 3, 1920 – May 1, 1999).^[4] Eli Thomas Kovic met Lamb while serving in the Navy during the Second World War after both enlisted shortly after t