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Indiana Jones and Getting Older
By now, more than three decades into his leading-man career, Harrison Ford has earned the right to be compared to Hollywood's all-time greats. At 65, he's a star in the tradition of Clark Gable or Gary Cooper-as rugged, clear-eyed, and dry-witted as the characters he plays. Ford's legacy includes some of the most beloved movies ever made, and six of the highest-grossing, including the Indiana Jones and Star Wars films. He has also worked hard behind the scenes on a number of pressing environmental issues. But it's his everyday aspect, starting with his lopsided grin and grumbled delivery, that makes him an audience favorite. Without Han Solo's questioning smirk, Star Wars might have been just another spaced-out fantasy.This month, the actor picks up his trademark bullwhip for another crack at chasing treasure. After years of false starts, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull will arrive in 4,000 U.S. theaters and be dubbed in more than two dozen languages. Ford recently sat down with Reader's Digest in Los Angeles and freely shared his feelings about stardom, money, and the maternal skills of his girlfriend, Calista Flockhart. In fact, this father of four loves having a child in his life again. "It's made me just a tiny bit less self-centered," he says. Now, that's a leading man.
RD: You've played so many heroes. Do you feel like a hero when you look in the mirror?
Ford: Decidedly not. And I haven't purposefully set out to play heroes. I'm interested in playing the character who finds himself in extraordinary circumstances. But he's really either just saving himself or acting in the service of something that's important to him.
RD: Who do you look at in the real world and say, "That's a hero"?
Ford: The people who devote themselves to serving humanity at the cost of being less comfortable and less protected than the rest of us. They are policemen, firemen, and those who bring to the attention of the world things that are critical to its health and well-being.
RD: You just finished your fourth turn as Indiana Jones. What was it like to put on that fedora again?
Ford: After 20 years, the costume still fit, which was encouraging. And the character came back with the clothes. I think some trace of Indiana still resides in that leather jacket, hat, and whip.
RD: What can't you do at 65 that you could do at 45?
Ford: Eat too much! Actually, I was able to do all the things that I did in the past, and maybe even more because of the advances that have been made in safe stunt work.
RD: That jacket, hat, and whip are in the Smithsonian. What is it that makes Indiana Jones so cool?
Ford: It's the places he goes and the extraordinary adventures he has. The audience loves the ride, the creepy-crawly things, the near misses, and the pursuit of evildoers.
RD: How has Calista Flockhart changed you as a person?
Ford: She's brought a child back into my home. My youngest, other than [Calista's son] Liam, is 17. It's a wonderful opportunity to be part of a child's growing up, which is always an endless springtime. You see the blossoming and the growing and the nurturing and the payoff.
RD: What kind of mother is Calista?
Ford: The best in the world. She's a mother by choice -- she adopted Liam before we met, as a single parent, which is an awesome responsibility to take. She's devoted herself to Liam and has done a really wonderful job raising him. I'm happy to now have a part of the job.
RD: Are you a different father to Liam than you were to your other four children, who are grown now?
Ford: Naturally enough, I'm a little bit more mature.
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