HOWARD HAILS FROM THE NORTH east. He grew up in Manhasset, New York, located on the northern shore of Long Island. He acted and played basketball at Manhasset High School, where he was the only white player on his school team. He garnered the nickname, "White Shadow," from the rival Great Neck basketball squad. Regarding that nickname, Howard's former high school coach Fritz Mueller says, "sure he liked it, but he'd love any nickname. He was very funny and would spend hours singing in the showers with the other guys after practice, because Ken is a great singer, and they would keep me late."

In the television show "The White Shadow," which he created, Howard played an exprofessional basketball player turned high school coach. Howard loosely modelled his character after Mueller, even wearing replicas of his coach's sweat gear. The show's players also wore the orange-and-blue of Manhasset.

According to Mueller, now retired, Howard was a more than able player. In his senior year he copped the Most Valuable Player for his district. "He was big, very mobile, a good jumper and shooter," Mueller recalls. Had he chosen to aim for professional ball, his coach says, "he would have given it a good go."

After graduating from Amherst and Yale Drama School he was asked to play a Mid-Western lawyer vulnerable to big city temptations, in "Seesaw," which ran on Broadway in 1973. Since then, his major stage accomplishments include a Theater World Award for his portrayal of Thomas Jefferson in "1776" and a Tony Award for his work in "Child's Play."

Among his major television roles are a leading part in the television movie "Rage of Angels" and an Emmy Award winning performance in "Facts For Boys," which was a special for the program "The Body Human." His first regular appearance in a television series was in "Adam's Rib," where he played opposite Blythe Danner.

Because of his past theater and television roles, Howard says he is frequently recognized in public. Still his off-stage persona is low-key in contrast to his high-intensity performance in the "End of The World With Symposium To Follow."

During an interview, Howard is dressed modestly, wearing a brown tweed jacket, striped tie, butten down shirt and khaki pants. His hunched posture downplays his six-feet six-inch frame. His appearance is Eastern preppy, rather than Hollywood glitz.

Howard clearly prefers the East Coast lifestyle to that of the West. While living in California with his wife Margo, a political humorist for "The New Republic," the Howards grew dissatisfied with the Hollywood scene. "I never really settled in there. I always had one foot back on the Eastern seaboard," he says.

"Ken has a good sense of the balance between professional life and family," says Fred Wiseman, the Emmy award winning documentary filmmaker and a family friend. "What's nice is it has the charm of being true." Ken Howard has three step-children from his 10 year marriage to Margo. The couple maintains a home in the small town of Falls Village, Connecticut in addition to one in Cambridge.

Howard expects to continue his affiliation with the ART at least through next year. He says, "I have to be a better actor now than I was 12 months ago. I just have to."