| James Ritz was born and raised in Pennsylvania.
During college, Ritz spent one summer in
Cape Cod, Massachusetts as a member of the Priscilla Beach Theatre Company where he appeared in many productions with a group of aspiring fellow actors that included
Rob Reiner and Albert Brooks.
After college, Ritz joined Army and was sent to Vietnam where he served as the entertainment director of III Corps in Saigon.
Returning to the US, he met Garry Marshall and became a writer for the ABC TV series, "Happy Days" starring Ron Howard.
Over the next two decades, Jim wrote for a number of TV series and specials.
In 1979, he was a producer of the TV film "Elvis" starring Kurt Russell.
As an actor, Ritz has appeared in several films made by Ron Howard including Splash, Cocoon, Apollo 13, and
How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Visitor Comments: | 
