Ron Kovic Net Worth

What is Ron Kovic's Net Worth?

Ron Kovic is an American anti-war activist, author, and former US Marine Corps sergeant during the Vietnam War who has a net worth of $1.5 million. Paralyzed from the chest down due to war injuries, Ron Kovic became a prominent peace activist in the 1970s and wrote the bestselling memoir "Born on the Fourth of July." With Oliver Stone, Kovic later adapted his memoir into the award-winning 1989 film of the same name starring Tom Cruise.

Early Life and Education

Ron Kovic was born on July 4, 1946, in Ladysmith, Wisconsin, as the second of six children of Patricia and Eli, both US Navy veterans. He has Irish ancestry through his mother and Croatian ancestry through his father. Raised in Massapequa, New York, Kovic attended Massapequa High School, graduating in 1964.

Military Service

After volunteering to serve in the Vietnam War, Kovic was sent to South Vietnam at the end of 1965. He started off in the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment before being transferred to the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion in the summer of 1966. Kovic participated in 22 long-range reconnaissance patrols in enemy territory and was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat V. He concluded his 13-month tour of duty in early 1967 and returned home. Several months later, Kovic volunteered to serve in Vietnam again, this time with the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

In early 1968, while leading a reconnaissance force of battalion scouts in the Demilitarized Zone, Kovic and his squad ran into the NVA 803rd Regiment and some Viet Cong members. Kovic was shot by NVA soldiers and abandoned by most of his unit. The bullets tore out the back of his heel and injured his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down. After one Marine was killed while trying to save him, a second Marine successfully carried Kovic to safety. He subsequently spent a week in an intensive care unit in Da Nang. For his service and injuries, Kovic was awarded a Bronze Star with Combat V and a Purple Heart.

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Antiwar Activism

Following his service in Vietnam, Kovic became a preeminent antiwar activist. Among the best-known and most prolific of peace activists among Vietnam veterans in the United States, he participated in numerous protests and was arrested 12 times in total. Kovic spoke to students at schools, with his first speech occurring at Levittown Memorial High School on Long Island in 1970. The next year, he took part in a demonstration at a draft board in Orange County, California.

In 1974, Kovic led a cadre of fellow disabled Vietnam veterans in wheelchairs on a 17-day hunger strike inside the Los Angeles office of U.S. Senator Alan Cranston. The group demanded better treatment for returning veterans and a meeting with Veterans Administration head Donald E. Johnson. Eventually, Johnson agreed to meet with the veterans, and several months later, he resigned.

Since the end of the Vietnam War, Kovic has continued to speak out against other global wars. In the early 1990s, he participated in several demonstrations against the first Gulf War, and in the 2000s, he vehemently denounced the Iraq War.

Kovic traveled to London in 2003 to protest the visit of George W. Bush, leading a large march against him and the Iraq War at Trafalgar Square. He led another march against the war in Denver, Colorado in 2008, the day before the start of the Democratic National Convention in the city.

(Photo by David Livingston/Getty Images)

Born on the Fourth of July

Kovic gained a new level of fame with his memoir "Born on the Fourth of July," which was published in 1976 and became a bestseller. The book was later adapted into the 1989 biographical film of the same name, co-written by Kovic and Oliver Stone, directed by Stone, and starring Tom Cruise as Kovic. A critical and commercial success, the film earned eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Adapted Screenplay for Kovic and Stone. The duo also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, coincidentally, 22 years to the day on which Kovic was wounded in Vietnam.

Personal Life

Kovic resides in Redondo Beach, California. His hobbies include writing, painting, gardening, and playing the piano.

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