Ever since Howie was three years old, singing "Baby Face" at the top of his lungs standing on his grandmother's bed, his older sister Polly Anna had been encouraging him to go into show business. In fact, Howie's first stage role was in a production of The Wizard Of Oz, to which his sister had dragged him along for an audition. Polly Anna was cast as Glenda, the good witch; Howie made his stage debut as a munchkin!
Half Irish, half Puerto Rican, Howie was borin in Orlando, Florida, the late-born last child of Hoke and Paula Dorough. Needless to say, with ten years between Howie and the second youngest, Johnny, Howie grew up the familly's darling but he was by no means spoiled. Howie's father retired from the police force when Howie was twelve and became Howie's main caregiver. Howie grew up with a sense of self-discipline that has served him very well throughout his career.
Howie had made the most significant career leaps at the time he met up with AJ and Nick. In addition to singnig in the church choir as a child and performing in all sorts of school productions, Howie had already been in two films: Parenthood and A Cop And A Half not to mention countless Disney commercials. Like AJ, he also tried out for The Mickey Mouse Club and didn't make it. He also auditioned for Menudo at one point, but no dice. When he got together with AJ and Nick, though, he knew they were on to something special.
Howie is a firm beleiver in the kind of music the Backstreet Boys make despite the fact that his male peers don't always see the value in what they're doing. He remembered, in Rolling Stone, that during their first tour before the single, even before they had signed a recording label "The guys would heckle us. We'd say 'You think you can do better, come on up here.' We'd sing a capella and we'd have them sing along with us. When it was their turn, we'd just drop out, let them sing by themselves. It embarrassed the heck out of them." This sounds so typical of Howie, who can get through to anyone, no matter what situation the guys have ever found themselves in.
Howie can talk to anyone about anything at anytime and make it make sense. In fact, he's often calld in to settle fights bwtween the guys and find some kind of peaceful reolution. And it usually works. He's the same way with his fans. Out of all the Buys, Howie always knows the right thing to say to any fan he meets. That's why his fans sometimes call him "Sweet D."
Out of all the guys, Howie is the most concentrated on the future. He wants to enjoy a long career with the Backstreet Boys as well as a luxurious present! but he's a show business verteran who knows all this could be over when he wakes up in the morning. He's the proverbial squirrel preparing for winter. Howie ahs used his earings to inves in condos, and, in addition to being a Backstreet Boy, he has gotten himself involved in real estate full time which is why the guys all tease him and call him "the businessman." But he remains practical. "We've had some tough times," he told Teen People "We want to thank the fans who've not believed the hype. It's made us stronger."
In addition to concentrating on his singing, Howie is starting to get mor involved with teh music, writing songs and playing instruments. "We just kind of dabble with [musical instruments]," he explains. "We're not trying to proclaim to be musicians, you know, professional musicians or anything. We're not trying to be the Hansons or anything." But he's serious about it. "I just got my home studio installed, and nick just got his installed , too. So whenever we come home, now, all the ideas we have we can put them down and get them on tape and send them to the record company. And that's a lot of fun."