His father was from Bälti, Bessarabia. Born in New York, Howard always knew he was destined for a rich and colorful life. He had natural movie star good looks and a shrewd mind. He started off in life without much but with tremendous courage to overcome any obstacle. He taught himself to become a champion swimmer and was a member of the Aquacade. His athleticism earned him a college scholarship and also saved him from the front lines of battle ni WWI as he was assigned by the Navy to teach hundreds of sailors how to swim. Howard created many successful ladies clothing lines and was the first to mass market maternity dresses. He sold his businesses at age 50 and retired to the good life. He taught himself to ski and play tennis and was soon dominating both sports with his grace and agility and refusal to ever be second best. Howard owned homes in New York City, Southampton, and Palm Beach and devoted himself to a social circuit of fine friends, parties, back-gammon, and traveling. He was married to Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia, as the third child and the only daughter of Prince Paul of Yugoslavia (prince regent of Yugoslavia 1934-1941) and Princess Olga of Greece and Denmark. Her older brothers were Prince Nicholas and Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia. They have two daughters: Catherine Oxenberg and Christina Oxenberg.