Thursday, June 16, 2011

Brief bio on Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks was born in concord CA. on July 9, 1956 at 11:17 AM. He grew up moving around a lot with step families. When his parents divorced, the details of it made them pioneers in that state in marriage dissolution. He remained with his father moving around a lot and was not able to form lasting relationships. He suffered no abuse just a confused childhood. Hanks attended Skyline high school in Hayward CA. where he pursued his interests in basketball, soccer and the track team. He became the loud one, a trick he learned to get attention in the numerous schools he attended (IMBD).He attended Chabot College and California State University in Sacramento. He married Samantha Lewes in 1978 and divorced in 1987, he has two children with her. She died of cancer fourteen years after their divorce. He married his current wife Rita Wilson in 1988 who he met on the set of Bosom Buddies and has two children with her.
Although he was successful in drama at Skyline he was unable to get cast in college. He auditioned for a community play and was asked by the director to go to Cleveland and this is when his acting career started. His first acting job was as Gremio in Taming of the Shrew for $210 a week. Hanks never returned to college but chose instead to learn about theatre at the civic theatre in Sacramento. He returned to Cleveland in 78 and 79 making a name for him. In 1980 he landed his role in Bosom Buddies which lasted two years. Ron Howard called hanks to audition for a secondary role in Splash but got the lead role because he was so good. This launched his film career and kept him busy throughout the eighties. Every Time We Say Goodbye earned Hanks his first million dollar pay check.


In 1993 Hanks was cast in Philadelphia and ended up receiving an Oscar for his portrayal of Andrew Beckett. In his acceptance speech he thanked his gay drama teacher and this was the basis for the film In & Out. The movie Philadelphia was the second movie to address the aids issue and signaled a shift in Hollywood that began to show gay men and lesbians in a more positive light. Even so more intimate scenes between him and Bandera’s were cut but are included in the DVD (TalkTalk).
Hanks remains a force in the film industry. His star has not dimmed, he won another Oscar in 1994 for Forest Gump making him the only man in 55 years to win back to back Oscars, the other being Spencer Tracy (IMBD). In 1994 he did Forest Gump, and as part of his salary accepted part of the box office, a very good move that brought him 70 million. In 95 he did the voice for Woody in Toy Story and Apollo 13. 1999 brought Saving Private Ryan and another chance to work with Steven Spielberg. Saving Private Ryan eventually gave way to the series Band of Brother. In 2005 he was once again on screen in The Da Vinci Code and reprised his role in Angels & Demons. It seems he is unstoppable. The shy confused child has been proclaimed a modern day Jimmy Stewart, being able to be funny, serious and emotional Tom Hanks has defined masculinity as a leading man in many different ways.
Some facts about Tom Hanks.
Dislocated his shoulder when he fell through a rotting floor in a building in Germany while scouting locations with Steven Spielberg for the HBO series "Band of Brothers" (2001) (1999).

Received American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award, presented by fellow Oscar winner Steven Spielberg, the youngest ever to receive that award (12 June 2002).

Is a member of the International Thespian Society (a group supporting theatre for high school students internationally).

Lost 30 lbs. for his role in Philadelphia (1993).

Has been referred to by many as "the modern James Stewart".

His heroic Oscar-winning gay character Andrew Beckett in the 1993 film Philadelphia (1993) was ranked #49 on the Amerian Film Institute's heroes list of the 100 years of The Greatest Screen Heroes and Villians.

Has been Member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Actors Branch) since 2001.

Cited as America's Favorite Movie Star in Harris Polls conducted in 2002, 2004, 2005, a record number of times as the #1 favorite. Harrison Ford and Clint Eastwood are the only other actors to have achieved that feat.

Sold popcorn and peanuts as a teenager at the Oakland Coliseum.

Sources.
http://www.talktalk.co.uk/entertainment/film/biography/artist/tom-hanks/biography/125
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000158/bio

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