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Quick Facts
- NAME: Tom Hanks
- OCCUPATION: Film Actor, Television Actor, Director
- BIRTH DATE: July 09, 1956 (Age: 56)
- EDUCATION: California State University, Sacramento
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Concord, California
- ZODIAC SIGN: Cancer
Best Known For
Former sitcom actor Tom Hanks is the much-beloved star of such Hollywood hits as Splash, Big, Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Toy Story, and many more.
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Tom Hanks - Breakout Roles (1:54)
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Tom Hanks - Early Years (1:51)
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Robert Redford - Early Life (3:15)
Tom Hanks - Related to Abraham Lincoln
Watch a short video about Tom Hanks and find out how he's related to Abraham Lincoln.
Tom Hanks - Breakout Roles
Watch a short video about the breakout roles of actor Tom Hanks.
Tom Hanks - Early Years
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Robert Redford - Early Life
Watch a short video about the early life of Hollywood legend Robert Redford.
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Play NowTom Hanks. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 06:17, May 19, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661.
Tom Hanks. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661 [Accessed 19 May 2013].
"Tom Hanks." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 19 2013, 06:17 http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661.
"Tom Hanks," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661 [accessed May 19, 2013].
"Tom Hanks," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661 (accessed May 19, 2013).
Tom Hanks [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 19] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661.
Tom Hanks, http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661 (last visited May 19, 2013).
Tom Hanks. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/tom-hanks-9327661. Accessed May 19, 2013.
Hanks underwent a striking physical transformation to play a man stranded on a desert island in his next film, the long-awaited Cast Away, directed by Zemeckis and co-starring Helen Hunt. His performance propelled the film to the top of the holiday box office, earning Hanks critical raves and yet another well deserved Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
In the 1990s,
Hanks compiled an imposing record of box office hits and has emerged as arguably the most powerful and well-respected actor in Hollywood. His accessible good looks and regular-guy charisma has earned him comparisons with screen legends of the past, such as Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, and Gary Cooper. In 2002, Hanks was honored with the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, the youngest actor ever to receive the award.
Continued Success
In 2002, Hanks produced the surprise hit My Big Fat Greek Wedding. His next producing projects include the drama Society Cab and the Imax space documentary Magnificent Desolation. In 2004, the actor starred in the Coen brothers' remake of the classic 1955 comedy Ladykillers. He teamed with Steven Spielberg for the drama Terminal, and starred in the family film The Polar Express.
Hanks next starred in the highly anticipated The Da Vinci Code, based on the bestselling novel by Dan Brown. It grossed over $750 million worldwide.
For Christmas 2007, Hanks appeared as the lead in Charlie Wilson's War, a drama based on a Texas congressman's efforts to assist Afghan rebels in their war with the Soviets have some unforeseen and long-reaching effects. The performance earned Hanks a Golden Globe nomination for his role.
In 2009, Hanks appeared in Angels and Demons, the long-awaited film sequel to The Da Vinci Code.
Personal Life
Hanks met his first wife, actress and producer Samantha Lewes (real name: Susan Dillingham), while he was in college. They were married in 1978 and had two children, Colin and Elizabeth, before divorcing in 1987.
In 1988, he married actress Rita Wilson, with whom he co-starred in Volunteers. Hanks and Wilson have two children, Chester and Truman.
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