1Appearing on P.I.P.’s
Getty ImagesIn 1980, Hanks and fellow Bosom Buddies actor Peter Scolari were interviewed by ABC for a television special. This was the same year that Bosom Buddies came on the air. (Scolari died in 2021 at age 56.)
2Bosom Buddies
Getty ImagesA then-25-year-old Hanks is pictured here in 1981, posing on the set of Bosom Buddies. The show also starred Holland Taylor and lasted two seasons. “I can say I absolutely knew Tom Hanks was going to be an enormous star in our first rehearsal,” Taylor told People in 2020.
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3Splash
Getty ImagesA couple of years after Bosom Buddies ended, Hanks appeared on the big screen in the Ron Howard–directed movie Splash. In it, Hanks played a man named Allen Bauer who falls in love with a mermaid named Madison, played by Daryl Hannah. Hanks told Entertainment Weekly in early 2023 that he was cast in the film after Howard saw him as a guest star on Happy Days.
4Fox Studios Backlot
Getty ImagesHere, Hanks is pictured posing at the Fox Studios Backlot in 1984. The young actor would star in Big some years later.
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5 Volunteers
Getty ImagesIn 1985, Hanks appeared in Volunteers, a movie directed by Nicholas Meyer that also boasted John Candy and Hanks’ future wife, Rita Wilson, as part of its cast. Interestingly enough, this was not the first time Wilson and Hanks crossed paths; the two met years earlier and became quick friends when Wilson guest starred on Bosom Buddies.
6Saturday Night Live
Getty ImagesIn December 1985, Hanks appeared on Saturday Night Live alongside Jon Lovitz and Damon Wayans. The three were part of a skit titled “The Stand-Ups.”
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7Nothing in Common Screening
Getty ImagesHanks and Wilson walk the red carpet for a screening of Nothing in Common. The two had recently gone public with their relationship.
8Big
Getty ImagesStill considered a classic today, Hanks starred in 1988’s Big as Josh, a young boy who wishes to be “big” and wakes up the next morning as an adult. The movie also stars Elizabeth Perkins, Jon Lovitz, and John Heard and earned Hanks his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
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9 Deauville American Film Festival
Getty ImagesIn 1988, Hanks went to France to attend the Deauville American Film Festival with his wife, Wilson. The two had gotten married just a few months earlier.

Brittany is a freelance writer based in her hometown of New York City. She writes about everything from fashion and beauty to food and wellness. When she's not writing, she can often be found at her local library, playing with her cats, or exploring the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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