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Thomas Jeffrey Hanks was born in Concord, California on July 9th, 1956. Being a child of divorce, Tom Hanks moved around quite a lot with his father and his two siblings, Sandra and Larry. By the age of 10 he had already lived in 10 different houses. Growing up, Hanks was terribly shy and somewhat of a geek. After high school, he began attending California State University in Sacramento where he discovered his love for theater and acting.
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Tom eventually moved to New York City in 1979 where he began starring in a few different plays as well as several low-budget movies. His first major TV role was in the series Bosom Buddies. Even though the show was canceled after 2 seasons, Hanks had already made his mark in the world of television! Co-producer Ian Praiser even stated that it was too bad that he wouldn't be in Television for long. Back then even he knew that Hanks was destined to become a movie star!
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Throughout his TV career, Hanks was also able to get a reoccurring guest role in the series Family Ties! This was one of his first episodes!
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Tom eventually landed the leading role in the aquatic fantasy Splash which went on to become a surprise box office hit! This was exactly the boost he needed to get into the world of film...
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Another sizable hit had to be his role in the movie Bachelor Party (1984)! Hanks definitely had a thing for sex comedies back in his earlier days and who can blame him? Hanks was quite the charmer back in his prime!
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The 90's were full of success for the ,then young, star! Through his role in Sleepless In Seattle, Hanks solidified himself a spot in the romantic comedy genre! What followed were numerous rom-coms including My Big Fat Greek Wedding, You've Got Mail, Big and many many more...
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Moving on to Hank's first academy award! In this blockbuster masterpiece, Tom plays a gay lawyer diagnosed with AIDS who decides to sue his firm after being discriminated against. He's was rightfully awarded an Oscar for best actor in 1993 for his role in Philadelphia.
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After Philadelphia came another smash hit: Forrest Gump. Grossing over 600 million worldwide, this movie was an instant success! Hanks was promptly awarded his second Oscar for Best actor almost directly afterwards! Well deserved!
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In 1995, the Toy Story franchise was born! Of course, Tom Hanks was chosen to voice act the role of "Sheriff Woody". He went on to star in all 4 installments of the franchise including the most recent one, Toy Story 4.
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With the help of Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks decided to take a swing at starring in the war drama Saving Private Ryan. The movie ended up getting nominated for 11 academy awards including Best Actor, which Hanks won, of course. With the knowledge he gained in watching Spielberg direct this blockbuster flick, Tom went on to direct the HBO series Band of Brothers.
A legendary Hollywood icon! The real question we need to ask ourselves is: What hasn't Tom Hanks starred in? Animated films, voice acting, drama, comedy... he's done it all! In honor of Hanks' amazing career, we've decided to throw a few pictures together highlighting some of his best work.
We hope you enjoy!