One of the world’s most prolific actors, Tom Hanks had a difficult childhood, but it taught him a life lesson in maintaining optimism above all else.
Tom Hanks is indeed one of the world’s most successful leading actors, with a prolific career in Hollywood as a screenwriter, producer, and director. He’s notably won back-to-back Oscars for his roles in “Philadelphia” (1993) and “Forrest Gump” (1994), a rare achievement. His career continues to flourish, with recent roles in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic as Colonel Tom Parker and in Disney’s live-action Pinocchio remake as Geppetto.
However, Tom’s journey to stardom wasn’t conventional, and he learned early on that optimism is a powerful tool during challenging times.
Tom Hanks Is Hollywood’s Nice Guy
Hanks is consistently praised as one of Hollywood’s nicest guys, thanks to his down-to-earth and genial personality. Many recall the incident from 2015 when Tom Hanks found a Fordham student’s ID in Central Park and sent out a mass tweet to locate its owner — a true good Samaritan moment.
There’s also the memorable story from when Hanks was filming Angels and Demons in Italy and encountered a wedding procession. Seeing the bride struggle through the crowd due to filming near the wedding chapel, Hanks stepped in, halting filming to escort the bride and ensure she could get married without hindrance. Now that’s a heroic act!
Despite his amiable demeanor, Tom’s life had its challenges, and he’s been open about the trials he faced during his childhood.
A Nomadic Childhood
In 2017, Hanks released a book of short stories called Uncommon, where he detailed the less than ideal conditions he and his siblings endured during their childhood. Their father, Amos, worked late nights as a cook and wouldn’t return home until 11 pm. This left Hanks and his siblings to fend for themselves in their less than pristine apartment. Hanks humorously recalls, “If you scraped the amount of burnt tomato soup off the stove, it would have been like an archeological dig!”
Despite the hardships, Hanks reflects that there were moments of joy, noting, “In some ways, it was very cool, because we laughed a lot,” even though his siblings may describe their childhood as less enjoyable.
Loneliness And Falling Through The Cracks
Despite the fun and nomadic life he experienced, Hanks also harbored feelings of loneliness and abandonment. In an interview with Graham Bensinger, he opened up about these emotions, expressing, “Maybe there was a degree of loneliness because really no one — I kind of fell through the cracks and didn’t really have adults per se that were taking care of me.” The Splash actor often questioned himself, ‘How do I find the vocabulary for what’s rattling around in my head?’, and when asked by BBC Radio 4’s Kirby Young about those feelings, Hanks replied, “It was the vocabulary of loneliness.”
How Tom Hanks Developed Lifetime Optimism
Tom Hanks believes that he didn’t inherit his optimistic and cheerful worldview from his parents but had to develop those skills on his own. In a 2017 interview, he mentioned, “The few times I’ve been afraid of a new environment, I got over it. And once you learn that it might be bad for a while, then you’re OK.”
He also emphasizes that being an optimist doesn’t equate to being naive or unaware of the harsh realities of the world, given his own experiences. He mentioned, “That’s just not the case. I weigh everything. But I can’t help it that I wake up in the morning and think: what good thing is going to come around?”
This optimistic outlook transformed Hanks’ life. By high school, he recognized acting as a serious career path, providing an escape from his early struggles. “I had more fun than I could possibly imagine,” he mentioned in an interview.
Due to his lonely childhood, Hanks was eager to start a family early. He married Samantha Lewes at 21, and they had a son and daughter. Despite the challenges of balancing parenting and a budding acting career, Hanks believes settling down early was beneficial. He remarked, “Having a kid at 21 was the greatest thing that ever happened to me because I didn’t smoke pot…I didn’t go into drugs, I was not a party boy, I didn’t drink too much.”
The Making Of A Hollywood Legend
Hanks’ dedication to both his career and family life paid off significantly when he landed what many consider to be his big break in the 1984 mermaid rom-com, Splash. Following this success, producers were eager to cast him in comedy roles, leading to an Oscar nomination for his role in the 1988 hit Big.
However, by the 1990s, Hanks felt fatigued with playing comedic characters and decided to shift towards more dramatic roles. This risky career move ultimately paid off, as he became only the second male actor to win two consecutive Oscars.
Since then, Tom Hanks has starred in nearly 100 movies, and his films have grossed around eight billion dollars worldwide. It’s evident that his decision to pursue diverse roles was the right move for his career.
How Does Tom Hanks Deal With Hard Times?
Tom has openly discussed seeking therapy during challenging times, such as in 1987 when he went through a divorce with his first wife, Samantha Lewes. However, today, he has developed a set of coping techniques, such as Transcendental Meditation, to foster a balanced and healthier life with Rita Wilson, his wife of over 25 years.
It might be easy to assume that Tom Hanks’ life is carefree given his success, but his path to stardom was far from easy. It took a great deal of perseverance for him to cultivate positivity and optimism, especially considering his challenging childhood.
