See a young Tom Hanks in his high school yearbook photos and get to know the ‘Cast Away’ and ‘Forrest Gump’ actor better.
Full Name: Thomas Jeffrey Hanks
Birthdate: July 9, 1956 (Age 69)
High School: Skyline High School, Oakland, California
Who is Tom Hanks?
It is nearly impossible to forget Hanks’ impressive reign during the late ‘80s and ‘90s, beginning with his beloved role as the adult Josh Baskin in ‘Big’.
Hanks has been captivating audiences since the ‘80s with his boyish charm and lovable demeanor. His iconic roles and memorable characters leave audiences wishing they could go back and revisit simpler times.
Tom Hanks is a legendary actor, best known for his work throughout the ‘90s and 2000s, as well as his rise to fame in the ‘80s. Hanks landed his breakout role in the early ‘80s with the hit television show Bosom Buddies, and quickly became a global sensation, gracing the presence of film-lovers around the world for nearly five decades.
What to Know About Tom Hanks?
- Who is Tom?: Tom Hanks, born July 9, 1956, is a legendary American actor and filmmaker whose career spans nearly five decades.
- Tom Hanks Education: Hanks attended Skyline High School in Oakland, California, where he discovered acting through school theater. He studied theater at Chabot College and California State University, Sacramento before leaving college to pursue acting professionally.
- Career: Hanks rose to fame in the 1980s with Bosom Buddies, Splash, and Big, becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. He won back-to-back Academy Awards for Philadelphia (1993) and Forrest Gump (1994), cementing his legacy as one of the greatest actors of all time.
- Family: A devoted family man, Hanks is married to Rita Wilson and is the father of four children, including actor Colin Hanks.
Where Did Tom Hanks Go to School?
Elementary & Middle Schools
Tom Hanks attended both elementary and middle school in the Bay Area. He began his education at John Swett Elementary School in Oakland and Woodstock Elementary in Alameda before moving on to Bret Harte Junior High, also in Oakland.
High School Education
Tom Hanks spent his childhood moving around the Bay Area with his family before attending Skyline High School in Oakland, California, which was founded in 1961. Hanks began performing during high school, acting in plays such as South Pacific.
College Education
Hanks continued pursuing his interest in performing, studying theater at Chabot College in Hayward, California before transferring to California State University, Sacramento after two years. Hanks eventually decided to drop out of college after his experience working for Vincent Dowling at the Great Lakes Theater Festival in Cleveland, Ohio, where he learned the intricacies of theater production.
Tom Hanks: Then vs Now
Hanks has always caught attention with his “everyman” appearance and effortless charisma. From the ‘70s to today, here’s how he looked from his teenage years all the way to today.
Angela George at https://www.flickr.com/photos/sharongraphics/, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Tom Hanks: A League of His Own
Early Career
After gaining recognition for his role in Bosom Buddies, Hanks achieved his big break on the silver screen in Ron Howard’s romantic comedy Splash (1984), starring alongside Darryl Hannah and John Candy.
A few years later, Hanks further established his Hollywood talent in the fantasy comedy Big (1988), which is widely regarded as one of his most memorable performances, and was the catalyst for his domination of Hollywood throughout the ‘90s. Hanks earned his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor for the role.
Alan Light, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Hollywood Legend
Hanks went on to star in a number of blockbuster hits during the ‘90s, earning back-to-back Academy Awards, both for Best Actor, for his performances in Philadelphia (1993) and Forrest Gump (1994). Hanks is one of two actors to receive consecutive Oscars for Best Actor, the first being Spencer Tracy. This decade in particular cemented Hanks as one of the greatest actors to ever live.
Diseñadores publicitarios, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Hanks kickstarted the ‘90s with his role as the disgruntled manager of an all-female baseball team in A League of Their Own (1992). He then starred in the two aforementioned films, with Forrest Gump being widely regarded as one of the most influential films ever made.
Hanks rounded out the 1990s by continuing to star in legendary roles, including as astronaut Jim Lovell in Apollo 13 (1995) and as World War II Captain John Miller in Saving Private Ryan (1998), a role that earned Hanks the nomination for Best Actor.
Further Success and Later Career
Hanks began the 2000s with starring roles in Robert Zemeckis’ Cast Away (2000) and Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me if You Can (2002), in addition to producing and co-directing the Award-winning HBO miniseries Band of Brothers (2001) with Steven Spielberg.
RootOfAllLight, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Hanks continued his success throughout the 2000s, appearing in notable films such as Road to Perdition (2002), The Terminal (2004), Captain Phillips (2013), and Sully (2016), as well as reprising his role as Sheriff Woody in the Toy Story films. Hanks has also hosted ten hilarious episodes of Saturday Night Live, most notably portraying himself in the iconic Celebrity Jeopardy sketches, as well as hosting remotely in April of 2020 following his COVID-19 diagnosis.
Who is Tom Hank’s Family?
Complex Upbringing
Tom Hanks was raised in California’s Bay Area by his mother, Janet Marylyn, a hospital employee, and his father, Amos “Bud” Hanks, an itinerant cook. Hanks is a distant cousin of Nancy Hanks and her son, former President Abraham Lincoln, as well as legendary children’s television host Fred Rogers, whom he later portrayed in a film role.
Hanks’ parents divorced when he was just four years old. He moved in with his father, along with his sister Sandy and brother Larry, while his younger brother Jim stayed with his mother. He and his siblings moved around with his father quite often, as he had lived in ten different houses by the time he was ten years old.
Hanks’ family practiced both Catholicism and Mormonism growing up, and he has described his teenage self as a “Bible-toting evangelical.” Hanks has stated that he had a tough time getting along with other students in school, and that he was “a geek, a spaz. [he] was horribly, painfully, terribly shy. At the same time, [he] was the guy who’d yell out funny captions during filmstrips.”
Marriages and Children
Hanks was married to Samantha Lewes from 1978 until their divorce in 1987. They have one son, actor Colin Hanks (born in 1977), and one daughter, Elizabeth, who is a writer and journalist, and was born in 1982. Lewes sadly passed away from bone marrow cancer in 2002.
Hanks met his second wife, Rita Wilson, on the set of Bosom Buddies in 1981. They married in 1988, and have two sons, rapper and actor Chet Hanks, born in 1990, and actor Truman Hanks, born in 1995. Hanks resides with his family in two residences, one in Los Angeles, California, and one in Ketchum, Idaho.
watchwithkristin, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Great Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks has earned his spot as one of the most lovable and recognizable actors and figures in modern pop culture, starring in some of the most monumental and influential films over the years. Appearing in nearly every list for “Top Ten Actors of All Time,” Hanks has done more than prove that he is in A League of His Own.
Solidifying himself as the “everyman,” Hanks has perfected the “ordinary guy who gets caught up in extraordinary circumstances” archetype, and has fans all over the world quoting his iconic films, and reminiscing on their early years.
Some of Hanks’ most legendary roles include:
- Splash (1984)
- The Money Pit (1986)
- Big (1988)
- Turner and Hooch (1989)
- A League of Their Own (1992)
- Philadelphia (1993)
- Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
- Forrest Gump (1994)
- Apollo 13 (1995)
- Toy Story franchise (1995-present)
- That Thing You Do! (1996)
- Saving Private Ryan (1998)
- The Green Mile (1999)
- Cast Away (2000)
- Band of Brothers (2001)
- Catch Me if You Can (2002)
- Road to Perdition (2002)
- The Terminal (2004)
- The Polar Express (2004)
- The Da Vinci Code (2006)
- The Great Buck Howard (2009)
- Captain Phillips (2013)
- Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
- Bridge of Spies (2015)
- Sully (2016)
- The Post (2017)
- A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)
- A Man Called Otto (2022)
- Asteroid City (2023)
Find Old Yearbooks From Your Favorite Celebrities
The Classmates® yearbook collection features Tom Hanks’ high school photos, as well as 480,000+ yearbooks from some of your other favorite celebs! You can also find old photos of some of your close friends and family by joining Classmates® and purchasing a CM+ membership.
Related Celeb Yearbook Blogs
- Matt Damon High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Denzel Washington High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Steve Carell High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Kevin Costner High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Conan O’Brien High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Robin Wright High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Meg Ryan High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Bryan Cranston High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Tim Allen High School Yearbook Photo & Education
- Paul Newman High School Yearbook Photo & Education
Sources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Hanks
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Tom_Hanks_performances_and_credits
- https://www.kqed.org/news/11756665/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-tom-hanks-east-bay-roots
All product names, logos, brands, trademarks and copyrights are property of their respective owners.
