“As a young man, even if I was going to see a play or a film by myself, I didn't feel like I was alone. There was something that was unfolding up there that brought me into it. And I recognised that. For those two hours, it made me feel like I belonged to something really good.”

American actor and filmmaker, born 1956

Tom Hanks is an American actor and filmmaker known for work in both comedy and drama. Born in 1956, he has become one of the most recognizable film stars of his era and a familiar figure in American popular culture. His career has brought wide acclaim and major honors, including two Academy Awards, seven Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. He has also been nominated for five BAFTAs and a Tony Award, and has received the AFI Life Achievement Award, the Kennedy Center Honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award.