Introducing Tom Hanks and his connections to Sacramento
Tom Hanks is one of the most acclaimed and beloved actors of his generation. With an acting career spanning over four decades, Hanks has starred in countless blockbuster hits and critically acclaimed films. Some of his most famous movies include Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, Cast Away, and Big. Hanks has won two consecutive Best Actor Academy Awards and holds the distinction of being one of only two actors to accomplish this feat.
Despite his fame as a Hollywood superstar, Hanks has longstanding roots and connections to the city of Sacramento, California. Hanks was born in Concord, California in 1956 but spent parts of his early childhood in Rancho Cordova just outside Sacramento with his father Amos, who worked for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District. Although Hanks moved around frequently as a child, the Sacramento region remained an important part of his upbringing and early life. According to an interview Hanks gave in 2001, he has fond memories of living in Rancho Cordova and considers Sacramento like a second hometown (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Hanks).
Tom Hanks’ childhood years in the Bay Area
Tom Hanks was born in Concord, California in 1956. As a child, he moved around Northern California frequently as his father pursued work. The family lived in Oakland, San Carlos, and Palo Alto during Tom’s early childhood years.
According to an interview in The Atlantic, Tom Hanks said, “As a child, several times a year, I would take a long journey on a Greyhound bus, heading to and from the small Northern California town of Rancho Cordova.” This quote demonstrates how the frequent moving shaped his childhood.
During these early years, Tom developed an active imagination through play. In an interview with The Things, Hanks remarked, “Because we moved so much as kids and I was never in a school for more than about two years, I was always the new guy in school. But because I went to so many different schools, I was always having to make up stories about where I was from.” This constant change and need for adaptation influenced his storytelling abilities from a young age.
The Hanks family’s time in Rancho Cordova
The Hanks family lived in Rancho Cordova in the early 1960s. They rented a small apartment near Mills Park (https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article235042992.html). Tom attended first grade at Monroe Elementary in Cordova according to a Reddit post (https://www.reddit.com/r/Sacramento/comments/13o4bx1/i_knew_tom_had_sacramento_connections_early_in/).
Middle school years back in the Bay Area
Tom Hanks moved with his family back to the Bay Area from Rancho Cordova when he was around 6 years old in the early 1960s. The Hanks family settled in Oakland, where Tom would spend his middle school years.
Tom attended Bret Harte Middle School in Oakland in the late 1960s, graduating in 1971 [1]. Bret Harte Middle School is located in the Dimond/Laurel neighborhood of Oakland. Fun fact – the school boasts that actor Tom Hanks is a notable alumni from his 8th grade graduation in 1971 [2].
So while Tom Hanks was not born in Sacramento, he did spend his formative middle school years in the Bay Area attending Bret Harte Middle School in Oakland in the late 1960s.
High school years in the East Bay
Tom Hanks attended high school in Fremont at Monta Vista High School in the East Bay. He graduated from Monta Vista High School in 1973 after spending his freshman through junior years there.
According to a KQED article, Hanks was very involved with the drama program at Monta Vista High. He played the lead role in South Pacific during his senior year.
After graduating high school, Hanks would go on to attend Chabot College in Hayward for two years before transferring to California State University, Sacramento to complete his bachelor’s degree.
College years in the Bay Area
After graduating high school, Tom Hanks went on to study theater at Chabot College in Hayward, California https://prezi.com/emxeauxx1ebp/tom-hanks/. He later transferred to California State University, Sacramento to continue his theater studies. According to https://www.digitalhit.com/cr/tomhanks/, Hanks graduated from CSU Sacramento in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in theater.
Launching an acting career after college
After graduating from California State University, Sacramento in 1977, Tom Hanks began pursuing acting more seriously. He started performing in plays at the Great American Melodrama in Oceano, California, including a role in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (http://zackcalhoon.blogspot.com/2022/07/people-you-should-know-robyne-parrish.html). Though the Melodrama mainly put on comedic musicals, it gave Hanks valuable experience on stage that helped launch his career.
Hanks soon decided to move to New York City to further pursue acting opportunities. In 1978, he got his first big break being cast in the Riverside Shakespeare Company’s production of Measure for Measure. This opened doors for Hanks to start landing small roles in off-Broadway productions, television programs, and films being shot in New York.
Becoming a Hollywood star in the 1980s
Tom Hanks had his film breakthrough playing a man who falls in love with a mermaid in the 1984 romantic comedy Splash. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the movie was a surprise box-office hit and established Hanks as a major Hollywood star. After Splash, Hanks went on to star in a string of hit comedies throughout the rest of the 1980s, including The Money Pit (1986), Dragnet (1987), Big (1988), and Turner & Hooch (1989). His boyish charm and comedic timing made him a go-to leading man for blockbuster comedies. According to Gold Derby, Hanks showed his star power and box-office draw during this era, helping him transition to more dramatic roles in the 1990s.
Dramatic roles and critical acclaim
In the early 1990s, Hanks began taking on more dramatic roles that showcased his acting chops. His first major dramatic role was in the 1993 film Philadelphia, where he played a gay lawyer with AIDS who sues his former law firm for wrongful termination. Hanks went to great lengths to give a realistic portrayal of an AIDS patient, losing a significant amount of weight for the role. His commitment paid off – he earned widespread critical praise and won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance, marking his first Oscar win.
The following year in 1994, Hanks starred in the film Forrest Gump, playing the titular character who unwittingly influences several decades of history through his simple perspective. It was one of the most iconic roles of his career. Hanks wonderfully embodied the charm and wit of Forrest Gump, and his feel-good performance once again earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor, making him the second actor after Spencer Tracy to win this award in consecutive years.
Tom Hanks’ enduring legacy and connections to Sacramento
Despite achieving fame and success as a Hollywood actor, Tom Hanks has maintained fondness for his connections to Sacramento. He spent time in Rancho Cordova as a child and later attended Sacramento State University, then known as Sacramento State College. Though he left Sacramento to launch his acting career, Hanks has given back to the local community in various ways over the years.
Most notably, Hanks has donated substantial sums to California State University, Sacramento. In 2016, he gave $39,000 to the Sacramento State Annual Fund for student scholarships. This built on past donations from Hanks supporting students at his former college.
Many Sacramento locals take pride in Hanks’ journey from studying theater at Sacramento State to becoming one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars. His continued generosity and connections to the area are an inspiring part of his success story. Hanks serves as evidence that even those who leave Sacramento can maintain ties and give back to the community that helped shape their lives.
