Tom Hanks : A Short Biography

Born on July 9, 1956 in Concord, California Thomas Jeffrey Hanks ala Tom Hanks is one of the gifted Hollywood stars with immense acting talent and perfection. Tom Hanks did not have the happiest of childhoods, as his parents got divorced when he was only 5 years old. Tom was third of four children born to Amos and Janet Hanks.  His parents were avant-gardes in the development of marriage dissolution law in California. He moved around with his father changing schools and changing stepmothers and he was just confused. 

After finally settling down in Oakland, CA Tom began taking part in high school plays. He continued to act in plays while attending California State University. Then he left the university to pursue his acting career further. 

Hanks went to the city of opportunities, New York. This is when he got married to actress/producer Samantha Lewes on January 24, 1978. The marriage lasted nearly 9 years and they got divorced on March 19, 1987. Tom Hank's first break as an actor came in a low budget movie called "He Knows You're Alone" in 1980 where he was reportedly paid just $800 for the movie. After few months he moved to Los Angeles and co-starred in the TV Sitcom "Bosom Buddies" where he portrayed a man forced to dress as a woman in order to stay at a women's only hotel. The show didn't touch cord with the viewers and was shelved after only two seasons. He also worked in TV Series like "Taxi" and "Family Ties". His acting career remained silent until 1984 when he got a big break in a Disney Film's comedy called "Splash" which was about a mermaid in 1984. The movie proved to be a box office hit and the audience liked the charm and comic timing of the actor. Tom Hank was reportedly paid $70,000 for this movie.

Katharine Hepburn : A Short Biography

Born on May 12, 1907 in Hartford, CT Katharina Houghton Hepburn was the best of the best actresses that Hollywood has seen.  She was born to a highly respectable family, the mother being a feminist and a suffragist. He father was a doctor who led a struggle against the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. Both her parents endorsed the birth control. Katharine owes her life to her parents for her upbringing that gave her enough freedom to be adventurous in life. She had 5 siblings one elder to her and four younger than her. One of the traumatic experiences of life was when her elder brother Tom died hanging by her aunt's attic. The incident had left an indelible trauma, which haunted her for years. 

Hepburn went to Bryn Mawr College and she graduated in 1928 from there. She happened to meet Ludlow Smith in the college and she married him the same year she graduated. But the marriage didn't last too long and they got divorced in 1934. During her student days at the college she took active participation in theatre arts and she even appeared in 2 theatrical productions after her senior year in Baltimore, MD. Then she moved to New York and began training as an actor. She got her first break in theater in her first New York Production "The Big Pond". But that didn't go well and she was discontinued from the show only after one showing. But there was no dearth of work for her and she regularly worked in Broadway shows. 

The turning point in her life came when she did a Broadway show in 1932 called "The Warrior's Husband" in which her performance was greatly appreciated and thus led her to many screen tests. She eventually ended up getting a role in the film "A Bill of Divorcement" released in 1932. She won rave reviews for her role in the film and there was no looking back for her after that. Many production houses lined up at her home to cast them in their movies. She had an excellent run of movies in 1930's which included her first Academy Award winning movie "Morning Glory" in 1933 for which she won the award for best actress.  What better start can an actor get, being only a year old and winning an Oscar.