It being the beginning of that most non-Halloween time of the year we here at Culturally Significant! want to foucs on the thing that matters most during this holiday season...Tom Hanks.
Tom Hanks, born in 1956, has grown from a talented comedic actor to a national institution. Ask anyone you know to state thier favorite actor and they will probably mention Tom Hanks. Ask them the most cordial person in Hollywood right now and they without a doubt will mention Tom Hanks. I can not ever recall a human soul ever saying a negative word against Tom Hanks (besides saying he's TOO nice). Why would you? Look up charming in the dictionary and the first illustration is of Tom Hanks (with the follow-up illustration being a younger Tom Hanks).
No matter how dark things get in America, what with rampant sexual harassment at every turn and political turmoil dividing us further apart, we can rest easy knowing that Tom Hanks exists. Whether he's acting, directing, or just photo-bombing your drunken night on the town Tom Hanks is the definitive American treasure. How do we have so many confederate monuments still standing and no Tom Hanks statues in our national parks? There's a switch no one would have a problem with. I mean, just look at the photo below. Look at how even the American president looks at Tom Hanks. I wish someone would look at me the way Obama looks at Tom Hanks. Magical.
While Tom Hanks considers a possible future presidential run we wish to celebrate his legacy with the first annual T(om)Hanksgiving Film Festival. Highlighting some of his lesser known works (that were available on Youtube) we have four of his early films and the pilot episode of his well known sitcom Bosom Buddies. While you gather with family and friends this Thanksgiving think of how thankful we are of having such a talented, charming, down-to-earth guy like Tom Hanks in the world to give us pep talks and help us enjoy life to the fullest. Also, for giving us The 'Burbs.
Bosom Buddies (1980)
After their own apartment is demolished (while they are still asleep in it), two men disguise themselves as women in order to live in the dirt-cheap Susan B. Anthony Hotel (which happens to be female-only). Kip Wilson (Hanks) is originally skeptical of the plan, but after meeting gorgeous resident model/dancer/nurse Sonny Lumet (Donna Dixon), he ends up convincing aspiring writer Henry Desmond (Scolari) that the experience will make a great book. Their co-worker, Amy Cassidy (Wendie Jo Sperber) is the only resident in on the plan. The boys’ deception includes outwitting the hotel manager, Darlene (Edie Adams), and fellow resident, Isabelle Hammond (Telma Hopkins), an aspiring singer.
He Knows You're Alone (1980)
A reluctant bride-to-be (not Tom Hanks) is stalked by a serial killer who only kills brides and the people around them (one of them being Tom Hanks). While her friends get murder one by one, a hard boiled cop whose bride had been killed years before tries to hunt him down before it is too late. Meanwhile, the bride has to figure out if it is all in her imagination or not
Mazes and Monsters (1982)
Bound together by a desire to play "Mazes and Monsters," Robbie (Tom Hanks) and his three college classmates decide to move the board game into the local legendary cavern. Robbie starts having visions for real, and the line between reality and fantasy fuse into a harrowing adventure.
Volunteers (1985)
Lawrence (Tom Hanks) is a rich kid with a bad accent and a large debt. After his father refuses to help him out, Lawrence escapes his angry debtors by jumping on a Peace Corp flight to Southeast Asia, where is assigned to build a bridge for the local villagers with American-As-Apple-Pie WSU Grad Tom Tuttle (John Candy) and the beautiful and down-to earth Beth Wexler (Rita Wilson aka Future Mrs. Tom Hanks). What they don't realize is that the bridge is coveted by the U.S. Army, a local Communist force, and a powerful drug lord. Together with the help of At Toon (Gedde Watanabe), the only English speaking native, they must fight off the three opposing forces and find out what is right for the villagers, as well as themselves.
Joe Versus The Volcano (1987)
When the hypochondriac Joe (Tom Hanks) learns that he is dying, he accepts an offer to throw himself in a volcano at a tropical island, and along the way there, learns to truly live (with Meg Ryan...but not through Email).