Jackie Robinson in baseball or Marion Motley in
football: She created a new template in terms of ex-
cellence and leadership for women in sports.
Impact In addition to providing credibility to U.S.
women’s soccer as a powerhouse in FIFA (soccer’s
international governing body) and Olympic compe-
tition, Hamm’s impact went beyond the sports world
to influence the ways in which mass and popular cul-
ture both regarded women and used women to mar-
ket products and attitudes. In 1999, she started the
Mia Hamm Foundation, which is dedicated to sup-
porting bone marrow transplant patients and fami-
lies and providing opportunities for young women
in sports. Married in 2003 to professional baseball
player Nomar Garciaparra, Hamm seems destined
to continue to remain a celebrity role model well be-
yond her retirement from international competi-
tion.
Further Reading
Hamm, Mia, and Aaron Heifetz.Go for the Goal: A
Champion’s Guide to Winning in Soccer and Life.
News York: HarperCollins, 1999.
Latimer, Clay.Mia Hamm. Mankato, Minn.: Cap-
stone Books, 2001.
Weber, Chloe.Mia Hamm Rocks!New York: Welcome
Rain, 1999.
Richard Sax
See also Olympic Games of 1996; Soccer; Sports.
Hanks, Tom
Identification Award-winning actor
Born July 9, 1956; Concord, California
Hanks, one of the most prolific actors of the modern era,
demonstrated an ability to play a variety of dramatic roles
addressing a range of social issues.
In the 1990’s, comedies such asJoe Versus the Volcano
(1990); romantic films such asSleepless in Seattle
(1993) andYou’ve Got Mail(1998); historical dramas
such asA League of Their Own (1992),Apollo 13
(1995), andSaving Private Ryan(1998); and chil-
dren’s films such asToy Stor y(1995) andToy Stor y 2
(1999) all demonstrated Tom Hanks’s talent for un-
derstanding his characters and realistically portray-
ing their motivations and emotions. In the late
1980’s and early 1990’s, Hanks was known mostly for
his roles in comedies such asSplash(1984),The
Money Pit(1986), andBig(1988).
AlthoughSplashandBigwere both commercial
successes—Splashgrossed almost $70 million at the
box office andBignot only grossed more than $150
million but also earned Hanks an Academy Award
nomination—they were still regarded as light-
weight, family-friendly comedies. It was not until the
1990’s that Hanks began to delve more deeply into
issue-based dramas where he could challenge his
abilities as an actor. Two Awards for Best Actor, for
Philadelphia(1993) andForrest Gump(1994), as well
as two additional nominations for Best Actor, for
Saving Private Ryan(1998) andCast Away(2000),
proved that his change in focus was a wise decision.
With this goal in mind, Hanks began his career as
a dramatic actor.Philadelphia, a semihistorical exam-
ination of one of the earliest AIDS discrimination
cases;Forrest Gump, a film based on a 1986 novel by
Winston Groom that chronicles the social upheaval
of the 1960’s;Apollo 13, which portrays the terrifying
events leading up to a near-fatal NASA mission fail-
ure; andSaving Private Ryan, a panoramic film de-
picting the lives and missions of World War II-era sol-
diers, are all examples of films that addressed a
variety of social issues, from homophobia to the
plight of deployed soldiers. In particular,Forrest
GumpandSaving Private Ryancaused Hanks, and
filmgoers, to consider more deeply the sacrifices
that previous generations of soldiers have made in
the name of American ideals.Impact Tom Hanks appeared in over a dozen films
during the 1990’s, putting his acting range to the test
by the sheer variety of genres. His talent as an actor
notwithstanding, Hanks’s increasing popularity in
the mind of mainstream America can be attributed
partly to his increasing level of social consciousness,
as demonstrated by his selection of roles.Further Reading
Gardner, David.The Tom Hanks Enigma: The Biogra-
phy of the World’s Most Intriguing Movie Star. Lon-
don: John Blake, 2006.
Pfeiffer, Lee, and Michael Lewis.The Films of Tom
Hanks.Secaucus, N.J.: Citadel Press, 1996.
Julia M. MeyersSee also Academy Awards; Film in the United
States;Forrest Gump;Philadelphia;Saving Private Ryan.The Nineties in America Hanks, Tom 403