Empire UK

was the editor of
Empiremagazine”
Steven Spielberg
reminds Tom
Hanks about his
20th anniversary
guest-edit of this
very publication.
“My biggest claim to fame was I got Jack
Nicholson to talk about The Shining
which he had never done before.
Fortunately I had an ‘in’ because our
daughters are best friends. I called
Jack up and said ‘Jack Stanley’s been
dead now for ten years this would
be such a great thing.’ And he talked
about The Shining.”
“Man oh man” says Hanks in
awe. “See what happens when The
Big Dog calls?”
It’s a Monday afternoon — 4.15pm
— and Spielberg Hanks andEmpireare
at Playtone Hanks’ HQ to talk Bridge
Of Spies their fourth collaboration as
director-actor. Named for the fictional
record company in Hanks’ directorial
debut That Thing You Do! Playtone is

one serene set-up: classy exposed

brickwork ’60s space-age posters and

classic typewriters (Hanks collects

them like Indiana Jones obtains rare

antiquities). There are even cushions

that bear a remarkable resemblance

to the carpet of The Overlook Hotel.

When Spielberg and Hanks get

together they usually chew the fat

about everything from planes and

war to “arcane documentaries” and

American history. The latest geek-

out topic is favourite spy cameras:

Spielberg plumps for the Russian

ambassador’s pocket-watch camera

from Dr. Strangelove; Hanks opts

for something from his childhood.

“At the height of the James Bond

thing I had an Agent Zero M Spy

Briefcase made by Mattel” says Hanks.

“It was a plastic briefcase that inside

had this pistol and a silencer you could

assemble. It also had this cheap camera

that actually worked. You could put the

briefcase on the table lean on it and it

would take a picture. It was the coolest

thing in the world.”

Their love of gadgetry is tangible.

Both were AV Club monitors in school

carting projectors and equipment

between classes. But in all the mix of

their passions there is one thing the

pair surprisingly rarely discuss: film.

“You can’t talk about movies with

him because he knows everything”

says Hanks. “He’s got the vocabulary

so deep in his head. (Adopts doofus

voice) ‘I like that movie too.’ That’s

about all I can say.”

“I know a lot about movies until

I get into a room with Marty Scorsese”

admits Spielberg. “Then I realise I don’t

know nuthin’ compared to him.”

WHILE LAPPING

up David Lean and making precociously

brilliant 8mm films as a teen Steven

Allan Spielberg lived under the threat

of thermonuclear annihilation during

the US-USSR standoff that dominated

the ’50s and ’60s. He vividly remembers

classroom films depicting what to do if

you saw a big white flash — a “photograph

from God” as Empire Of The Sun had it

1 Spielberg in his

trademarktrilby (the

baseball caps went

years ago) directing

Hanks on Bridge

Of Spies.

2 Mark Rylance

asRudolf Abel.

3 Austin Stowell’s

Francis Gary Powers

awaits his fate.

1