h school, when he saw on of his friends in a play. Following graduation Hank's packed up his stuff and enrolled at Chabot Junior College in Hayward, California. In his second year at CJC, he registered for a class where the students would read and then attend performances. This had a major influence on his career decision.
             With acting in mind, Hanks transferred from Chabot College to California State University, which had a great theater program. When he began taking acting classes, he became more interested in stage production and management. He auditioned when he was 20 for a role in Vincent Dowling's stage of Cherry Orchard, which he got. At the time Dowling was the director in Lakewood, Ohio of the Great Lakes Shakespear Festival. Dowling later hired Tom to play small roles, but his break finally came when he played Proteus in The Two Gentlemen of Verona, for which he won the Cleveland Circle Award as best actor of the year in 1978.
             Hank's acting career on television started in the 1980's. By 1980, Hanks had dropped out of college, and after his third season with the Great lakes Festival, he moved to New York City. While in New York Tom auditioned for many shows. He landed a small role in the 1980 film, He know your alone. That same year, he was spotted by a scout for the AMERICAN BROADCASTING COMPANY (ABC) and was c
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