As he celebrates his 58th birthday today, we look back on Tom Cruise’s successful career so far.
Born in Syracuse, New York on July 3 1962, Thomas Cruise Mapother IV was born to teacher Mary Lee and electrical engineer Thomas Cruise Mapother III. In his early childhood years, Cruise spent part of it in Canada – after his father took a job as a defence consultant in the Canadian Armed Forces.
His career in the arts began in fourth grade when he became involved in drama where he performed alongside six other boys in an improvised play to music called IT. However, he took a different career turn after the death of his father in 1984, where he committed himself to a church scholarship – as he aspired to be a priest before he wanted to become an actor.
At 18 years old, he moved to New York City to finally pursue a career in acting. However, as he was only working as a busboy in NYC, he eventually moved to LA to get Television roles. His first major part on screen was in the 1981 romance Endless Love – starring Brooke Shields.
Two years later in 1983, Cruise appeared in a line of films that was described as a “career maker for Tom Cruise”. These were The Outsiders, All the Right Moves and Risky Business. The most notable success of his film career – the role that paved his way to stardom – was in Top Gun (1986).
Over the next 20 years, Cruise had film role after film role in many fan favourites. Some of his most notable performances include his starring role in Cocktail (1988) – a film that earned him a nomination for the Razzie Award for Worst Actor (oops). Later that same year, he starred alongside Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man.
This was a film that saw Cruise play Charlie Babbitt, a selfish automobile dealer who finds out about his secret brother who is autistic. However, he tries to manipulate him into giving up their late father’s inheritance. Rain Man won the Academy Award for Best Film and Cruise won the Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Through the 90s, he starred in Days of Thunder (1990) and Far and Away (1992) – where he met his love interest Nicole Kidman. However, in 1996 he began his reoccurring role as Ethan Hunt (superspy) in the Mission: Impossible film series. In the same year, he performed alongside Renѐe Zellweger in Jerry Maguire – earning him a Golden Globe and a nomination for a second Academy Award.
In terms of his personal life and romances, Cruise’s has been very known to the public. Through the mid 1980’s, he pursued relationships with older women including Patti Scialfa and Cher. In 1987, Tom married Mimi Rogers and she introduced him to the religion of Scientology. However, in February 1990 they divorced.
In December 1990, Cruise married his second wife Nicole Kidman after appearing in Days of Thunder together. The couple adopted two children – Isabella Jane and Connor Antony. However, once again Cruise called for a divorce from Kidman in 2001, unbeknown she was pregnant. Unfortunately, Kidman suffered an ectopic pregnancy.
Image credit: Page Six
Cruise has also been romantically involved to other fellow co-stars including Penelope Cruz – his co-star in Vanilla Sky (2001). In April 2005, Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise started dating. The pair were dubbed “TomKat” by the media and made their first appearance together in Rome. In April 2006, they welcomed their first daughter Suri and married in Bracciano on 18 November 2006. However, the pair unfortunately divorced in 2012.
Ultimately, Tom Cruise is one of the few actors that appears in many films that have attracted audiences of all ages. Through his many roles, his success powers over many other actors and will continue to do so for years to come.
By Katie Green
Feature image: The Guardian