On this day, July 3, 1962, Tom Cruise was born, who would later become one of the most iconic Hollywood protagonists.
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV was born in Syracuse, New York, and his acting career began in the 1980s.
“He is known for his impeccable appearance and versatility,” notes Britannica.com.
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His parents were Mary and Thomas Mapother. His mother was an amateur actress and schoolteacher, and his father was an electrical engineer, according to Biography.com.
Cruise's parents divorced when he was 11, and his mother moved the family to Louisville, Kentucky, and then to Glen Ridge, New Jersey, after remarrying, the source said. (His parents are dead.)
Tom Cruise considered pursuing a career in professional wrestling until a knee injury sidelined him in high school. (JNS Chosunilbo/Imazins via Getty Images)
Cruise suffered from dyslexia, as did his mother and three sisters, Biography.com also notes.
This condition was an academic challenge for Cruise, who excelled in athletics.
He was considering a career in professional wrestling until a knee injury kept him out of high school, the same source says.
Cruise cemented his movie star status with “Top Gun” (1986), the highest-grossing film of that year, in which he played Navy pilot Maverick.
At age 14, Cruise enrolled in a Franciscan seminary with the idea of becoming a priest, but dropped out after a year, according to the same source.
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When he was 16, a teacher encouraged him to participate in the school production of the musical “Guys and Dolls” (his mother also encouraged him, according to sources) and after Cruise landed the lead role of Nathan Detroit, he began his steps toward an acting career.
Tom Cruise portrayed Maverick in the 1986 film “Top Gun.” He later reprised the role in 2022's “Top Gun: Maverick.” (CBS via Getty Images)
In 1981, Cruise made his film debut in “Endless Love,” and followed with supporting roles in such films as “Taps” (1981) and “The Outsiders” (1983) before starring as a high school senior who, in 1983, turns his parents' home into a brothel in “Risky Business,” according to Biography.com.
Cruise cemented his movie star status with “Top Gun” (1986), the highest-grossing film of that year, in which he played Navy jet pilot Maverick, Britannica notes.
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In 1986, Cruise appeared alongside Paul Newman in “The Color of Money,” directed by Martin Scorsese.
Two years later, Cruise played the pompous brother of an autistic man in “Rain Man,” which won four Oscars in 1988: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (for Dustin Hoffman) and Best Original Screenplay.
Last summer, Tom Cruise celebrated the 40th anniversary of “Risky Business,” a film that was released on August 5, 1983. (Getty Images/Everett Collection)
For his portrayal of Vietnam War veteran turned activist Ron Kovic in 1989's “Born on the Fourth of July,” Cruise received his first Academy Award nomination.
“'Born on the Fourth of July' is based on the autobiography of Ron Kovic… whose patriotism takes him to Vietnam in the late 1960s and brings him home paralyzed from the chest down and wracked with guilt for accidentally killing a fellow soldier in combat,” New York University said.
Cruise received the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his performance as Ron Kovic in “Born on the Fourth of July.”
Kovic eventually became a spokesman for veterans, particularly those opposed to the war, and eventually took the stage at the 1976 Democratic Convention to great applause, the same source says.
Cruise received the Golden Globe for Best Actor for this performance, beating out heavyweight actors such as Jack Lemmon, Daniel Day Lewis, Robin Williams and Al Pacino for the award.
During the 1990s, Cruise played a wide variety of film roles, including a Navy lawyer in “A Few Good Men” (1992), a vampire in “Interview with the Vampire” (1994) and a secret agent in “Mission: Impossible” (1996), Britannica.com says.
Tom Cruise is gearing up for the release of “Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One,” which is set to hit theaters in July 2023. (Primo Barol/Anadolu Agency)
The success and popularity of the film “Mission: Impossible” spawned sequels in 2000, 2006, 2011, 2015, 2018, and 2023 (“Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One” was released in July 2023).
Cruise's immensely popular performance as a sports agent in “Jerry Maguire” (1996) earned him a second Oscar nomination.
And in 1999, Cruise also earned acclaim for the film “Magnolia,” for which he received another Oscar nomination for best supporting actor.
In 2016, Cruise reprised the role of Jack Reacher in the film “Never Go Back.”
Cruise starred in several action films in the 2000s, including “Minority Report” (2002), “The Last Samurai” (2003), “Collateral” (2004), “War of the Worlds” (2005), “Knight and Day” (2010) and “Jack Reacher” (2012).
He then appeared in “Oblivion” (2013) and “Edge of Tomorrow” (2014).
In 2016, Cruise reprised the role of Jack Reacher in the film “Never Go Back” and appeared in a remake of “The Mummy” (2017).
He starred in “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022), reprising his role from the 1986 blockbuster.
Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise were married for six years before divorcing in 2012. They had one daughter together, Suri, who is now a teenager. (Jim Spellman)
Cruise has been a member of the Church of Scientology for 30 years and remains the famous face of the faith, according to multiple sources.
His personal life has been in the news for nearly four decades.
Cruise has been married and divorced three times.
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In 1987 he married actress Mimi Rogers; then, in 1990, he married Nicole Kidman, whom he met on the set of the film “Days of Thunder.”
In 2005, he married actress Katie Holmes. The couple divorced after six years of marriage.
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He is the father of three children.
He shares his two oldest children, Isabella and Connor, with Nicole Kidman and his youngest daughter, Suri, with Katie Holmes.
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Several years ago, Cruise returned his three Golden Globes to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association headquarters after the association was called out for lack of diversity and ethical irregularities.
