Hi reddit, Tom Hanks here. Ask Me Anything.

I still have a polaroid of you and me from 1993/4 when you were filming "that thing you do" on my street and randomly asked the 11 year old kid on the set if you could use the bathroom in his house.

Did you find my secret message?

It is probably one of your lesser known movies, but just wanted to say that I watched "That Thing You Do" countless times as a teenager.

It's the one movie I would love to make again.

My ex-girlfriends mother's name is Hanks, and they found out through a family tree that she was related to Abraham Lincoln's mother. I told her you were related to Lincoln's mother as well and to this day, she doesn't believe me. Can you please confirm or deny this?

True. Nancy Hanks.

Hi Mr Hanks. How are you doing? How was your day?

I prefer this AMA to interviews!

Hi Tom! Greetings from Sweden! Please tell me your favorite piece of trivia from a movie shoot, preferably something we probably didn't know.

Also thanks a lot for doing this, you've always been my favorite actor.

I had a terrible case of the flu shooting the football scenes in Gump

We're trying to get some tech difficulties sorted out on my end... so in the meantime, thank you very much to /u/kn0thing for counting down to my AMA today.

Whats your favorite movie you didn't act in?

Recently, Looper. And Das Boot the directors cut.

Mr. Hanks: Mustache tips. Go.

Shave it off.

Mr. Hanks, which version of Quantum Mechanics do you believe is more likely to be an accurate interpretation of reality - the Copenhagen statistical interpretation, the Everett-Wheeler "many worlds" model, or the Penrose "consciousness causes collapse" viewpoint?

I am Phoning a Friend Now... Steve DiBiasi says it's the Everett-Wheeler.

Hello, Mr. Hanks! What were your feelings on the mixed reactions to Cloud Atlas?

Nothing effects the love of making a movie -- particularly CLOUD ATLAS. It will be around for ever...

Which would you rather see become a ride at a theme park: The Polar Express or Forrest Gump?

The Captain Phillips Life-Boat Launch Experience.

Were you ever rejected by a woman? How did that make you feel?

Crummy. Very crummy.

Howdy Tom Hanks, I want you to know, I work for a major university and as part of our marketing strategy planning, we had to decide what type of celebrity our school wanted to be like. We chose you. That's how awesome you are, entire universities attempt to mold their students to be like you.

With that being said, if you could go back in time to send one message to yourself at age 30, what would you say?

Floss more often.

What's your favorite genre of music?

Give me three guitars, a piano, and a good drummer and I'm done.

HI. I love you Tom Hanks, you should win everything man can come up with. My question is, Do you have the real Wilson from Cast Away or was it lost?

I have the old, ratty wilson and sign new ones for charities.

Hey, Tom. Happy you're here, doing this. Excited for the new movie! Looks amazing.

My question, how is Hooch doing?

All the dogs who played hooch -- all four of them -- went to dog heaven.

Tom, you have been my favorite actor since i was 8.

I have always wanted to know, how many tries did it take to play heart and soul/chopsticks on that huge piano?

That took all afternoon...,

Are you doing this AMA on a typewriter?

I wish.

Can you give us an update on the WWII miniseries on the 8th Air Force? What made you decide to focus on the Mighty 8th for the series?

Don Miller's book was all I could ask for in a historical tome. And HBO said " Can you give us another WWII series?" Done!

If you can only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be ?

The Japanese food seems good for you...

Scenario: JJ Abrams is making a reboot movie of The Next Generation. Do you want the role of Picard, Riker, Data, Worf, or Q?

The Borg. Nothing else.

Do you have any pets? If you do, is any of them called Wilson? :)

Thanks a lot for this AMA! You're awesome!

One dog. She needs walking every night, and I'm the only one who takes her!

How far did Jim run for you in Forest Gump?

In Montana and south carolina. a few hundred yards in slo-mo.

Why don't I ever see reruns of Bosom Buddies?

It wasn't shot on HD and looks terrible now.

Hi Tom! I just wanted to say that your role in Forrest Gump was one of the most touching roles I have had the privilege of seeing as a young person. Any general advice for a girl who feels like the world is moving at the speed of light?

Being kind always works...

Forrest Gump is one of the few movies (possibly the only, I have a bad memory) that makes me laugh and cry every time. Congrats on that performance. And if you are still in contact with them, feel free to tell the screenwriters and authors how great I felt it was. Recent AMA-er Gary Sinise was similarly amazing(Lt. Dan was my favorite character, sorry...).

So, do you ever get emotional about yours or others' performances, or the script? And I'm not talking about fake crying or anything. I understand post-production effects and soundtracks contribute to the feel of a scene, but in Forrest Gump it was the meaning behind the characters' actions that did it for me.

When LT. Dan introduced Forrest to his wife, with his titanium legs, i burst into tears...

Mr Hanks.. Hello from UK.. One quick pointless question but are you really as nice as you seem. Tell us one thing that shows the dark side of Tom!

I relish Aston Villa victories.

The bathtub falling through the floor scene in Moneypit followed by that classic laugh is one of the funniest moments ever committed to film. Thank you for making me cry with laughter every time I see it. I could gush like a teenage girl at a One Direction concert over your body of work as I grew up with your movies from The Man With One Red Shoe to my excitement for Captain Phillips. It looks amazing (and we expect nothing less from Tom f-ing Hanks). Thank you for the good times.

As a veteran and lover of military history and militaria in general, I want to thank you for your amazing portrayals, sincere historical accuracy, and of course your continued support of the armed services. Do you feel, as a filmmaker and actor, that historical accuracy in paramount in period pieces or is true historical accuracy in film not really possible?

Accuracy is not just uniforms being right or the tactics being correct -- the human behavior -- and the motivations, need to be true, and that is hard to do in movies...

Why are you so cool? bay area represent!

Oakland -- birthplace of Cool.

What classic movie would you have loved to have worked on?

2001: A space odyssey

If you were a Friends character, which would you be and why?

The naked guy out the window across the back alley.

Can you still do the piano dance from Big?

Sure. It's Heart and soul followed by Chopstix!

Mr. Hanks, What would you say was the most difficult movie you have ever had a part in making? I would guess that Cloud Atlas was difficult because not only are there so many parts and accents, but the sheer amount of time it must have taken! Thanks

No movie is easy, some are just more comforatble than others.

Mr. Hanks, I think what we all need to know is this: What is your perfect sandwich?

Ham and swiss on spelt. Mustard only and a bit of lettuce. No tomato!

I'm trying to think of a good question....uh....oh! What's your favorite typewriter?! Thanks for doing the AMA! :D

I like my Hermes 2000 alot.

Hi Mr. Hanks, I just want to say that you are my favorite actor of all time. My question is, What was it like working with Sam Mendes in Road to Perdition?

Sam is a talented gent who taught me the joys of Marmite on a toasted bagel.

Good afternoon Mr. Hanks

I doubt you will ever read this but I am kind of hoping you will. A LONNNNNG way back, you actually worked with my dad in Cleveland at the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival. He was an intern, you were not. I doubt you would remember him, but he had been given the nickname Sven. It's been such a long time ago that I doubt you'd remember but you can't blame a girl for trying. He always said wonderful things about you.

You've always been my favorite actor and I admire the broad range in acting you have. A question for you I have is, what scene in all the films you have done, was the most emotional for you?

Thanks for doing this AMA. You've always been my hero and an inspiration to continue my acting endeavors.

Was Sven there in '78 or '79?

Would you come to my wedding in 2015?

No, but I'll send a toaster.

I grew up in a Somali refugee town (of less than 40,000 people nearly 10% of the pop is Somalian) so the whole piracy thing was a huge deal back home when it actually happened. I know the movie wasn't shot there, but did you learn anything interesting about the Somalian conflict or culture when shooting Captain Phillips?

Somalia is filled with good people trying to get by in a troubled place...

Hello from the UK! Throughout your career you always seem to play the good guy. The ladykillers is the only exception I can think of and I really enjoyed you in that role. Do you ever wish you could play more "badguys"?

See CLOUD ATLAS and you tell me.

[deleted]

The first job I had in Cleveland with the Great Lakes Theater Festival. Without that first job you are not a professional...

Hey Tom!

How was it like to make fun of yourself doing SNL Celebrity Jeopardy?

Loved that, but should have said "Sybalence, sybalence" into the pen /microphone.

Hi Tom, In Cloud Atlas which was your favorite character you got to play and why?

Loved that hotel desk clerk.

On a scale from 1 to 10, how bad was the appearance in the german show "Wetten Dass?" for you? You seemed a bit uncomfortable.

And I just want to thank you for all your terrific movies! They made me the movie buff I am...

I didn't mind doing Wetten Dass, I just didn't know I was going to be on for so long...

Hi Mr. Hanks! Do you have a favorite actor or actress that you loved working with the most? Is it possible to choose?

Impossible!

Hi Tom. If you had the chance to travel back in time, any place at any moment but only for 15 minutes - where would you go and what would you do? Have a nice one.

I would go back to NYC in 1939 for the smells and food and people -- to see the City when it was at a different scale than now. to see the worlds fair and eat Cheesecake at Lindy's. I'd only want 24 hours to do it all.

that's it, folks, I've liked typing to you all! gotta go to lunch....

Did you get a chance to meet with Captain Phillips prior to the movie? If so, what was he like and how does he look back at the hostage situation now?

Rich was watching an NCAA basketball game of UConn in his socks when I walkd into his house. He has no fond memories of his ordeal but it's conclusion...

What was it like on the set of The 'Burbs?

Shot on the back lot at Universal -- take the tour and you will see the street. We shot in summer time from 12 noon to midnight. Like a block party.

What is the most crucial advice for becoming an actor?

Show up on time. Know your lines. Have and idea of what to do in the scene. the rest will take care of itself.

Have you ever been confused by somebody calling you Otm Shank?

No. Mot Skahn, yes.

Hi Tom

Great movies, cheers!

Was it your idea to do a reddit AMA?

Scott Rudin suggested it and my kids said I had to. I like it.

Looking at how your life turned out, do you think you were like a feather in the wind, or you picked your own destiny?

Both.

Hey, Tom! Just to make it sure... who is the best smelling actor you have ever worked with?

Hands down, Peter Scolari.

Tom, looking forward to Captain Phillips, but also looking forward to seeing you portray Walt Disney. I was wondering what sort of research you did on him, given that he was both a remarkable man but also one who had some complicated parts in his life.

Go to the Disney Family Museum at the presidio in SF!

The Terminal was the first movie I ever saw properly, in a cinema. Since then I've watched most of your movies and you've become my favourite actor! Your films always inspired me and brought me joy even in my sadder moments.

I don't have any fancy questions, I'm just wondering... what was the last song that was stuck in your head?

Thanks, T.Hanks!

It's a Great Big Beautiful tomorrow from Disney's Carousel of Progress.

Mr. Hanks, reddit recently heard you love typewriters. Any chance you might share what sparked your fascination with the collection?

That glorious sound.

If you were offered Quiz Master to an American equivalent of the BBC show Q.I., would you host it?

No, but University Challenge? Maybe!

How long was your oscar taped to your car ?

That was an Emmy, and only for about 20 feet.

How long do you think, would you really survive on an deserted island?

Id make it a week and a half.

Tom, in case my first comment gets buried, and it will, I thought I'd make a more specific one. My mom and dad worked at the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival during the summer of '79. My mom, Sara O'Neil, was the house manager, and the two of you were mutual friends with a woman named Joanne VanDeVort. If yo see this, my dad's birthday was this month, and it would just make his year to know that you remember them at all. Thanks so much!

Did Jo work in the box office? she once told me her pipes burst in winter.

Hi Tom! I loved your article in the nyt about typewriters. You nailed all the reasons why I like to use them myself. However, I tried to turn in one of my stories to my professor and she told me to stop because editing is far easier on a computer.

Can you give me the satisfaction of being able to tell my prof, "But Tom Hanks told me I should!!!"

for Papers, you gotta go with a computer. But love letters? Type 'em!

Greetings, Mr. Hanks. Your projects show a deep connection to the stories of World War II. Has that made an impact on you at a personal level?

I admire and respect your work. I also wonder if you would take a stab at another comedy project. Thanks for the AMA.

I never stop learning -- Read Rick Atkinson's GUNS AT LAST NIGHT.

Mr. Short-Term Memory! You shouldn't have sat under that pear tree!

What are you talking about? Who? Huh? What was the question? Why am I typing this?

How do you go to the bathroom in space?

Carefully.

Mr. Hanks, I just finished watching Band of Brothers. Is David Schwimmer funny in person?

He is. when he chooses to be.

Do you actually know what love is?

Learned it from R. Wilson.

Mr. Hanks,

I am a huge fan. Back in high school, in a program called AFJROtC, my instructor would make us watch Forrest Gump every year because your character portrayed the traits of perseverance, bravery, and honesty, among others. The thing was, we never got tired of it!

Despite watching the movie for ~2 years, one of my favorite movies is The Green Mile. My question for you would have to be what your favorite memory was in the making of the movie.

WE all loved each other on the Green Mile.

Do you carry a hankie Mr Hanks?

Forget too often.

I recently watched a rerun of saving private ryan which is a brilliant movie. Where did you guys get the end idea of blowing up a tank with a "handgun."

Desperation makes for odd decisions, then those P_51's came over and dropped bombs...

Mr Hanks, would you ever do a sequel to Apollo 13?

Apollo 14?