Hollywood veteran Tom Hanks was honoured by his peers at the 30th American Film Institute (AFI) Life Achievement Awards with a gala ceremony attended by stars Sharon Stone, Meg Ryan, and Oscar-winner Denzel Washington.
Forty-six-year-old Tom is the youngest recipient of the AFI award, scooping the junior position from 54-year-old director Steven Spielberg. In a neat role reversal, Steven, who was presented with his accolade by Tom five years ago, was there to return the favour. “I pray that evolution, professional and personal, will not conclude in this rented hall,” said Tom in one of the most gracious acceptance speeches in recent memory. “If you can feel like a good man in your forties, you can feel like a better man in your fifties, a superman in your sixties and maybe a Spider-Man in your seventies.”
He concluded with an emotional thank you to his wife Rita Wilson. Among those who came up to congratulate the star was astronaut Jim Lovell, who Tom portrayed in the hit movie Apollo 13. “I’m the luckiest man in the world to have been played by Tom Hanks,” he said. Before the ceremony, which was held at the Kodak Theatre in LA, the actor was asked how he felt about receiving the award. “I didn’t know I had something in common with Bette Davis,” he replied. “It’s nice to think I have something in common with David Lean.”
Tom joins a list of illustrious names honoured by the AFI, including Jimmy Cagney, Barbara Streisand, Jack Nicholson and Harrison Ford. All guests went away from the lavish ceremony with a “goodies bag” containing a collection of ten DVDs of Tom’s major films.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
