Ron Howard

Tom Hanks already won his back-to-back Oscars and with an ensemble film like “Apollo 13,” he wasn’t a clear choice to get nominated again to make a three-peat a possibility. All of that aside, as anyone on the cast or crew who worked on the film knows — as well as anyone who saw the film — he was clearly born to play an astronaut. He reunited with Ron Howard on the making of this amazing film dealing with one of the worst space disasters the world has ever seen, and even though everyone knew what happened, it was a compelling piece of cinema. Join us — Pete Wright and Andy Nelson — as we continue our Tom Hanks series with “Apollo 13.”

In the late 70s and early 80s, Disney Pictures had been getting grief for releasing films that were too adult. When “Splash” came along, they decided to create a new label for releasing more adult fare. And thus, Touchstone Pictures was born! On top of that, the film was such a success that it pushed its star, Tom Hanks, and director, Ron Howard, up toward the upper echelons of the Hollywood elite. Join us — Pete Wright and Andy Nelson — as we begin our Tom Hanks series near the beginning of his career with “Splash.”