Forrest Gump is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Eric Roth. It is based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom and stars Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson and Sally Field. The film follows several decades in the life of a slow-witted, yet kindhearted Alabama man named Forrest Gump (Hanks) and his experiences in the 20th-century United States. The film differs substantially from the novel.
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed Forces and their families. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of War, and later with the Department of Defense (DoD), relying heavily on private contributions and on funds, goods, and services from various corporate and individual donors. Although it is congressionally chartered, it is not a government agency.
A cover band is a band that plays songs recorded by someone else, sometimes mimicking the original as accurately as possible, and sometimes re-interpreting or changing the original. These remade songs are known as cover songs. New or unknown bands often find the format marketable for smaller venues, such as pubs, clubs or parks. The bands also perform at private events, for example, weddings and birthday parties, and may be known as a wedding band, party band, function band or band-for-hire. A band whose covers consist mainly of songs that were chart hits is often called a top 40 band. Some bands, however, start as cover bands, then grow to perform original material. For example, the Rolling Stones released three albums consisting primarily of covers and then recorded one with their own original material.
Gary Alan Sinise is an American actor of stage and screen, as well as a director, producer, musician, and humanitarian. Among other awards, he has won a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and he has been nominated for an Academy Award. Sinise has also received numerous awards and honors for his extensive humanitarian work and involvement with charitable organizations. He is a supporter of various veterans' organizations and founded the Lt. Dan Band, which plays at military bases around the world.
Mykelti Williamson is an American actor best known for his roles in the films Forrest Gump, 12 Angry Men (1997), Con Air and Ali, and the television shows Boomtown, 24, and Justified. In 2016, he portrayed Gabriel Maxson in Denzel Washington's acclaimed film adaptation of August Wilson's play Fences, reprising his role from the 2010 Broadway revival.
Gump & Co. is a 1995 novel by Winston Groom. It is the sequel to his 1986 novel Forrest Gump and the Academy Award-winning 1994 film of the same name starring Tom Hanks. It was written to chronicle Forrest's life throughout the 1980s.
Balad Air Base, is an Iraqi Air Force base located near Balad in the Sunni Triangle 40 miles (64 km) north of Baghdad, Iraq.
Forrest Alexander Gump is a fictional character and the title protagonist of the 1986 novel by Winston Groom, Robert Zemeckis' 1994 film of the same name, and Gump and Co., the written sequel to Groom's novel.
Daniel Rodriguez is a Puerto Rican American operatic tenor from New York City. He became known as "The Singing Policeman" in his former work with the New York City Police Department, due to his role as one of the department's designated National Anthem singers. In the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks, he received widespread attention with his rendition of "God Bless America", which he sang at memorial events and on television. This led to an offer of formal training from Plácido Domingo. Rodriguez has recorded numerous albums and appeared as lead tenor in several operas. He regularly appears in support of his chosen charities, as well as performing a full domestic and international concert schedule.
James "Kimo" Williams is an American composer, musician and professor who has performed with a number of ensembles including his ensemble Kimotion and the Lt. Dan Band, that he co-founded with film/TV actor Gary Sinise. While he is perhaps best known for his work with the Lt. Dan Band, Williams has worked on a number of other projects including: award-winning photography, releasing four CDs, writing a stageplay and working on an opera based on the courts martial of Henry Ossian Flipper, the first black graduate from West Point. Cognizant of the opportunities he had, as well as those he did not due to a childhood in which he moved often, Williams speaks to students about his history, their future and their need to combat mediocrity.
Forrest Gump is a 1986 novel by Winston Groom. The title character retells adventures ranging from shrimp boating and ping pong championships, to thinking about his childhood love, as he bumbles his way through American history, with everything from the Vietnam War to college football becoming part of the story.
James Wright was an American writer and academic administrator who was the President of Dartmouth College and the Eleazar Wheelock Professor of History at Dartmouth. The 16th President in the Wheelock Succession, he served as Dartmouth president from 1998 until 2009. He joined the Dartmouth History Department in 1969 and served as dean of faculty from 1989 to 1997 and as provost from 1997 to 1998. Wright received a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin–Platteville and a masters and doctoral degree in history from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He died at his home in Hanover, New Hampshire, on October 10, 2022.
The American Veterans Center is a non-profit educational organization and one of two programs of the American Studies Center. The mission of the American Veterans Center is "to preserve and promote the legacy of America’s servicemen and women of every generation".
Below is a list of Grand Marshals of the Rose Parade. This is an honorary position selected by the president of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association. Many marshals are picked for a relationship to the theme that is also picked by the president. Traditionally, the Grand Marshal of the Rose Parade also participates in the coin toss during the Rose Bowl Game.
The GI Film Festival (GIFF), a 501c3 non-profit organization founded by Army veteran Laura Law-Millett and her husband Brandon Millett, is "dedicated to preserving the stories of American veterans past and present through film, television and live special events."
Dan Choi is an American former infantry officer in the United States Army who served in combat in the Iraq War during 2006–2007. He became an LGBT rights activist following his coming out on The Rachel Maddow Show in March 2009 and publicly challenged America's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which forbade lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) service members from serving openly.
Bryan Anderson is an American veteran of the Iraq War, triple amputee, and spokesperson. He is the author of his memoir, No Turning Back. Anderson has acted in a handful of television shows and movies, and also works as a stuntman.
Sgt. Will Gardner is an American film directed and written by Max Martini. The film stars Martini, Omari Hardwick, Dermot Mulroney, Gary Sinise, and Robert Patrick, telling the story of a disabled Iraq War veteran, Will Gardner, who is suffering from traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) he sustained while in combat. After a series of setbacks, he goes on a cross-country motorcycle journey to reassemble his life and his family.
The Gary Sinise Foundation is a charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services and events for wounded veterans of the military. It operates as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Among its programs is the construction of specially adapted smart homes for severely wounded veterans that are provided mortgage-free. From 2011 to 2021 the Gary Sinise Foundation has raised over $300 million for wounded veterans, first responders, and their families.
