Before fame born in michigan, he moved with his family to california and began acting at age 10. Early in his career, jake gyllenhaal led october sky as homer hickam. When sputnik is successfully launched, homer becomes obsessed with the concept of rocket launching. It is made up of micro stories, codas, and other ephemera related to my stories. The title of the paperback released at the same time was changed to the movie title, which is an anagram of rocket boys take the letters of rocket boys and move them around to. In october of that year the soviet satellite sputnik crosses the sky, causing great discussions around the country. Rocket boys has been translated into eight languages and has received many awards. It was also nominated by the national book critics circle as best biography of 1998. His breakthrough performances were as homer hickam in october sky 1999 and as a psychologically troubled teenager in donnie darko 2001. Is october sky available to watch on canadian netflix. Oct 03, 20 did you see hollywood star chris owen on eyewitness news this morning. Like the hero of october sky, i remember the shock that ran through america when the russians launched sputnik on oct. October sky mixes the drama of traditional family conflicts with a nostalgic glimpse of life in the mid50s and a look at the earliest days of our journey into.
The only kids that got out of the dust filled town received football scholarships to college, the rest accepted the inevitability of working in. October sky i was seven years old when i joined my awestruck neighbors in searching the skies for sputnik back in the cool autumn nights of 1957. October sky looks like it might be one of those quiet movies that comes in but never really makes it big, but i hope that i am wrong. There will be gay men, and they might even fall in love, behind the backdrop of trying to save the world. Im delighted to say that ill be at the paris book fair in march 2020 along with the wonderful jodi payne. However, director joe johnston, who directed the pleasant but unremarkable the rocketeer, deftly avoids most of the genres traps while creating an engaging and lifeaffirming portrait of life in a.
October sky ventures into the wellfamiliar territory of the comingofage genrea genre filled with potential pitfalls such as a tendency for sticky sentimentality. October sky sometimes one dream is bright enough to light up the sky october sky is based on the book rocket boys and tells the true story of homer hickam jake gyllenhaal in 1957 coalwood, west virginia where there was almost no opportunity. Faced with an uncertain future, homer hickam nurtured a dream. This is the true story that inspired the feature film october sky. The book has been republished under the same name as the film. The sherminator in the american pie film franchise, appearing in american pie, american pie 2, american pie presents. Description homer hickam, the introspective son of a mine superintendent and a mother determined to get him out of coalwood, west virginia, forever, nurtures a dream to send rockets into outer spacean ambition. Chris owen goodreads author, jodi payne goodreads author really liked it 4. But he brings such sincerity to telling his science teacher that a book called principles of guided missile design is the.
Barbara hilemons book contains almost 300 color photographs taken during the filming of the movie october sky. Includes a ten minute behindthescenes look at the making of october sky. Meanwhile, john hickam homers father is a west virginia coal miner who loves his job and expects his sons, jim homers older brother and homer, to. As i write more material and release it i will update the book. However, homers father chris cooper takes a dim view of his sons interest in rockets and is convinced homers future should be the same as his own, working in the local coal mines. October sky is a 1999 american biographical drama film directed by joe johnston and starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen, and laura dern. Did you see hollywood star chris owen on eyewitness news this morning. Chris owen has 93 books on goodreads with 57090 ratings. Chris owen was born on september 25, 1980 in michigan, usa as christopher owen. Plot in 1957 in coalwood, west virginia, everything revolves around the mines and to work in the mines is the destiny that awaits the local boys. It was 1957, and the small mining town of coalwood, west virginia, was slowly dying.
Chris owen movies and tv shows tv listings tv guide. Wilson was born in warriormine, west virginia, to eston and jessie richardson wilson, who had migrated to the west virginia coalfields from. He played the nerdy quentin, a surprising addition to the. October sky theres definite sleeper potential in october sky, an immensely entertaining and unabashedly inspirational factbased drama about a miningtown teenager who leads his buddies through. Movies based on real life, movies based on books, dramas, tearjerkers. The drama is set during the late 1950s in the small west virginia town of coalwood. Jake gyllenhaal, laura dern, chris cooper, chris owen, william lee scott, chad lindberg, natalie canerday, elya baskin, chris ellis, joe. Jake gyllenhaal and the film october sky matt lynn digital. Unlike homer hickam, the hero of october sky, i didnt go on to become a nasa. Hes the school nerd, but hes also a math whiz, and soon becomes vital to the boys plans. A stand by me for space and science enthusiasts, the film features an excellent young cast, with jacob gyllenhaal, chris owen, and chad lindberg sharing the screen with veterans laura dern and chris cooper, the latter playing. While the movie was being filmed, the working title of the movie was rocket boys. A memoir was published by delacorte press in september 1998 and the movie based on it, october sky premiered nationwide on his birthday february 19, 1999.
October sky, starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, william lee scott, chris owen, chad lindberg, natalie canerday, and laura dern. Jake gyllenhaal, laura dern, chris cooper, chris owen, william lee scott, chad lindberg, natalie canerday, elya baskin, chris ellis, joe johnston, charles gordon, larry franco. See more ideas about october sky, great movies and homer hickam. Hickam jr, october sky emerged as one of the most delightful sleepers of 1999a small miracle of good ole fashioned moviemaking in the cynical, often numbingly trendy hollywood of the late 20th century. Hickam is the younger of two brothers, and from the start we see that he and his father, real life john hickam as portrayed by chris cooper, will have a contentious. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events.
Oct 18, 2019 this movie was made from homer hickams book rocket boys. Before the movie was released, universal changed the title to october sky. Chris owen born september 25, 1980 is an american actor and photographer. Sputnik was the first earthorbiting artificial satellite.
Finally, october sky is a totally moving, and inspirational story that offers superb performances and drama that earns its emotional moments and deserved awards. October sky is a charming tale and the boys success is inspiring. His other credits include hidalgo, the mist, october sky and fortress. His breakthrough performances were as homer hickam in october sky 1999 and as a psychologically troubled teenager in. It is a story of growing up in a mining town, and a boys pursuit of amateur rocketry in a coal mining town.
Quentin taylor wilson november 21, 1942 august 30, 2019 was an american engineer and one of the original rocket boys featured in the book october sky as well as the film adaptation october sky, where he was portrayed by chris owen biography. Homer is a 17 year old student who wants to build a rocket with his friend to participate in a country science fair because he saw the sputnik on tv. With the aid of his closest buddies chris owen, william lee scott and chad lindberg, homer draws on limited local resources for his rocketry experiments. October sky by joe johnston jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper. October sky is directed by joe johnston and based on homer h. In 1957, homer hickam jake gyllenhaal is a high school student in coalwood, west virginia when the soviet union launches sputnik, the first manmade satellite.
Find out when and where you can watch chris owen movies and tv shows with the full listings schedule at. Jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen, william lee scott, chad lindberg, laura dern, natalie canerday. I enjoyed to watch the movie because it had many lessons and touches on some issues such as building the rockets, in life with friends and family problems to solve. I am a sucker for dramas with true life characters, especially those that are based on true events.
It is the story of homer growing up in coalwood, west virginia. See owen and eyewitness news anchors jenifer mcandrews and. October sky is a 1999 film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, laura dern, and chris cooper. Skinny dipping jake and tor seeing is believing jake. Otherwise, despite its based on a true story opening credit, this earnest, nostalgic film has a way of seeming too good to be true. But equally central to the story is homers strained, often adversarial relationship with his coal miner dad, a chiseled company man with a noble streak who seems committed to everyone but his son.
Jake gyllenhaal chris cooper laura dern chris owen william lee scott chad lindberg natalie canerday scott miles randy stripling chris ellis. As october skies opens the russian satellite glides through the evening expanse in the drab west virginia mining town of coalwood, eyes point upward and ears squeeze every ounce of information from pretransistor radios about the foreign, silent. The biggest mistakes you never noticed in october sky 1999. Chris cooper, chris owen, jake gyllenhaal, laura dern. The most important booktotv adaptations coming in 2020. Im so happy to let you all know that ive started writing in other general fiction genres as well as romance. The movie is taken from an autobiographical novel by homer h. Commercials for october sky emphasize deweyed aspirations and rocket science. Joe johnstons sentimental film, based on nasa engineer homer hickams autobiographical the rocket boys, is a largely breezy, uplifting picture. October sky is a 1999 american biographical film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen, and laura dern. October sky chris cooper and chris owen overview the true story of homer hickam, a young boy trapped in a closeminded coalmining town in the. Following the soviet launch of the satellite named sputnik, homer hickam jake gyllenhaal, a mediocre high school student, is inspired to build a rocket. He fell in with a group of misfits who learned not only how to turn scraps of metal into sophisticated rockets but how to sustain their hope in a. For stories that are thrillers, literary, and just a bit different from chris owen, please look for me as sarah macleod.
October sky is also one of my alltime favourite film of all time. Jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen and laura dern. Especially, this movies teaching me that never giving up just following my dream. October sky directed by joe johnston available on vhs. Jake gyllenhaal stars as homer hickam, the real life subject and author of the book rocket boys, that is october sky s story.
Aug 28, 2016 october sky is, like apollo, a movie i need to watch more often, and i am again embarrassed to admit that this is only the second time ive seen it october sky is the story of homer hickam jake gyllenhaal, quentin wilson chris owen, roy lee cook william lee scott, and sherman odell chad lindberg building rockets in the shadow of sputnik, often against the wishes of their. The true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the first sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his fathers wishes. It was selected by the new york times as one of its great books of 1998 and was an alternate book ofthemonth selection for both the literary guild and doubleday book clubs. A stand by me for space and science enthusiasts, the film features an excellent young cast, with jacob gyllenhaal, chris owen, and chad lindberg sharing the screen with veterans laura dern and chris cooper, the latter playing homers oldfashioned father with grit and feeling. October sky is a 1999 american biographical drama film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen, and laura dern. It was originally published under the title rocket boys in 1998. Aside from eugene levy, he is the only actor from the theatrical features to appear in the american pie presents. Hickams true story begins in 1957 with russias historic launch of the sputnik satellite, and. October sky the true story of homer hickam, a young boy trapped in a closeminded coalmining town in the 1950s. October sky 1999 movie mistakes, goofs and bloopers. Essentially, october sky is another universal pictures paintbynumbers feelgooder, in which homer and his friends decide to win a national science fair for their little town and, ultimately.
October sky, by homer hiram, was published in 1999. The future star came into the gig after picking up early roles in city slickers 1991, josh and s. It is based on the true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the launch of sputnik 1 to take up rocketry against his fathers wishes, and who eventually became a nasa engineer. Friday, february 19, 1999 chris cooper, left, and jake gyllenhaal play a father and son at odds.
Portions of content provided by tivo corporation 2020 tivo corporation whats new. Breaking bad mistakes the book of eli questions the uninvited. October sky theres definite sleeper potential in october sky, an immensely entertaining and unabashedly inspirational factbased drama about a mining. Chris owen, rocket boy and october sky actor visits. October sky is a 1999 american biographical film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper and laura dern. The majority of the pictures are simply labeled with the names of the. With jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, laura dern, chris owen.
October sky is a great movies which is based on the truth story of homer hickam. As i mentioned earlier, i had a really good feeling coming out of this movie and i dont think i was the only one. The most important book totv adaptations coming in 2020. Who are the main characters in october sky answers. Aug 20, 2017 october sky is a 1999 american biographical film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, chris owen, and laura dern. Information page about october sky starring jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, laura dern and more on canadian netflix from mafts new on netflix canada inspired by soviet satellite sputnik streaking across the heavens in 1957, a teenager builds a rocket to compete for a science fair scholarship. He is known for his work on american pie 1999, october sky 1999 and the mist 2007. Even john hickam, who was a worker and is now superintendent, sees no other prospect for his two sons. After the shift charlie and hank, shady ridge and the neon sky the 12 days of finn ari and finn, converge and merge. Jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, william lee scott, chris owen, chad lindberg, natalie canerday, elya baskin, chris ellis, laura dern. October sky the title on the mass market movie tiein version of the bestselling the rocket boys is the first memoir in a series of four, by homer hickam jr. May 08, 2019 chris cooper as john hickam in october sky.
1091 652 580 1029 1109 265 1003 1307 312 28 1271 610 183 642 580 247 538 339 616 666 173 395 485 1446 233 1404 122 808 610 609 1451 19 902 546 552 143 715 59 668 576 617 719 756