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"RE-RELEASE: Tom Hanks"

Explore episode Jun 11, 2026
Arts
Bosom Buddies and Young Tom Hanks Before Everything Changed

"RE-RELEASE: Tom Hanks" · Jun 11, 2026 Arts

Before booking Bosom Buddies, Hanks spent a full year as a Shakespearean actor earning less than $10,000, married with a kid. Two weeks on the show matched that annual salary. He and co-star Peter Scolari were so comfortable goofing off that the director had to yell at them through the intercom from the control booth.

Where this was said

Sitcom Life, Bosom Buddies, and the Financial Relief of TV

At 29:40 · chapter starts 28:06

Jason opens this segment by asking whether the sitcom schedule — rehearse Monday through Wednesday, camera block Thursday, shoot Friday, or some version thereof — is the best job in show business. Tom confirms it is 'kind of a skate' and a 'great hang.' Jason then reveals the Jimmy Burrows version: a 4-day work week, only 3 weeks per month, 12 working days total, 6 hours a day, with food and climate control. Tom is genuinely alarmed that Jason is broadcasting this to civilians. The conversation is playful but also grounded — it sets up the contrast with what Tom was earning before TV.

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