Topic: Tom Hanks

How foreign movie heroes differ from Hollywood's

Forget Matt Damon. Filmmakers outside America are more likely to favor moral heroism over physical heroism. Meet India's Salman Khan.

Holiday gift guide 2010: Television programs

We have more gift ideas for you this holiday season. For the person who enjoys Canadian television comedy, World War II drama, a TV documentary on mankind's narrative myths, and a classic British television detective series, we have a quartet of selections. By the way, if you would like to purchase any of these DVD sets, there are links to do so on each page and you can help the Monitor at the same time.

A tepid return for Conan O'Brien: Time to rethink late-night talk?

The first two episodes of the highly anticipated Conan O'Brien show on TBS have been called conventional. The late-night talk show genre is in trouble, media-watchers say.

Conan O'Brien returns -- to a changed late-night landscape

To the delight of Team Coco, Conan O'Brien returns to late-night TV after his ouster by Jay Leno. But the competition for young viewers has shifted with the rise of Comedy Central.

Four ways New Orleans is better than before Katrina

The Katrina floodwaters that drowned New Orleans caused many to wonder if the city could ever recover. Five years later, recovery is evident in spades. January's Super Bowl win helped set the tone for what recently elected mayor Mitch Landrieu is calling “the new New Orleans.” Here’s a look at four signs of progress that could be models for cities nationwide:

Argentina prisoners escape past guard named Wilson (as in Cast Away)

Two men convicted of armed robbery slipped out of a prison in Neuquen province, Argentina. With only enough staff to man two of 15 guard towers, the prison workers disguised a soccer ball as a guard. It didn't work.

'Toy Story 3': Pixar's 'Toy Story' movies keep getting better and better

'Toy Story 3' is even better than its predecessors!

Remembering Guenter Wendt, Apollo-era 'pad führer'

Guenter Wendt was NASA's original launch pad leader – or 'pad führer,' as he was affectionately known – for the agency's manned space program and the last man the Apollo astronauts saw before launching to the moon. He died Monday.

Behind 'The Pacific' -- Hanks, Spielberg discuss HBO miniseries

'The Pacific,' HBO's 10-part, $195 million miniseries debuts tonight.

Hanks and Spielberg see in 'The Pacific' a harbinger of today's wars

'The Pacific,' a 10-part HBO drama that launches Sunday, spins the tales of those who fought on the Pacific front in World War II. Creators Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg suggest that the type of warfare waged on those little-known islands may give viewers a jolt of familiarity.

Six Picks: Recommendations from the Monitor staff

HBO’s World War II blockbuster ‘The Pacific,’ Norah Jones’s new tour, ‘Up in the Air’ on DVD, and more.

'Charlie Wilson's War' would be harder to fight these days

Rep. Charlie Wilson, the east Texas Democrat who died this week, directed millions of dollars in covert funding to help mujahedeen fighters oust Soviet troops from Afghanistan in the 1980s. But efforts at government transparency in budgeting would make that more difficult today.

Opinion: How exile Feng Zhenghu is taking on China's bullying -- from an airport

Feng Zhenghu, the activist stuck at a Japanese airport, is igniting hope to other exiled Chinese.

National World War II Museum: Bringing the battle to life

The New Orleans National World War II Museum uses immersive tech to boost teaching power – and also entertain.

Gustavo Dudamel: His debut is complete

Six Picks: Recommendations from the Monitor's staff

A photo-packed magazine on Central Asia, Miss Marple's mysteries out on DVD, the best of IMAX on TV, and more.

The most deadly US foe in Afghanistan

The Haqqani network, born of the Russian war and nurtured by the CIA, is behind many spectacular assaults in Afghanistan.

Review: 'Angels and Demons'

This sequel to "The Da Vinci Code" keeps the dour tone as Tom Hanks steps in to thwart a plot against the Vatican from a secret society bent on revenge.

David Letterman, electric car evangelist?

Yoostar gives Hollywood hopefuls a taste of the silver screen

Column: The $150 kit lets you be the star in your favorite movies – all from your living room.

Tiger Woods to appear at Inauguration

My basement has turned into an air conditioner museum

I've collected window units of all sizes, new and antique. Some are clean, others have filters loaded with dust mites and black mold spores.