His childhood was complicated by dyslexia and his family's frequent moves, but he used sports as a way to fit in with his peers. When an injury forced him to give up wrestling during his senior year in high school, he tried out for a school musical, and his newfound love of acting soon turned into a full-time pursuit.
Cruise grew up in near poverty and had a Catholic upbringing. He later described his father as "a merchant of chaos", a "bully", and a "coward" who beat his children. He elaborated, "[My father] was the kind of person where, if something goes wrong, they kick you.
Cruise is of German, Irish, and English ancestry. His oldest sister, Lee Anne, was born in his parents' native Louisville, Kentucky, while his older sister Marian was born in Syracuse, as were Tom and his younger sister, Cass. Cruise attended Robert Hopkins Public School for grades three, four, and five.
Tom Cruise was born in Syracuse, New York. He is the son of Mary Lee, a special education teacher, and Thomas Cruise Mapother III (died 1984), an electrical engineer. Cruise has three sisters, Lee Anne, Marian, and Cass.
Tom Cruise left high school to pursue acting in New York.
Growing up, Cruise aspired to become a priest. But after partaking in acting classes and performances throughout his childhood, he changed his career path, left high school (a Franciscan seminary) after a year, and moved to NYC to pursue acting full time.
Albert Einstein dropped out of high school at the age of 15 because he felt traditional schooling left little room for questioning or thought. After leaving high school, Einstein failed the entrance exam to the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. He then completed his education at a Swiss school in Aarau.
After agreeing to a joint custody agreement with Kidman in 2001 – financial terms and other settlement terms were kept confidential – Isabella and Connor stayed with their father in LA when Kidman returned to Australia and the children quickly became “completely dedicated Scientologists”, according to People magazine.
In his filing, Cruise cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split and it has been widely reported that those “differences” had everything to do with Cruise's commitment to Scientology.
His parents were both from Louisville, Kentucky, and he has German, Irish, and English ancestry. Young Tom spent his boyhood always on the move, and by the time he was 14 he had attended 15 different schools in the U.S. and Canada. He finally settled in Glen Ridge, New Jersey with his mother and her new husband.
The family had been living in Canada, but the Solo Mom returned to the United States and worked three part-time jobs to keep things stable for her brood. Federal food stamps helped, and Cruise contributed what he could.
Nicole was Tom's second wife. They adopted their first kid, Isabella Jane Cruise, in 1992, then welcomed their adopted son, Connor Anthony Kidman Cruise in 1995, per reports. According to Us Weekly, Bella was just eight and Connor was six at the time of their parents' divorce. They were also home schooled.
For having two A-list parents, not much is known about Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's two adopted kids. The former couple, who were married for nearly 11 years until 2001, adopted Isabella, now 30, in 1992, and her brother Connor, 28, in 1995.
No one who has seen Top Gun, Jerry Maguire, The Last Samurai, or Mission Impossible would believe that Tom Cruise struggles with reading. He always seems to deliver his lines flawlessly. Cruise spent his childhood trying to hide his dyslexia from his peers.
Did Nicole Kidman lose custody of her children to Tom Cruise?
When Cruise and Nicole divorced in 2001 following an 11-year marriage, joint custody of the children was given to the parents. However, behind closed doors, the adopted children reportedly remained 'loyal to their father' and decided to live with him, meaning they were raised in the controversial church of Scientology.
The Golden Globe winner and the Big Little Lies actress adopted Bella and Connor when they were married. Cruise, for his part, also has one biological child: his daughter Suri, whom he shares with his other ex-wife, Katie Holmes.
Tom lives an extremely private life, despite being a major movie star. While he may hit the occasional red carpet if he has a movie premiering, the actor is rarely photographed anywhere else, or with his kids. Though, he does have a relationship with all three.
Some of you might have still wondered, what rapper went to Harvard, it is Rapper Ja Rule who completed his education at Harvard. Ryan Leslie, Diddy, Young MC, Mos Def, Ice Cube, and others are a few examples.
Richard Branson dropped out of high school when he was only 16 after struggling with dyslexia. Soon after quitting school, Branson founded his first business, a student magazine, and eventually a mail-order record company. which later became the Virgin Records music label.
