Tom Hanks honors Jim Lovell

Tom Hanks posts a social tribute to Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell after Lovell dies at 97.

Tom Hanks honors Jim Lovell with heartfelt tribute

Jim Lovell, the NASA veteran who flew on Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8 and Apollo 13, died at age 97, NBC News reports. Lovell led the Apollo 13 mission, a story that became a lesson in teamwork and problem solving under pressure. Tom Hanks, who played Lovell in Ron Howard's Apollo 13, posted a tribute on Instagram using his signature typewriter font. The post links Lovell’s real life of daring to a broader public memory shaped by film and biography.

After NASA, Lovell co wrote Lost Moon, a book that inspired the Apollo 13 film. A crater on the Moon was named in his honor in 1970. The tribute from Hanks helps keep Lovell's legacy alive beyond the page and the screen.

The moment shows how memory of space exploration travels through both science and cinema. A Hollywood star with a real life role adds gravity to a public remembrance. It is a reminder that public memory can be shaped by the voices we hear most clearly.

This is a sign of a broader trend. Films and books can bring older missions into current public life. The risk is that heroism can become simple, while the work behind it can be complex.

Highlights

Memory travels farther than a launch pad through the stories we tell