Gary Alan Sinise was born in Blue Island, Illinois. In 1974, Gary, Terry Kinney, and Jeff Perry founded the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago. In addition to acting in many plays, Gary also directed some of Steppenwolf's most notable productions, including Sam Shepard's "True West". The company made its off-Broadway debut with that production, starring Gary and John Malkovich, and its Broadway debut with "The Grapes of Wrath" at the Cort Theatre in 1990. Gary's Hollywood career also started in the director's chair with two episodes of the stylish TV series Crime Story (1986), followed in 1988 by the feature Miles from Home (1988) starring Richard Gere. Gary's first feature film as an actor was the World War II fable A Midnight Clear (1992) in 1992. That year also found Gary combining his acting and directing talents with the critically acclaimed Of Mice and Men (1992). His first real notice by the public came in 1994, starring in the blockbuster miniseries The Stand (1994). This was rapidly followed by his bravura performance as "Lt. Dan" in Forrest Gump (1994). In 1995, he reunited with Tom Hanks in Apollo 13 (1995) and then starring in the HBO film Truman (1995) which earned him the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards and an Emmy nomination.