Students, scholars, and readers of film, media, and celebrity studies will enjoy this deep dive into a complex Hollywood figure.

Andrew Morton uncovers the true story of the biggest celebrity of our age. Everyone knows Tom Cruise—or at least what he wants us to know. We know that the man behind the smile overcame a tough childhood to star in astonishing array of blockbusters: Top Gun, Rain Man, Born on the Fourth of July, A Few Good Men, Jerry Maguire, several Mission: Impossible movies, and more. We know he has taken artistic chances, too, earning him three Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations. But beyond that, the picture becomes a bit less clear... We know that Tom is a devoted follower of the Church of Scientology. We know that, despite persistent rumors about his sexuality, he has been married to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes. But it was not until he jumped on Oprah's couch to proclaim his love for Katie and denounced Brooke Shields for turning to the "Nazi science" of psychiatry that we began to realize how much we did not know about the charming, hardworking star. For all the headlines and the rumors, the real Tom Cruise has remained surprisingly hidden—until now.

The exclusive biography of the most famous man in Hollywood - both on and off-screen

The Anatomy of an Actor series takes ten roles by a single actor, each studied in a dedicated chapter, and identifies the key elements that made the performances exceptional - carefully examining the actor's craft for both a professional audience and movie fans alike. Tom Cruise (born 1962), first cast by Francis Ford Coppola in The Outsiders (1983), gained international notoriety in the mid-1980s thanks to Tony Scott's Top Gun (1986). One of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood, Cruise has oriented his career to blockbusters, starring in Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds (2005) and the Mission: Impossible series (1996, 2000, 2006, 2011) An accessible text combines both a narrative and analytical dimension and is illustrated by 300 film stills, set photographs and film sequences.

Follows the life and career of the popular actor, focusing on his struggle with dyslexia, his starring roles in such movies as "Risky Business," "Top Gun," and "Jerry Maguire," and his involvement in the Church of Scientology.

Despite dancing in his underwear in Risky Business, Tom Cruise now goes to greater and greater lengths to shield his private life from the public eye. Hollywood's Top Gun has protected the truth about his marriages, his divorces and his affairs - relentlessly defending himself against rumors that follow him to this day. Now Cruise Control puts you in the driver's seat and exposes the real man and untold stories behind the carefully crafted golden boy image.

A biography of Tom Cruise which starts with his nomadic and traumatic childhood. At the age of 18, he had become one of the brat pack of aspiring young actors but in subsequent years he made a determined effort to establish himself as a respected actor.