Tom Cruise: Color him bankable | Interviews

As an actor, Cruise has the qualities to walk the line between leading man and insecure kid. For this interview, he came dressed right out of "Top Gun": cowboy boots, jeans and a brown leather bomber jacket. His hair is short, dark and preppy, and his face is interesting because when he smiles he has a wide-open, almost goofy sincerity. When serious, he can look so intense that you almost suspect the smile is a mask -- that his life has not been as sunny as it seems.

Cruise said he had a lonely childhood, and perhaps his acting is inspired by whatever resources he found to draw on during those years; maybe that's why he suggests greater depth than your average young movie actor. He was born in Syracuse, N.Y., the only boy among four children, and his parents divorced when he was young. Memories of these years were divulged reluctantly. "We stayed with my mother, and she moved around a lot. I went to five different high schools. Thirteen different schools in all. Growing up was . . ." Cruise paused. "I wouldn't go back to those years for anything. Life was always from one extreme to the next. I never really had any friends. I spent most of my time alone, doing different things, especially little plays and skits.

"In high school, I discovered drama. I was a singer, a solo tenor, and I was in glee clubs and choirs, and a teacher suggested I try out for a high school production of 'Guys and Dolls.' I got the role of Nathan Detroit. And onstage, working, playing the role, I felt just really happy. At last I was working in something I understood. See, school for me was really difficult because of my problems with reading. I was dyslexic. Finally, on the stage, I felt I had something I felt good about.

"So, I'd saved up a little money from various jobs, and I had no particular plans for college. I was thinking of spending the money for a trip to Europe. But after I finished appearing in the play, I told my folks, 'I'm going to New York to study to be an actor. I want to see how it goes.' "

And he did, taking the ancient and traditional route, living in poverty, working at odd jobs, attending acting classes, going to auditions.

"My first movie was a hell of an experience," Cruise said with a frown. "I got one day's work on 'Endless Love,' and the director was always grabbing my chest. I wondered, what's going on around here? He did it a couple of times, and I walked away. It was all pretty strange. I was so naive, I didn't understand.

"Then I did 'Taps,' which was a good experience, and then my agents at the time wanted me to do 'Losing It,' which was a teenage sex film. I felt uncomfortable with the subject matter, but the agents said, 'Do it, do it -- it's good for your career.' As it turned out, it was, because I learned a lot of things, including what kinds of movies to avoid."