Quentin wilson, jimmy odell carroll, roy lee cooke and sherman siers. Weve all had those teachers that make a huge impact on our lives. It also motivated many people who went on to be the unseen heroes of the nasa program those who worked behind the scenes to get those astronauts and their rockets into space and the wonderful, feel good film, october sky, tells the truelife story of one of them. For the memoir by homer hickam, see october sky book. Sonny, however, is terrible at sports and has no special skill that would get him out of coalwood. Start studying october sky learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. A team of editors takes feedback from our visitors to keep trivia as up to date and as accurate as possible. Jimmy odell carroll is small and excitable, the most emotional member of the group. He is the son of the mines superintendent, and has very different plans for his future then his father does.
October sky 1999 chris cooper and jake gyllenhaal in october sky 1999 laura dern and jake. During the course of the book, homer, inspired by read full character analysis homer hickam sr. For the film producers felt having two characters named homer would confuse. It was originally published under the title rocket boys in 1998. A mere flight of fancy on the way to a preordained mining career. Homer hickam, the man whose life became the basis of the film october sky, takes us through some of his inspiring accomplishments. The true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the first sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his fathers wishes. She was a main character who always supported sonny, even after he blew up the rose garden fence that took three months of reminding mr. They are both descendants of william the conqueror.
She gives sonny a book called principles of guided missile design that is extremely useful to the rocket boys in the future. It is a story of growing up in a mining town, and a boys pursuit of amateur rocketry in a coal mining town. The real life people portrayed in the movie are shown during the end credits. Miss riley is a chemistry and physics teacher at big creek high school. October sky 611 movie clip homer proves his innocence.
Movies lp this category is for questions and answers related to october sky, as asked by users of. Everyone and everything seemed to go against homer, but that did not stop him. The majority of the pictures are simply labeled with the names of the people in the picture. Sonny is a very charismatic, smart, and clever young man with a very long hard road ahead of him. October sky, by homer hiram, was published in 1999. In the memoir october sky, the character, homer hickam, shows lots of different emotions. October sky characters cast list of characters from. Although hickam hoped producers would keep rocket boys, they said they felt it wouldnt lure a female audience. Before the movie was released, universal changed the title to october sky. October sky 1011 movie clip he isnt my hero 1999 hd.
But he did not get to play his senior year because of something that had happened the year before involving his dad, and a well meaning but misguided group know as the football fathers. The future star came into the gig after picking up early roles in city slickers 1991, josh and s. List of october sky characters 1 ike bykovsky october sky. With jake gyllenhaal, chris cooper, laura dern, chris owen. Aug 11, 2016 this is one of my favorite scenes from the movie october sky. Not if this decent young man can win the science fair and a ticket out. A person must have determination in order to be successful. Dec 16, 2009 october sky, by homer hiram, was published in 1999. The main character is homer hickam, a boy who becomes passionate about going into space after he hears about the soviet sputnik satellitethe first one in space. This list of october sky actors includes any october sky actresses and all other actors from the film.
I enjoyed to watch the movie because it had many lessons and touches on some issues such as building the rockets, in life with friends and family problems to solve. October sky is a simple, but heartfelt tale about homer h. Parents need to know that october sky is a moving drama based on a true story centers on a very difficult, tense fatherson relationship. From escaping the mines of coalwood, west virginia by learning rocketry to becoming a nasa engineer, he speaks about a career which eventually added the title of bestselling author to the mix. Chris cooper, david copeland, chris ellis, jake gyllenhaal, chris. October sky the title on the mass market movie tiein version of the bestselling the rocket boys is the first memoir in a series of four, by homer hickam jr. The movieclips channel is the largest collection of licensed movie clips on the web. October sky is a 1999 american biographical drama film directed by joe johnston and starring. An evaluation of the novel october sky by homer hickam, using the pit stop principles from first trimester reading. October sky 1999 plot summary 4 the true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the first sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his fathers wishes. Chapterbychapter october sky summary rocket boys by. This movie is a perfect example of what attracted us to movies. She was a student teacher and coordinater for the science fair. October sky is a great movies which is based on the truth story of homer hickam.
At the same time, he enthusiastically supports homer s experiments with rockets, and even gives him some useful advice about how to prepare rocket fuel and design rocket casings. October sky questions and answers discover the community of teachers, mentors and students just like you that can answer any question you might have on october sky. Ultimately, the movie is about following your dreams, no matter how unachievable they might feel. Jake gyllenhaal breaks down his most iconic characters gq. Filled with awe and a belief that this may be his chance out of coalwood, homer sets. One of the rocket boys he is disabled with a shorter left leg he works as the superintendent in the. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay andor viewings of october sky. Elsie hickman sherman the mother of homer hickman she was loving and caring she wanted more for homer so she did not want him to work in the mine like his father homer hickman sr. This causes a source of friction between father and son. In that tradition, gqs video channel covers every part of a.
In coalwood, west virginia, all the boys grow up to be coal miners and. What is the name of the novel october sky is based on. The acting is perfect, especially laura dern, who is an onscreen gem as miss riley. Get an answer for what obstacles did the boys in october sky have to face to achieve their goal. In october, news of the soviet unions rocket launch of sputnik 1 reaches coalwood. He spends most of his time in the mine, and worries day and night about being the best that he can be for the company. Homer hickman is the father of sonny and jim hickman. She inspires the rocket boys to compete in the national science fair. You can view additional information about each october sky actor on this list, such as when and where they were born. October sky is a charming tale and the boys success is inspiring.
Movies like october sky if you like october sky you are looking for realistic, exciting and touching movies about with follow your dream, generation gap, against the odds, teacher, small town, teenage life and friendship themes of biography, drama and family genre shot in usa. Sonny wants to build rockets, homer wants his son to work in the mine. In the book rocket boys, the main character is always called sonny. Actor william lee scott picked up one of his first film roles as roy lee in october sky. Here you will find unforgettable moments, scenes and lines from all your favorite films. The character of john dubonnet in rocket boys from litcharts. Advanced search watchlist sign in october sky 1999 poster. What was the lead characters brothers name and what type of scholarship did he receive.
In the movie, october sky, homer was determined to reach his goals. Miss freida riley is the dedicated high school chemistry teacher who goes above and beyond in her classes in october sky. He is the mine superintendent and is a very loyal company man. Miss riley is such an influence on sonny that he gives her the gold medal. Early in his career, jake gyllenhaal led october sky as homer hickam. As sputnik parts the october sky over a humble west virginia coal mining town, one idealistic teen hatches visions of sending his own rockets into space. Chris cooper joined october sky as john hickam, the father to. Some of the movies representations of the characters are combinations of the.
Jun 27, 2019 for more than 50 years, gq has been the premier mens magazine, providing definitive coverage of style, culture, politics and more. October sky 1999 cast and crew john hickam chris cooper is a west virginia coal miner who loves his job and expects his sons, jim scott miles and homer jake gyllenhaal, to follow in his. He then nabbed the role of odell in october sky, playing a friend of. What obstacles did the boys in october sky have to. You can get some information from october sky 1999. Hickman, a man who i never knew existed prior to this films release. Their first rocket blows a hole in the picket fence in front of. Sherman siers has a physically weakened left leg as a result of polio. Motivated to launch october sky the movie is based on a true story in a small town in west virginia called coal wood in 1957, most of the male that live in that town were miners. Why was the movie called october sky instead of the books title, rocket boys.
The true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the first sputnik launch to take up. The young narrator and protagonist of rocket boys, homer hickam, jr. October sky cast and crew cast photos and info fandango. The true story was published in1998, its about a boy and his friends who build and launch off their own rockets. October sky quizzes there are 50 questions on this topic.
Finally, the october sky script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the jake gyllenhaal and chris cooper movie. As the townspeople gather outside the night of the broadcast, they see the satellite orbit across the sky. Capturing time and place with impeccable detail and superbly developed characters including laura dern as an inspiring schoolteacher, october sky is a family film for the ages, encouraging the highest potential of the human spirit while giving viewers a clear view of a bygone era when the final frontier beckoned to the explorer in all of us. In one scene, a drunken stepfather beats up one of the main character s friends. The movie relates his struggles against his town, his family, and the stereotypes of his time. The film received critical acclaim from film critics. Quentin wilson is the most intelligent member of the rocket boys and the person who does figures out most of the math in the group. October sky is a 1999 film directed by joe johnston, starring jake gyllenhaal, laura dern, and chris cooper. Meet the cast and learn more about the stars of october sky with exclusive news, pictures, videos and more at join sign up keep track of your favorite shows and movies, across all. The title of the paperback released at the same time was changed to the movie title, which is an anagram of rocket boys take the letters of rocket boys and move them around to spell october sky. Homer grew up in a small town, but dreams to live a life better.
Many people did not believe that homer could successfully launch a rocket, however ms. At its widest theater release, 1,702 theaters were showing the movie. They wouldnt care if you lived in a governors mansion. The leader of the coalwood miners union, john dubonnet quarrels with homer sr. October sky based on the true story of homer hickam, a coal miners son who was inspired by the first sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his fathers wishes, and eventually became a nasa scientist. Rocket boys characters from litcharts the creators of. Jake gyllenhaal as homer hickam chris cooper as john hickam.
Set in 1957, the film follows young homer gyllenhaal in the mining town of coalwood, west virgina, where almost every man works in the mine. Braun stands for the possibility of tangibly reaching their goals, despite how impossible they may. October sky is the story of how homer hickam sees sputnik fly over his small mining town and begins to dream big. Always told her son, sonny that he was only from the lavender side of the family. The movie is taken from an autobiographical novel by homer h. But i did read willy leys rockets, missiles and space travel three or four times, and arthur clarkes the making of a moon.
Jim hickman is the brother to sonny and the son to elsie and homer hickman. Like the hero of october sky, i remember the shock that ran through america when the russians launched sputnik on oct. Jake gyllenhaal and laura dern star in this inspiring true story about a teenager living in a west virginia mining town who dares to reach for the stars after seeing the sputnik satellite. It is also available in abridged audio book, electronic book, large print, and is.
Sonnys older brother, jim hickam, excels at football and expects to get a college football scholarship. Rich in sweet sincerity, intelligence, and good oldfashioned inspirational drama, october sky is a comingofage story with a heart to match its hollywood. Especially, this movies teaching me that never giving up just following my dream. I know, i know, i still need to get the cast names in there and ill be eternally tweaking it, so if you have any corrections, feel free to drop me a line. John hickam chris cooper is a west virginia coal miner who loves his job and expects his sons, jim scott miles and homer jake gyllenhaal, to follow in his. A memoir in 1998 and the premiere of the movie october sky in 1999, many of my readers and fans have wondered 1 how and why i wrote the book, and 2 how the movie was made. The easiest of the symbols in october sky to recognize is the symbolism of the rockets. Miss freida riley is that teacher for sonny in homer hickams october sky. Unlike homer hickam, the hero of october sky, i didnt go on to become a nasa scientist, or train astronauts. October sky 1999 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Homer, who is the main character faced many challenges, to achieved his launch rocket. The book has been republished under the same name as the film. Two years later he would play the title character in 2001s donnie. While the movie was being filmed, the working title of the movie was rocket boys.