Dear Ken: Please tell us where Tom Hanks grew up and if he has any children? 

Hanks, 53, was born in Concord, Calif., to a father who was a chef and a mother who was a hospital worker. They divorced when Hanks was 4, and his childhood was spent with several step-families. He graduated from high school in Oakland, Calif. The actor has two children from his first marriage and two from his second marriage. He and his wife of the past 21 years, actress Rita Wilson, met on the set of his TV series “Bosom Buddies.” Hanks is a fan of “Star Trek,” the Cleveland Indians and collects typewriters. He was a producer of the film “Where the Wild Things Are” and will return as the voice of Sheriff Woody in “Toy Story 3” in 2010.

Dear Ken: Is actress Jane Wyman, who was once married to Ronald Reagan, still living?

Wyman died in 2007 of complications from arthritis and diabetes at the age of 90. The St. Joseph, Mo., native was married four times and Reagan was hubby No. 3 from 1940 to 1948 and the father of her two children, Maureen and Michael. She won an Oscar for her portrayal of a deaf-mute in the 1948 film “Johnny Belinda.”

Dear Ken: How old is Sandra Bullock? Is she married?

Bullock, currently starring in “The Blind Side,” is 45 and was born in Arlington, Va. She has been married for four years to Jesse James and is a step-mom to his three children. James is a heavily tattooed biker rebel and TV personality, and Bullock recently told him there were to be no more tattoos on certain areas of his body. Her mother was a German opera singer.

Dear Ken: When did singer Nat King Cole die and what was the cause of death?

The classic crooner and pianist was born Nathaniel Adams Coles in Montgomery, Ala., and died in 1965 at 45 of lung cancer. The smooth, silky voice behind such hits as “Lush Life,” “Ramblin’ Rose,” “Unforgettable,” “Mona Lisa” and “The Christmas Song.” In 1956 on NBC he became the first African-American to host a TV variety show. 

If you have a trivia question about actors, singers, movies, TV shows or pop culture, e-mail your query to Ken Beck via www.sherlocksbooks.com where you can also find classic films and TV shows on DVD or visit Sherlock’s Book Emporium in Lebanon, Tennessee.

Ask Ken Beck

Journalist Ken Beck, a longtime resident of Wilson  County, has recently become a contributing writer for Main Street Media and its local newspaper, "The Wilson Post."

Earlier this year Beck concluded a 31-year career with "The Tennessean" where he edited the Nashville paper’s “Sunday Showcase” entertainment magazine for 25 years. Besides interviewing stars of film and television, Beck wrote Tennessee travel and feature stories and a popular Q&A entertainment column.