How Tom Hanks Introduced Me To My Grandfather

Recently, a movie about my grandfather was nominated for an Academy Award. Bridge of Spies is on the roster for a 2016 Oscar in the category of Best Picture.

Talk. About. Surreal.

For years, I’ve been trying to tell the stories of my grandfather’s accomplishments to my friends, colleagues, and pretty much anyone who would listen.

Some would find it fascinating, and others just didn’t get it (I guess you had to be there).

But now, the story of James B. Donovan — lawyer, negotiator, and downright badass — has been told on the big screen by two of the most famous people in the world, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.

The creation of Bridge of Spies has been one of the most mind-blowing events of my life — to finally have my grandfather’s story told right, and for hundreds of thousands of people to see it around the world, is literally a dream come true.

My life hasn’t changed in any way materially. My family didn’t get rich or famous from it, but it has enriched my life in ways beyond fame and fortune.

Don’t worry if you haven’t seen the movie, there are no spoilers, just my reflections on how Bridge of Spies has changed my life in unexpected ways.

I Finally Got To Meet My Grandfather

He was the patriarch, the original Donovan, the protagonist of our family’s lore. But as life would have it, he died before I was even born. The man after whom I was named lived only in the stories at family gatherings, and in the painting on my grandmother’s wall. I never realized it as a kid, or throughout much of my adult life for that matter, but the absence of my paternal grandfather in my life was a gaping hole inside of me.

When the making of Bridge of Spies was announced, something changed. I started to dive into every piece of historic record involving my grandfather. I read books and articles. I spent time listening to his voice. I studied his picture. My greatest desire in life was now to tap into the essence of my grandfather — the man in the portrait who felt so distant before.

Then the unexpected happened. I began to experience an undeniable sense of grief at the realization of an irreversible loss — the loss of not getting to sit on his lap as a kid. The loss of not hearing the stories he could have told me about his life and career firsthand. How he felt. How he thought. I never met my grandfather, and I never would.

And then I saw the movie.

I watched Bridge of Spies four times on the big screen, and I cried every time, mostly at the end. But the last time I saw it, to my surprise, the tears came at the very beginning of the film, in an unassuming scene in which my grandfather, played by Hanks, talks to another lawyer about a case. It’s not an emotional scene at all, but something about the way Hanks embodies my grandfather hit me in the gut — I felt the transmission of who my grandfather really was.

His power. His intellect. His integrity.

At that moment, I felt like I was meeting my grandpa for the first time.

Connecting the Dots

I have been hearing about my grandfather’s impact on history ever since I was a little boy. In fact, it’s my father’s favorite topic to discuss over any other!

My dad had a special relationship with his father. It wasn’t always easy, but he got to experience things like meeting Rudolph Abel (the Russian Spy played by Oscar-nominated Mark Rylance) in his jail cell. On another occasion, my father got to tag along on a trip to Cuba and meet Fidel Castro while my grandfather negotiated for the release of prisoners after the Bay of Pigs invasion.

Hearing about all of these experiences was incredible, but I only knew them through my father’s eyes.

Watching Bridge of Spies, I was able to see my grandfather through a different lens.

As I watched Spielberg’s version of this story, I started to connect the dots between the words in my grandfather’s book (Strangers on a Bridge), what my father had told me, and how Spielberg and Hanks portrayed them in the film.

For example, I knew that my grandfather was a master negotiator sent in to do a job that nobody else would or could do. But I had never realized before that one of his core values was that “every person matters.”

Spielberg portrayed this character trait so clearly onscreen that I was able to understand my grandfather in a brand new light.

The Bay of Pigs invasion that my grandfather was sent to untangle was yet another story unrelated to the movie, but incredible nonetheless. This was a huge debacle for the U.S., and President Kennedy, and my grandfather was able to bring it to a favorable resolution by securing the prisoner release through negotiation and diplomacy as an independent citizen.

In the movie, you see that my grandfather always goes for more, and frankly, would just not settle for less. It was the same in the Cuba situation. Not only did he secure the release of the 1113 prisoners, but in the end, he negotiated for a total of 9703 people (Americans and Cubans) to be freed from Castro’s reign in Cuba.

Seeing Spielberg’s version of my grandfather’s story helped me connect the dots between the story portrayed in Bridge of Spies, the stories I heard growing up, and the Bay of Pigs story, and thus made it easier for me to see the strength and integrity of my grandfather’s values.

“Our principles are engraved in the history and the law of this land. If the free world is not faithful to its own moral code, there remains no society for which others may hunger.” — James B. Donovan

His Reflection In Me

The second time I saw the movie, I went with a big group of friends. This was special for me, because they would finally get to see the significance of who my grandfather was, and it was special for my friends because they had a personal connection to the film.

One of the biggest surprises coming out of the movie was how many of my friends said they saw him in me.

This was shocking to me because, to be honest, I’ve struggled with the tendency to compare myself to my grandfather. I’m living my life and doing work in the world that helps people, but I’m not negotiating for prisoners with world leaders in events that are changing the course of human history!

When one friend told me she saw my grandfather in me, I thought she was just being nice. Then another person said it, and I thought it was coincidence. But after a third and fourth said the same thing, I had to consider the possibility that part of my grandpa’s essence exists in me.

And if that’s true, then I have the potential for greatness. And that’s the true message of Bridge of Spies — we all have the potential for greatness.

Here was a man who was thrown into a situation — be it luck (good or bad), coincidence, or providence — and he decided not to take the easy way out. It became a cause for him that led him (and his family) into a lot of personal strife and stress, but ultimately resulted in changing the course of history, and human lives, for the better.

I believe that we all have the potential for greatness — and it doesn’t have to look like my grandfather’s greatness. Whether you are following your dream to be a dancer, trying make a big impact with your business, or becoming the best mother you can be — to me, greatness means being who you really are, and bringing your gifts out to your community and the world.

Bridge of Spies is my grandfather’s story, but it can be yours and mine too.

Jim Donovan (James B. Donovan) is an Executive Business Coach helping leaders find and remove hidden roadblocks so they can grow their businesses. He is the grandson of James B. Donovan, the protagonist played by Tom Hanks in the 2016 Oscar-nominated film for Best Picture, Bridge of Spies. You can find out more about Jim and his work at burstforward.com, on his LinkedIn profile, or follow him on Twitter @jimdonovansays.