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The Shadowed Legacy Of John Raymond Dillingham: Uncovering Tom Hanks’ Family’s Deepest Mystery

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The name John Raymond Dillingham has recently been pulled from the shadows of history and into the glare of public scrutiny, not for his own achievements, but for his profound, and often painful, connection to one of Hollywood’s most famous families. As of today, December 23, 2025, the renewed interest in Dillingham stems from the compelling, and sometimes shocking, revelations made by his granddaughter, E.A. Hanks, in her highly-publicized memoir. This extensive article delves into the full life of the man at the center of this genealogical mystery, a decorated Master Sergeant whose private life was fraught with complexity that continues to impact his descendants decades after his death. The story of John Raymond Dillingham is a potent reminder that every family, regardless of its public profile, holds layers of untold secrets. His life, spanning from the Roaring Twenties through the post-war era, was marked by military service and personal turmoil, ultimately setting the stage for the family drama that his granddaughter would later investigate in a deeply personal quest for truth.

Complete Biography: MSGT John Raymond Dillingham, Jr. (1922–1981)

John Raymond Dillingham, Jr. was a figure whose professional life in the U.S. military contrasted sharply with the private struggles of his family life. His identity as the father of Susan Dillingham, who was the first wife of actor Tom Hanks, places him at the root of a significant Hollywood lineage, yet his own story remained largely obscured until recently.
  • Full Name: John Raymond Dillingham, Jr. (Often referred to as Jerry Dillingham by close family)
  • Date of Birth: July 8, 1922
  • Place of Birth: Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, United States (Some records suggest Allentown, PA)
  • Date of Death: August 19, 1981
  • Place of Death: DePaul Hospital, Norfolk, Virginia, United States
  • Father: John Raymond Dillingham, Sr. (1895–1944)
  • Spouse: Harriet C. Dillingham (Married in Palatka, Florida, around 1942)
  • Children: Susan Dillingham (later known as Samantha Lewes, Tom Hanks' first wife) and others.
  • Military Service: United States Marine Corps (USMC). He was a Master Sergeant (MSGT). He registered for military service in 1941.
  • Residence: Lived in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1950.
  • Grandchildren: Colin Hanks and E.A. Hanks.

The Genealogical Search: E.A. Hanks and ‘The 10’ Memoir

The most significant and current reason for the resurgent public interest in John Raymond Dillingham is the release of his granddaughter E.A. Hanks' memoir, *The 10: A Memoir of Family and the Open Road*. E.A. Hanks, the daughter of Tom Hanks and the late Susan Dillingham (Samantha Lewes), embarked on a personal, six-month road trip to uncover the secrets her troubled mother left behind. Her investigation led her directly to the enigmatic figure of her maternal grandfather. The memoir, which has generated considerable buzz since its release, details E.A. Hanks' difficult childhood and her attempts to piece together a painful family history. The search for John Raymond Dillingham became central to this narrative, as he represented a crucial, yet absent, link in her mother's life. E.A. Hanks first saw a photograph of her grandfather, John Raymond Dillingham, and upon asking her mother if it was him, received a simple "Yes" before her mother left the room, indicating the depth of the suppressed family pain. The book's fresh perspective, coupled with the connection to the Hanks family, has made John Raymond Dillingham a key entity in recent genealogical and celebrity news cycles. The memoir explicitly explores the haunting family mystery and the questions surrounding Dillingham's relationship with his daughter, Susan Dillingham.

A Life of Service and a Troubled Private History

John Raymond Dillingham’s military career as a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) suggests a life built on discipline, duty, and service to the United States. He registered for military service in 1941, placing him in the generation that served during World War II, a period of immense global conflict. His wife, Harriet C. Dillingham, was noted in her obituary as beginning a long career as a military spouse and mother after marrying him in Palatka, Florida, in 1942. This detail paints a picture of a typical military family moving across the country and potentially the globe. However, the public narrative of a dedicated serviceman is complicated by the private revelations emerging from his descendants. Susan Dillingham, his daughter, met Tom Hanks while they were theater students at Sacramento State University, and they were married from 1978 to 1987. Susan, who later went by the professional name Samantha Lewes, was reportedly deeply affected by her own troubled upbringing. E.A. Hanks’ memoir, while seeking to understand her mother’s struggles, inevitably sheds light on the dark corners of John Raymond Dillingham’s life. The book suggests a difficult and complex family environment that contributed to the emotional turmoil experienced by Susan Dillingham throughout her life. The search for the truth about her grandfather was E.A. Hanks' way of understanding the generational trauma passed down through her mother.

The Lasting Impact on the Hanks-Dillingham Lineage

The legacy of John Raymond Dillingham is now inextricably linked to the narrative of his famous grandchildren, Colin Hanks and E.A. Hanks. The renewed attention on his life serves as a powerful case study in how the secrets of a previous generation can surface and demand resolution decades later. The family’s story involves numerous key entities:
  • Susan Dillingham (Samantha Lewes): John Raymond Dillingham's daughter, whose struggles after her divorce from Tom Hanks are a central theme in her own daughter's memoir.
  • Tom Hanks: The world-famous actor who was married to Susan Dillingham and is E.A. Hanks' father. His reaction to the memoir was noted as supportive, being one of the first people to read it.
  • Colin Hanks: John Raymond Dillingham's grandson and a successful actor, who is the half-brother of E.A. Hanks.
  • Norfolk, Virginia: The location of his death at DePaul Hospital in 1981, marking the end of his life but not the end of his story’s impact.
E.A. Hanks' work has transformed John Raymond Dillingham from a simple name on a family tree into a crucial character in a modern family saga. While the details of his military career as an MSGT in the USMC are clear, his personal life remains a complex, multi-layered mystery that continues to be discussed in the context of generational secrets and the search for identity. The publication of *The 10* ensures that John Raymond Dillingham will be remembered not just as a veteran, but as the pivotal, and largely unknown, figure at the heart of a significant family’s untold history.
The Shadowed Legacy of John Raymond Dillingham: Uncovering Tom Hanks’ Family’s Deepest Mystery
john raymond dillingham
john raymond dillingham

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