Biography
By Mei-Chuen Thong '04
Prior to our meeting, the only two things that I knew about Hanks Johnson Oshinaike were that he was a '92 from London who was returning to complete his senior year of college and that he was very tall. Indeed, his 6'4" frame towered over my rather diminutive one and he did speak with a very charming British accent. Over a relaxing chat in the Collis Graduate Lounge, I sought to uncover the unusual circumstances that led him to leave college for eleven long years. What I found instead was a delightful synopsis of a life that is rich with wonderful personalities, hope, achievement and self-discovery.
It would be best to start at the beginning. Hanks was already a budding basketball player with enormous potential from a very young age. Unfortunately, things were hardly smooth sailing for someone with such high hopes and ambition. A family tragedy during his teenage years left him very much alone and without guidance during a period of acute pain and grief. Within a year, his grandmother passed away with old age, his mother died from terminal breast cancer, and his father suffered from a fatal stroke. Needing to leave the past behind, Hanks moved to the States soon after that. To honor the wishes of his mother, he was determined to complete his education at a good school and aspired to become a great basketball player. Unfortunately, another obstacle arose when he arrived in the States, as the Governing Board of Athletics in Massachusetts ruled him ineligible to play high school basketball because he was considered an "unfair advantage".
With the help and support of Judge W. Michael Ryan of Massachusetts, Hanks persevered and it wasn't long before he received a scholarship to Worcester Academy and later, an acceptance letter to Dartmouth College. He came to Dartmouth with a specific agenda in mind - to play basketball. However, it soon became apparent that he would not be able to play because of the internal politics of the team. In his own words, "it was a torturous experience and I just rotted on the bench". This proved to have a detrimental effect on his academics because he was constantly "warring" against himself and lacked the focus to study. The turning point in this downward spiral came when he was in the infirmary one day feeling utterly depressed, and his assistant coach, Dave Faucher, stopped in to lift his spirits by inviting him to play a game of one-on-one. "I realized that I couldn't just stop the game that I loved," Hanks said, "and life moved forward from then on". It was during his junior year in 1991, that he, with the encouragement and guidance of Mrs. Dodge at the Registrar's Office, made the decision to leave Dartmouth and pursue a professional basketball career.
Hanks was recruited by NBA camps Milwaukee, Portland, Denver, Charlotte, San Antonio and Detroit, but failed to make the final cut each time. Finally, he left the country to play where he would be welcomed. It was time that things started looking up. His first stop was Brisbane, Australia, where he had been invited to play club basketball. This was a significant period of time for Hanks because his outlook toward life changed for the better. It was here, under the care of Christine and Laura Murray, that he decided to seize the opportunities that came along because "while the mind will wait, the body won't". And opportunity did come along when basketball teams in Greece, Italy and Portugal recruited him over a number of consecutive seasons. His basketball career was finally well on its way.
Among all the places in which he has lived, Hanks loves Greece the most. It was where he had his best experiences, and ironically, it had nothing to do with basketball. It was here that he met two of the most influential figures in his life - Yanna Darili, whom he described as the Diane Sawyer of Greece; and public speaker 'Aunty' Jackie McCullough. Yanna introduced him to the television industry which allowed him to explore a completely different facet in his career path. "I was really chuffed," he said, "when she took me on board and became my mentor". What would normally have been a cutthroat environment was instead, one that he reveled in and was sheltered from under her guidance. Meanwhile, Jackie McCullough became his 'Aunty' after a phone call to New York. "I called the office because I wanted to get more of her tapes and to my amazement, she answered the phone. Sometimes public figures are too busy to talk but she had time for me and spoke to me like I was her only son". With his eyes lit up, Hanks told me that "Greece is a place that forces you to interact with others and nothing but good things happened to me over those two years that I was there".
Toward the end of his journey in Europe, Hanks decided to return to England, where he briefly pursued a career in advertising to appear in commercials for brands such as Guy La Roche, Calvin Klein, Smirnoff and Budweiser. He was also a much sought after model and participated in several fashion shows for major labels like French Connection and Marks & Spencer. Even more recently in 2001, he was approached by Sky One to appear in the British version of the popular reality television series Temptation Island, but don't look for him in the reruns because he declined the opportunity! Last year, Hanks thought that it was time to revisit Dartmouth. Feeling happier and much more at peace with himself, he said "I've got all the basketball out of me, and I have no desire to play or shoot anymore, not even for fun. I've had my fun so it's not difficult for me to be a student again. I used to breathe, live and dream about the game, I would even sleep with my ball, but now I sleep with my books." He had always intended to come back to Dartmouth because of all the people he had met before- Professor Priscilla Sears, Professor Nancy Crumbine, Mrs. Dodge, 'Mama' Woods, Dean Langford and Judge Ryan. Besides, in Hanks' eyes Dartmouth is the "best school in the world because it gives you a chance to reconcile things about yourself, and gives you access to professors of the highest quality. If you want to learn, you will learn. And that's what I want to do." Having had his life filled with dominant, powerful women who gave him the strength to forge ahead, Hanks is a true feminist at heart. "There have been so many strong women in my life - my mother, who was a small lady, was one of the strongest women I have ever met... and Yanna and Aunty McCullough!" he exclaimed, before continuing on to say, "I honestly believe in the feminine fire and that women are the rock of society." He is currently taking classes in Women and the Bible, Persuasive Speaking and Greek. Despite his 11 year absence, he is obviously glad to be back and thinks that "people should treasure everyday at Dartmouth because it is an absolute privilege to be at this school". Hanks J. Oshinaike - professional basketball player, model, actor, Greek expert and feminist - has finally returned to Dartmouth and come full circle in his life.
