Timeline Description: Forrest Gump is a 1994 film about a good-hearted and simple man, played by Tom Hanks. While based on a novel by Winston Groom, the film differs from the book in a number of ways, including the personality of the main character.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1943 | Benjamin "Bubba" Buford Blue Was Born Bubba was born to a poor shrimping family in Louisiana in 1943. He would go on to become Forrest's best friend. |
| June 6, 1944 | Forrest Gump Was Born Forrest was born to a single mother. While he had below-average intelligence, he was raised by a loving mother who believed in him. As a boy, he wore leg braces, but worked hard to move past his disabilities. |
| 1967 | Lieutenant Dan Loses his Legs Forrest joined the army to fight in Vietnam. In a single attack, Forrest saved a number of his fellow soldiers. He carried them out, one by one. In the attack, his commanding officer, Lieutenant Dan lost both legs. |
| 1967 | "Bubba" Died in Forrest's Arms Forrest had met Bubba in Vietnam and the two became best friends, planning to work together in shrimping after the war. Bubba died in the attack when Forrest was wounded and Lieutenant Dan lost his legs. |
| October 21, 1967 | Lincoln Memorial Demonstration On October 21, 1967, a large number of people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial to protest the war in Vietnam. Forrest spoke at the rally. |
| January 1, 1969 | Received Presidential Medal of Honor On January 1, 1969, Forrest Gump received the Presidential Medal of Honor for his valor in a time of war. |
| April 10, 1972 | Table Tennis Competition As a member of the U.S. Army Table Tennis Team, Forrest travelled to China to compete in a goodwill tournament. |
| May 11, 1972 | Dick Cavett Show Forrest appears on the Dick Cavett television program with John Lennon. He described his trip to China, inspiring the song, "Imagine". |
| June 17, 1972 | Watergate Break-In On another visit to Washington D.C., President Nixon provided Forrest with a room at the Watergate Hotel. While there, he witnessed the Watergate break-in. |
| December 31, 1972 | New Year's Eve Forrest spent New Year's Even with Lieutenant Dan. Dan was wheelchair-bound, angry and drunk. He agreed to be Forrest's second mate when Forrest got his shrimping operation. |
| 1974 | Hurricane Carmen Dan made peace with his fate on the mast of the shrimping boat during Hurricane Carmen. Dan thanked Forrest for saving him, and the two became quite rich. |
| September 21, 1975 | Letter from Apple Computer Forrest learned that Dan has invested in Apple Computer and the two have become even wealthier. Forrest gave much of his money away. |
| July 5 1976 | Forrest Started Running Following a night with Jenny Curran, the local girl who had been kind to him throughout childhood and adolescence, Forrest began running. He ran all the way across the country. |
| September 19, 1979 | Forrest Stopped Running Jenny saw Forrest on television and contacted him. She asked to meet him, and introduced him to his son, named Forrest. Jenny was already dying of an unknown illness, but the two marry. |
| March 20, 1982 | Jenny Curran Died On March 20, 1982, Jenny died, leaving Forrest and their son behind. The viewer first met Forrest sitting on a bus stop, and this is where the film ends, when Forrest waits, a single father, for his son. |