F
oractressHilarySwank, hermaidenvoyage came
at theageof 7when sheflew to Iowa tovisit her
grandparents. “Ialwaysremember lookingatplanes in
thesky ...wonderedwhere theyweregoingand thought
of all theplaces Iwanted togo.Nowwhen Igetonan
airplane, it is justasexcitingas thefirst time Iflew.”
For the35-year-oldactress, travelhasbecomeawon-
derful continuingeducationof sorts. “Forme, school is
my travel, so Iamblessed Icango toalldifferentparts
of theworld,”shesays.Whileherextensive travelshave
takenher from Iowa to India, thewanderlust isstill
presentandshecitesMorocco,Egypt, and Israelas top
destinationsonher list.
It seemsfitting, then, that hermost recent role
tacklesoneof themost famouswomen inaviation,
AmeliaEarhart.Starringas the legendaryaviatrix in
FoxSearchlightPictures’ biopicfilm
Amelia
, the two-
timeAcademyAwardwinnerbothbearsa striking
resemblance (aftershe traded inhernine-inchponytail
for a pixie haircut) and sharesmany of the same
passionsas thefilm’sheroine.Directedby Indianfilm-
makerMiraNair, the film costars RichardGere as
Earhart’shusbandandmanager,GeorgePutnam, along
withEwanMcGregor, and focusesonEarhart’s lifeand
herrise toprominenceas thefirstwoman toflysolo
across theAtlanticOcean.
“Ameliawasagreat inspiration tomeasayoung
womanandobviouslynow, too…youreadaboutwhat
her story is, andwe had a lot of similarities,” she
explains.Bothwere tomboys—Swankwasaswimmer
andagymnast (shecompeted in theJuniorOlympics
“I immediately felt this kind of kindred spirit.
