Tom was born Thomas James Shaker on August 13, 1952 to Mary Katherine Christopher Shaker (daughter of Italian immigrants) and Mitchell Francis Shaker (son of Lebanese immigrants) in the town of Niles, Ohio. He is the fifth of eight children.
He scored the lead role in his kindergarten play "Frosty the Snowman" and never looked back. New York had always been beckoning. In 1991, Tom moved to NYC and spent another decade in countless film, theatre, television and edu-tainment projects. Productions included Law and Order, Ransom, 15 Minutes, Die Hard III and a critically acclaimed showcase of his original musical "Birdsville", adapted from the Aristophanes' farce and staged on 42nd Street.
In 2000, Tom travelled to Rome, Italy in search of his Italian heritage. A two-week vacation turned into a change of continents and he is now a dual citizen commuting between The Eternal City and The Big Apple. His Rome credits include The Passion of the Christ (Mel Gibson), HBO Rome and countless concerts and recording projects with the band Tom and His Cats.

Tom organizes tours through the Imagination Institute, an international consortium of producers, designers, linguists, professors and global italianos all recruited to edu-tain, coordinate, produce, assist and basically share the wonders and marvels of the italian experience. You can check and book the tour you wish at www.iiitaly.com !

People Love to Learn and Hate Being Taught. This is why Edu-Tainment is an essential and viable industry. With Rome and NYC as a canvas, I constantly find ways to instruct, enlighten, motivate and cultivate the curious. From age 4 to 104, students and guests with wonder-lust acquire the knowledge and get the message as long as the "lesson" follows one simple directive: IF IT AIN'T FUN, WHY DO IT! - Tom Shaker