ET First Interview: Tom Cruise

We all know Tom Cruise as the Oscar-nominated A-list superstar with roles in such iconic films as Top Gun, Rain Man and Jerry Maguire, as well as this weekend's Rock of Ages. Now, we flashback to Tom in his first-ever ET interview in 1982, fresh-faced and destined for greatness!

We caught Tom at the opening of a brand-new disco, and the young star, barely 20 years old, was clearly jazzed to have a taste of the limelight after supporting roles in two films: Taps opposite Sean Penn and Timothy Hutton and Endless Love opposite Brooke Shields.

"I love to dance, so I thought what the heck, I need a vacation," said Tom, looking a lot more preppy than disco-ready in a blazer and tie, pin-striped shirt and fashionable scarf.

Tom remarked that he was having a "great time," and name-dropped, "I just came through workshops with Francis Ford Coppola for his next film, The Outsiders."

That film, released in March of '83, cast him opposite such young '80s icons as Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, C. Thomas Howell, Ralph Macchio and Diane Lane, and helped pave the way to his breakout leading role in Risky Business.

The rest is history…