Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. October Sky is a 1999 film directed by Joe Johnston, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper and Laura Dern. It is based on the true story of Homer Hickam, a coal miner''s son who was inspired by the launch of Sputnik 1 to take up rocketry against his father''s wishes, and eventually became a NASA scientist.