Believe it or not (we hardly can), John Travolta was the first choice to play Forrest Gump. The producers also thought Bill Murray might fit the role, but they went with Tom Hanks and got him a second straight Academy Award for Best Actor in the process. (Source)

You know how Forrest and Lt. Dan found the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company in the movie? After the movie's release, some folks actually started a real life Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., which currently has 43 locations around the world for all of your crustacean needs. (Source)

Whenever Forrest meets people, he likes to introduce himself this way: "My name is Forrest Gump. People call me Forrest Gump." You can't thank the scriptwriters for that bit of dialogic genius: Tom Hanks just made it up while filming those scenes. (Source)

Forrest Gump is based on a book, and that book has a sequel, and that sequel is totally nutty. At one point, Forrest ends up working as a janitor at a strip club; in another, he crashes the Exxon Valdez. (Source)