ABC/CRAIG SJODIN(LOS ANGELES) — An eight-year-old Australian boy gained a typewriter and a friend in Tom Hanks after writing the actor an emotional and thoughtful letter.
When Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, revealed in March they tested positive for COVID-19 while in Australia, the young boy, named Corona De Vries, reached out to the Hollywood legend.
“I heard on the news you and your wife had caught the coronavirus. Are you OK?” the boy read from his letter during a segment for Australia’s Channel 7. According to Entertainment Tonight, he then shared the heartbreaking news that his classmates were teasing him about his name, which they’ve related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response, the Saving Private Ryan actor dusted off his Corona-brand typewriter, typed out a response on it, and sent both items back to the boy.
He wrote, “Your letter made my wife and I feel so wonderful. You know, you are the only person I’ve ever known to have the name Corona, like the ring around the sun, a crown.”
“I thought this typewriter would suit you. Ask a grown-up how it works. And use it to write me back,” the 63-year-old actor instructed before adding one last personal touch.
In his own handwriting, he referenced the classic children’s movie Toy Story and wrote, “P.S. You got a friend in me.”
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