School Typewriter Club Mails Letters To Typing Fan Tom Hanks, Who Replies To Them All In Kind

May 06, 2025 by apost team

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Tom Hanks, a known typewriter enthusiast, surprised a group of teens by writing back to them months after they sent him letters. The idea came from Mr. Frederic Durbin, who introduced an analog writing class at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School.

“Although we talked about typewriters, how to use them, use them in writing, the class ultimately really isn’t about typewriters,” Durbin told PEOPLE. “The typewriters make a good vehicle for it, but we perceive the need for a class that just helps people to pay attention to focus deeply…”

He added: “...This is a class where a typewriter allows you to go do one thing, and that is to write. And so that was the main focus of the course.”

One student shared: “...At first, it was kind of hard because we had to understand how all of the pieces of the typewriter work, how to use it as a writing device.”

They added: “But once we got the hang of that, it was great. The only thing that was kind of hard is the spelling. You either have to go back and do something or Mr. Durbin would give us correction tape, or I would just go back and aggressively type the right letter over the wrong one.”

Durbin explained: “We did have to start the course with actually learning how to use typewriters... because new typewriters are not being manufactured today. So we stress very early on the importance of taking care of these machines.”

He then shared the idea of writing to Hanks. “Tom Hanks is known as a famous typewriter collector and enthusiast... if you write to Tom Hanks on a typewriter and you catch him at the right time, he will write back to you because he loves to do that.”

Despite his celebrity status, the students decided to write Hanks letters in September 2024, but without expecting a reply. One student shared:

“I just asked him three questions. One was what his favorite typewriter is, and if there’s one that he wanted.” 

Another said:

“I talked about his roles and movies and how often he appeared in my childhood, with voice acting and everything.”

One student divulged:

“I remember I said, ‘I have no expectation that you’re going to reply,’ so, literally, the entire thing is just me talking about my favorite book. This is the plot, and this is what happened. ... When I heard we were getting the letters back, I was like, ‘Oh’ ... I was kind of embarrassed but at the same time, it’s like, ‘It’s not that bad.’”

The replies arrived in January 2025, much to the class’s surprise – and to Mr. Durbin’s delight.  

“I didn’t think (Hanks) would respond either so I sent him a letter asking him to introduce me to Hugh Jackman,” one student recalled, adding, “He was great about it. He’s like, ‘If you want to get a letter to him, just send it to me and I’ll make sure he gets it.’”

Mr. Durbin explained that the students “were just writing to him about things they were interested in, and the letters back seemed to invite further correspondence because he would ask the students different questions about themselves.”

And how did parents react? One of the students said while laughing:

“My parents were really mad at me for asking about Hugh Jackman.” Another said they “told my mom and dad and they were like, ‘Oh you should frame it,’ but they weren’t freaking out.”

Mr. Durbin expressed pride in the creative classes at the performing arts charter school, saying, “Basically, if we can imagine something, we can do it.” 

apost.com

Typing on vintage machines has led these students to an unexpected connection with Tom Hanks — who would you write to if you had the chance? Let us know, and then pass this along to fans of the Hollywood legend!