No Comments

Random Acts of Kindness: Tom Hanks and the Cabbie

Picture this: you’re a cab driver in New York, and you’re just ending your shift after a long day’s work when someone flags you down and asks you to take them across down in the opposite direction you need to go. Normally you’d say “sorry,” and drive on, but today you decide to go the extra mile and give the guy a ride. And who should that guy turn out to be, but Tom Hanks himself? This is the real-life story of Tom Hanks and the cabbie that appeared yesterday on Humans of New York’s website and social media sites.

The cabbie in question didn’t recognize the Academy Award-winning actor at first, because his hat was pulled down over his face. However, Hanks’ distinguishable voice soon gave him away, and upon realizing the identity of his fare, the cabbie turned his head, looked at Mr. Hanks, and screamed “WIIIILLLLSSSSOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!” in reference to the famous line from the movie Castaway. Hanks found this hilarious, and soon named the cabbie “Mr. Ferrari” because of his Ferrari hat and shirt.

The two chatted as they drove, and once they reached their destination, Mr. Ferrari snapped a photo and drove on.

A photo posted by Humans of New York (@humansofny) on Oct 10, 2014 at 2:35pm PDT

Thinking that was the end to his celebrity encounter, Mr. Ferrari continued cabbing it up in New York. But, to his surprise, over the next few weeks he kept picking up people who also knew Tom Hanks. Each time he encountered a mutual acquaintance, he made sure to say, “Tell Mr. Hanks that Mr. Ferrari says ‘hello!’” The messages obviously reached Hanks, because one day Mr. Ferrari was driving his cab as usual when he received a text message from a mutual friend that said “Mr. Hanks wants to invite you to see his Broadway show.” Mr. Ferrari and his lady friend got the VIP treatment at the show, where they got to go backstage, where Tom Hanks and the cabbie reminisced about their ride together.

If you take one thing away from this story, it should be that it pays to be selfless. Mr. Ferrari could easily have sent Tom Hanks on his way to find another cab, but he decided to take one more fare for the day despite the fact that his shift was over. And thanks to his act of kindness, he now has the perfect story to share with his customers!