LACEY, NJ — One lucky Lacey small business owner was in for a “Big” surprise when he got the notification that “You’ve Got Mail.”
It was early April when Ian McAndrew of Iron Fox Typewriters received a special email. Hollywood’s own Tom Hanks wanted to send him a vintage typewriter.
McAndrew has spent the last several years in love with typewriters, which has become his business. Read more: Lacey Mechanic Revives Vintage Typewriters From His Home
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And as it turns out, Hanks is a big typewriter fan himself, and often sends autographed, vintage typewriters to people like McAndrew, “who are keeping the analog culture of typewriters alive in a heavily digital age,” he told Patch.
The typewriter Hanks sent McAndrew is a 1934 Underwood 4 Bank, bearing Hanks’ autograph. It came with a typed letter explaining why he chose to send it.
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It was an amazing gift for a written word enthusiast like McAndrew, and it even has a special meaning – he is designing his next tattoo using the Underwood 4 Bank as the anchor of the design.
“In short; having been gifted this just seems like kismet,” McAndrew wrote on his blog.
Not only does McAndrew restore and sell typewriters much like the gifted one from Hanks, he hopes to encourage others to renew their passion for the written word.
He has a “Public Typewriter Project” with several spots in Ocean and Monmouth counties where you can go, discover interesting new shops and use a typewriter for free. You can find more information about that here.
And check out McAndrew’s funny video thanking Hanks below.
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