Ping Pong Paddle Used by Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump Sells for More Than $25,000
The ping pong paddle that helped Forrest Gump repair relations between the United States and China recently sold for a staggering $25,600, according to Outsider.
Paramount Pictures/ Courtesy: Everett Collection
Fans of the classic movie will recall how Tom Hanks' character picked up ping pong while recovering from an injury sustained in Vietnam. His uncanny talent for the sport—and a tip from another soldier to keep his eye on the ball at all times—lead to "the first Americans to visit the land of China in like, a million years, or something like that."
SOLD for $25,600! A wooden ping pong paddle prop used with scenes featuring Tom Hanks as the titular character in Forest Gump. Sold today in our “Hollywood Sci-Fi, Action, Fantasy and More Auction” taking place in Beverly Hills and live online at Julien’s Live. pic.twitter.com/cX5g9oU2gd
— Juliens Auctions (@JuliensAuctions) April 29, 2021
Nearly three decades after Forrest Gump stole our hearts, one of the paddles Hanks used to restore world peace, hit the auction block.
Julien Auction's initially estimated the value of the wooden ping pong paddle at $1,000-$2,000. After a bit of a bidding war, the highly coveted prop when to an anonymous buyer for just under $26,000.
While we don't know who the new owner is, we can venture a guess that the paddle came to them in good condition. According to Collider, the ping pong balls in the movie didn't actually exist.
Despite Hanks being a pretty decent ping pong player, CGI was reportedly used to bring Forrest's incredible skill to life.
