The Poster Memorabilia blog

Opening My Box of Chocolates

A rough start, a parade field in Kentucky, and the year one hobby finally clicked.

By an anonymous Hollywood insider

This is gonna sound corny, but starting a new hobby really is like opening a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get. I started autograph hounding a couple of years ago, and I never knew how thrilling it would be. Nor did I know meeting celebrities would actually change my life.

I used that famous Forrest Gump quote here because the movie's cast gave me some of my most memorable celebrity encounters. I met Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Sally Field, Gary Sinise, and director Robert Zemeckis in person and got their autographs. And if it weren't for them, I would've found a new hobby to take up my time.

Admittedly, I didn't get off to a good start with autograph hounding. I went to many celebrity events, but I rarely got any signatures. I was so bad at it that when I actually met famous people, I was so starstruck I forgot to ask for their autographs.

It also didn't help that some movie stars weren't who they seemed to be, to put it nicely. I thankfully haven't met rude or mean celebrities yet, but some who put on a bubbly, nice persona for the public were pretty snobbish in real life.

The worst they did was ignore me when I was already all up in their faces, which I could slightly understand, but it still didn't feel good to be so blatantly ignored. They seemed like the kindest people on earth when they're on talk shows or in social media clips, but in person? They acted as if I didn't exist.

“Meeting the cast of Forrest Gump turned that around.”

Meeting the cast of Forrest Gump turned that around. I'm happy to share that the movie's big stars really are so nice and pleasant in person. Sally Field floored me when I saw her at the Vanity Fair after-party for the 96th Academy Awards in 2024.

She attended the party with her son, and she was so nice that I almost hugged her right on the spot. She played two of my favorite movie mothers ever—Mrs. Gump in Forrest Gump and M'Lynn Eatenton in Steel Magnolias—so when I saw her in person, it was like seeing my mom after a long time.

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Months later, I met Gary Sinise at the Lt. Dan Band concert at Fort Knox, Kentucky. I didn't even plan to go there at first. A friend I'd just met found out I was a huge Forrest Gump fan too, so he invited me to see it. He had been to countless of these concerts before, and he told me Sinise was always nice to fans who went up to him.

It was a good thing I did because he was telling the truth. It turned out to be the band's 570th show and their first ever at Fort Knox, played free on the parade field for the whole community. I finally got to meet Lt. Daniel Taylor myself, and he was an angel in person. Not only did he sign my poster, but I also got to take a picture with him.

And as if the year wasn't good enough, I eventually met Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, and Robert Zemeckis at AFI Fest that October. They premiered their latest film together, Here, and I couldn't miss Forrest's reunion with Jenny after all these years.

Like the first two, I felt so relieved that all three turned out to be very nice people. Not only did they not ignore me, but they also signed my poster, and Hanks even thanked me for still being a fan of the movie. I actually teared up when we shook hands.

Today, I'm still chasing celebrities for autographs, and my encounters have been better than ever. I still get ignored a couple of times, but I don't mind it anymore. As long as I meet gems like the Forrest Gump cast, this hobby is still worth doing.

Some things you watch. This one you keep.

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