Hanks Puts Beloved Airstream Trailer Up For Auction

Bobby Barker

It might be a little bit too big to fit with all the other memorabilia in their basements, but a special item is about to hit the market that rich hardcore film buffs are going to be emptying their wallets for. You’ve probably heard of Hollywood legend, Tom Hanks. The prolific actor has been in a staggering list of iconic films, from Forrest Gump to Saving Private Ryan to Cast Away to Toy Story 1, 2, 3 and 4 (and inevitably 5, 6 and 7 some day).

While filming those masterpieces, and a long list of others in his illustrious filmography, Hanks spent his downtime in his beloved, custom made Airstream Model 34 trailer, a vehicle he bought all the way back in 1992. However, after almost 30 years of service and companionship, Hanks has decided that it is finally time to part ways with the place that he called home while ‘on set’ and is putting the trailer up for auction in August.

Hanks purchased the trailer at the beginning of his stardom while shooting the now iconic Nora Ephron romantic comedy, Sleepless in Seattle, as he was quickly growing tired of working out of unhomely accommodation. “I had spent too much time in regular trailers with ugly décor and horribly uncomfortable furniture,” Hanks told Bonhams. “So I decided to buy a brand-new Airstream shell with an interior made to my own request.” The trailer embodies the modest, everyman persona that Hanks has practically patented in his career, coming with all of the amenities you would expect for a movable quarters of this size (35 feet or 10 metres) and not much more.

It’s also comforting to know that even the world’s greatest movie stars deal with the tedium of moving and shifting furniture; “I wanted a regular sofa, too, so I had one made with removable legs so it would get through the door.”

Hanks will be generously including a myriad of signed mugs, espresso machines and other items with the trailer that will go down great with the movie nerd that ends up winning the auction. Additionally, the vehicles windows display clapperboard stickers which commemorate each of the 18 locations that the trailer accompanied Hanks on set.

The trailer is set to go up for auctions on August 13th and is expected to fetch a price anywhere between $150,000 and $250,000. That’s a steep price, but one worth the bragging rights that will come with owning a unique piece of film history.

Images courtesy of Bonhams.