Let us explain. No, there’s too much. Let us sum up. Mandy Patinkin has a Tiktok. That’s probably not surprising, since many actors have Tiktoks these days, but Patinkin’s is particularly worth a follow. For the most part, his Tiktok is just extremely wholesome glimpses at his life with his wife of more than 40 years, Kathryn Grody. He also occasionally sends out positive messages to refugees and other marginalized groups and, lately, encouragements to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
But recently, he took time to answer a fan’s question about a line he delivered as Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride. A young woman posted her own Tiktok video telling a story of her late father, who had passed away of cancer. Like any reasonable adult, her dad’s favorite movie was The Princess Bride, and the woman said she’d read a rumor that Patinkin’s own performance was inspired by his grief over his own father’s passing. In particular, Patinkin says he tried to deliver the line “I want my father back, you son of a b****” directly to the cancer that took his father from him.
The first part of the video contains the woman’s story. The second part, in the follow-up tweet, contains Patinkin’s very sweet response.
I’m not crying, you’re crying. Shut up. pic.twitter.com/kgC3Z8B2vt
— JAFERD, MD🇺🇸 (@Supermansings) August 25, 2021
Patinkin confirms the rumor. “It is true! 100 percent true,” he says, sharing his memories of filming the scene with Christopher Guest, who played the six-fingered man himself.
Patinkin then asks the woman to send him the name of her father. “I say prayers for everyone I’ve ever known,” Patinkin says. “Now I feel like I know you, and therefore I know your dad and I will list his name in my prayers, every day, and they make me feel like they’re with me, wherever I go. I’d like your dad to hang out with me.”
So much good advice here. From knowing how to truly listen to someone’s grief and respond to them with compassion and understanding, to showing intent when you tell people you’re going to pray for them. Inigo Montoya may have made for a wonderful pirate, but Mandy Patinkin is just a good man.
