Tom Hanks says his role as Mister Rogers in ‘A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood’ taught him how to resolve the "rare" arguments he has with wife Rita Wilson.
The 63-year-old actor has been married to his high school friend Rita for 31 years now, and the Hollywood legend has revealed that the children’s TV host from US show ‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’ showed him that it’s "good to say the things we feel" and talk through issues.
He told ‘Entertainment Tonight’: "When my wife and I are going at it on those rare occasions, when she is letting me know that I’m not really listening to her and I’m trying to establish what the ground rules are [for the argument], when we’re going at it like that, one of us will say, ‘Well, you know what? You know what, honey? It’s good to talk.’
"It’s good to say the things we feel.
"And I learned that from Mister Rogers."
Hanks also revealed that the one thing he has in common with Fred Rogers is never letting anyone "take advantage" of his "good nature" and always wanting to make the world "a little bit better".
He said: "I don’t allow anyone to take advantage of my good nature and I don’t know that Fred did either.
"I’m nothing like Fred Rogers in any way, shape, or form. "Except, I think, I wake up in the morning thinking, ‘Hey, it’s a nice day, it’s a good day. Let’s try to make it a little bit better."
Meanwhile, the ‘Forest Gump’ star also revealed that when he and Rita – who have worked on and featured in several motion pictures together, including ‘Sleepless in Seattle’ – aren’t working on movies, they enjoy cooking sessions together.
He said: "We make soup together.
"Like, if we have a day off and there’s nothing going on … it takes about two to three hours."