Mandy Patinkin’s son has been recording his mom and dad and posting the videos to TikTok and Twitter. The first time I noticed one of their videos was when Mandy and his wife of 42 years, Kathryn, were hilariously trying to guess Internet abbreviations and failing. Spoiler, they knew OMFG and TTYL but that’s about it.
I saw that Mandy was trending on Twitter and knew, unlike when other celebrities trend, that it had to be for something wholesome. It turns out that it was so wholesome and moving it made me cry. A young woman who lost her father to cancer earlier this year, Amanda, asked Mandy via TikTok about a certain scene in The Princess Bride where his character, Inigo Montoyo, fights Count Rugen, the six fingered man.
In that scene, Montoyo repeats his classic line “My name is Inigo Montoyo, you killed my father, prepare to die.” When Montoyo has Rugen cornered, Rugen offers him anything to spare his life. As Montoyo kills Rugen, he says “I want my father back you son of a bitch.”
Thousands of people tagged Mandy on Amanda’s video and so his son showed him the video and taped his reaction. Amanda cried as she asked Mandy if it was true that he used the death of his own father as motivation for that scene. Mandy said that was true, he explained in a caption that he lost his father at 18 to cancer, and he and Kathryn got weepy as he described performing that scene. Here’s part of what he said and the video is below.
First of all, you dad has taken care of you. Secondly, it is 100% true. I went outside in this castle and walked around the, what do they call it, bush… maze around the castle. I kept talking to my dad I said “dad, I’m going to get this guy.” The minute I got this script I said to Kath, “I’m going to do this part because if I get this six fingered guy that means I killed the cancer that killed my dad and I’ll get to visit my dad.” When I played that scene with Chris I went back out there and talked to my dad. And so you can talk to you dad anytime you want, anytime you want.
Kathryn then said that their daughter-in-law had lost her mother when she was 20 and got help from a community called The Dinner Party. It’s a website that connects 20 and 30-somethings who are grieving. Mandy told Amanda he would put her father in his prayers! He was so genuine and earnest about it, asking for his name to add to his list. My heart is just swelling. What wonderful, caring people Mandy and Kathryn are. Also they’re progressive, funny, pro-vax and awesome all around. Followed!
Here’s that video.
To Alaska (aka Amanda – we figured it out!) Thread – Thank you for sharing this with us. My dad died of cancer when I was 18. Kathryn's parents died within a year of each other when she was 25, her dad of a heart attack while her mom was sick with cancer…. pic.twitter.com/xbjC7pVI3p
— Mandy Patinkin (@PatinkinMandy) August 25, 2021
And here’s that scene from The Princess Bride.
Also they’re hilarious in their lack of pop culture knowledge:
photos credit: Avalon.red
What a class act. I love Mandy Patinkin in every role that he has ever played, but #saulforever
My dad hadn’t died when i read the book (in 1987) and saw the movie later that year in the theatre when it came out.
But he has died since, and when i watch that moment in the movie, i cry every time.
It is a universal- i want my father back you son of a bitch- moment.
Very cathartic- just watching it.
What a lovely man.
These two got me through the first dark days of the pandemic, love them so much!
Omg how adorable is the Britney Spears video. I love The Princess Bride. What a sweet couple.
As I lifelong NYer, I don’t usually freak out when I see celebrities because I’d be dead in a bike crash by now. However when I saw Mandy Patinkin crossing the street down by city hall a few years ago, I literally screamed and drummed my fists on the passenger window. I am really glad Mandy didn’t seem to hear my thuds because I am pretty sure I looked like a madwoman 😀
Oh how lovely and sad.
He seems like a truly wonderful man. I watched the live reading of the Princess Bride a while back, and it was delightful. They all hung around afterwards and shared stories and talked, it was great.
His acting has always been stellar. When he left Criminal Minds because he couldn’t take the depravity of the violence against women at the center of the show I became a true fan. Saul was such a great character.
Mandy Patinkin is such a class act. And such a wonderful singer – the recording of him singing Younger Than Springtime from South Pacific (on YouTube) is chef’s kiss perfection.
Oh I bet that’s pretty! I’ll have to look it up. He was in the Secret Garden on broadway and “race you to the top of the morning” is one of my favorite broadway songs ever, but only with him singing. It’s beautiful.
Well, now I’m crying, too. Thank you for sharing. I also lost my dad to cancer about 10 years ago and it was so very hard. The pain lessens with time but it’s always there.
Mandy Patinkin is a treasure.
I lost my dad 4 years ago to dementia when I was only 31. You’re right. It does get easier with time, but the pain stays with you. Whenever I watch The Princess Bride now, I cry extra at Inigo’s “I want my father back.”
Oh my gosh, that was beautiful.
It’s Iñigo Montoya, not Montoyo!
I’ve been gone for a long time but this brought me back. I checked Mandy Patinkin in for a flight a couple of years ago and he was lovely. Absolutely lovely.
Sobbed through this too. As a daddy’s girl I have missed my dad every single day for the last 25 years….and always will.
Mandy Patinkin is a fabulous actor, a wonderful human being and a kind, generous soul. Love him. ❤️
😭😭😭
If you haven’t seen it, I recommend his episode of Finding Your Roots. Wept.
Aw, I teared up when I saw this last night. I have to admit, I used to dislike Mandy because of his former reputation, but it seems he’s mellowed a lot in recent years. (He’s even admitted to being a pretentious jerk, lol.) He and Kathryn seem like genuinely nice people, and they’re so natural with each other and with their sons. It’s nice to see. Their videos always make me want to hang out with them, especially Kathryn!
It would be lovely if Mandy P. would sing publicly much more.
He has a beautiful voice, IMO.
We love him as Huxley, the villain is Elmo in Grouchland. lol
His big song is “Mine!” lol
Oh my goodness, that had me tearing up. And thank you for including the Britney Spears video at the end, that was a great mood lifter!