Arnold Schwarzenegger fans know him for being a badass on screen, but they may not know him for being a badass on ... Reddit?
In July, a Reddit user by the name RadonLab celebrated the former California governor on the platform by sharing images of a custom carved tobacco pipe that featured the likeness of Schwarzenegger’s character in Terminator.
The user shared the images of the incredibly detailed pipe with the caption: “I Carved this pipe specially for Arnold’s birthday” (Schwarzenegger turned 73 on July 30.)
Soon after, Schwarzenegger ― whose Reddit name is GovSchwarzenegger ― found the image and commented that he thought the pipe was fantastic.
“Would you sell this to me?” he asked on the platform, to which RadonLab said he’d like to simply give Schwarzenegger the pipe.
In response, Schwarzenegger said: “If you insist on giving it to me, I insist on sending you back a signed photo of me using it (Now that it’s 2020, I just sign things on my machine and send in email if that works for you). You can send me a message and I’ll give you the details.”
Fast forward to this week, and RadonLab shared a snapshot of the image Schwarzenegger sent him using his new “Terminator” pipe.
“To Radon, thank you for the great pipe,” the signed image reads.
Schwarzenegger also told RadonLab on Reddit: “I love it. You’re really talented, and I can’t thank you enough!”
Sceptics on the platform pushed back to express their disbelief that Schwarzenegger actually signed the photograph, which prompted Schwarzenegger to defend himself and verify that yes, it is authentic.
He also offered some pretty sage advice for Redditors: “Saying something is fake without proof does not make you better than someone who accepts something as real without proof. You’re just a negative mirror image of them.”
This joyous story has since gone viral on other platforms, including Twitter, where it’s racked up more than 25,000 retweets.
“This was a fantastic birthday gift and I am glad Radon Labs is getting the attention he deserves,” wrote Schwarzenegger in a later Reddit comment.
Happy belated birthday Schwarzenegger, and congrats to RadonLab for getting your “Terminator” goods noticed by the man himself!