If Tom Hanks is ‘America's Dad,’ who would be its ‘Cool Uncle’?
One actor clearly won the debate.
"Weird Al" Yankovic, Matthew McConaughey and Snoop Dogg
Tom Hanks’ wholesome, relatable and reassuring on-screen presence has been said by many to have fatherlike qualities. Over the years, Hanks’ portrayal of genuine, honest characters in films such as “Sleepless in Seattle,” “Saving Private Ryan,” and “Cast Away” has etched him into the heart of many Americans, earning him the endearing title "America's Dad."
Further, Hanks’ off-screen personality closely tracks many of his “everyman” characters, solidifying his reputation as a father figure. And the fact that he’s maintained this reputation in the cutthroat world of Hollywood is a true feat, given the number of years he’s been in the limelight.
So, if Tom Hanks is “America’s Dad,” who in popular culture could take the role of “America’s Cool Uncle”? You know, the guy who gives you your first sip of beer, introduces you to great music and has conversations with you that dad was too embarrassed to discuss.
A Reddit user named Galactic Splurge posed the question to the AskReddit subforum, and over 6,500 people chimed in with their thoughts. “If Tom Hanks is America’s Dad, who would be America’s cool Uncle?” they asked.
So, to determine the winner of the great uncle debate, I looked at the number of upvotes each suggestion received and then ranked the top 15. It’s not the most scientific way of doing things, but it gives us a pretty good idea about who people think should win the award.
The funny thing is that the results weren't even close. Actor and musician Jack Black had around five times the number of upvotes over second place. Who else made the list? Here are the top 15 most popular responses for who should be America’s favorite “Cool Uncle.”
1. Jack Black
"This is the only correct answer." — _HuntressWizard
2. Matthew McConaughey
"Like... Uncle Matt is DEFINITELY the guy to set up a bonfire for you when you're 16." — pm_me_your_clippings
4. Robin Williams
"He is the fun uncle that you have sweet memories of as a child and teenager but then passed away. But every time someone brings them up, it’s never sad, it’s just 'remember when Uncle Robin used to….' and everyone laughs and smiles." — Sandvich48
5. Danny DeVito
"I was just going to say no he’s more like Nana's new friend we just call Uncle Danny," — sew_u_thnk_ur_a_hero
6. "Weird Al" Yankovic
"'Weird Al' is your mom’s wacky cousin who makes every party a good time." — KiribakuFriend
8. Snoop Dogg
"The uncle that you go on walks with during family get-togethers, same come back all bleary-eyed." — Bonnedraco
9. Keanu Reeves
"Rides motorcycles, plays with weapons, knows martial arts, is humble and genuinely kind. Definitely the cool uncle." — Phil_MyNuts
10. Bill Murray
"He's the uncle who seems really cool when you're a kid but once you're an adult, you realize that he's a drunk and there's a reason why he keeps getting remarried and divorced." — Yellow_Vespa_Is_Black
11. Paul Rudd
"I still feel like Paul Rudd is the corny friend you’ve known since childhood and comes up with weird nicknames like Jobin or City Slicka." — Sandvich48
12. Dave Grohl
"I was watching Dave Grohl interviews one day, my son was 10 at the time and I didn't realize he was paying attention to the TV. He asked me later that day, 'Can we please watch 'the nice man' again?' Dave is forever known as 'The Nice Man' in my house." — Background_Ad5873
13. Woody Harrelson
"I had a dream that he married my aunt and bought me a Nintendo during his ‘White Men Can’t Jump’ era. I’ve called him Uncle Woody ever since. This is the only answer." — DJTrpTrp59
14. Jeff Goldblum
"A lot of the other options here are 'goofy silly uncle who lives one suburb over.' Goldblum is more 'cool uncle who lives in the city and used to hang with rock stars.'" — Pylo_The_Pylon
15. Danny Trejo
"He's the uncle that everyone thinks is intimidating as hell and maybe a gun-runner or something, but it turns out he runs a soup kitchen and reads to kids in the hospital." — Geminii27
A Generation Jones teenager poses in her room.Image via Wikmedia Commons
An office kitchen.via 
An angry man eating spaghetti.via 
Gif of baby being baptized
Woman gives toddler a bath Canva
An Irish woman went to the doctor for a routine eye exam. She left with bright neon green eyes.
It's not easy seeing green.
Did she get superpowers?
Going to the eye doctor can be a hassle and a pain. It's not just the routine issues and inconveniences that come along when making a doctor appointment, but sometimes the various devices being used to check your eyes' health feel invasive and uncomfortable. But at least at the end of the appointment, most of us don't look like we're turning into The Incredible Hulk. That wasn't the case for one Irish woman.
Photographer Margerita B. Wargola was just going in for a routine eye exam at the hospital but ended up leaving with her eyes a shocking, bright neon green.
At the doctor's office, the nurse practitioner was prepping Wargola for a test with a machine that Wargola had experienced before. Before the test started, Wargola presumed the nurse had dropped some saline into her eyes, as they were feeling dry. After she blinked, everything went yellow.
Wargola and the nurse initially panicked. Neither knew what was going on as Wargola suddenly had yellow vision and radioactive-looking green eyes. After the initial shock, both realized the issue: the nurse forgot to ask Wargola to remove her contact lenses before putting contrast drops in her eyes for the exam. Wargola and the nurse quickly removed the lenses from her eyes and washed them thoroughly with saline. Fortunately, Wargola's eyes were unharmed. Unfortunately, her contacts were permanently stained and she didn't bring a spare pair.
- YouTube youtube.com
Since she has poor vision, Wargola was forced to drive herself home after the eye exam wearing the neon-green contact lenses that make her look like a member of the Green Lantern Corps. She couldn't help but laugh at her predicament and recorded a video explaining it all on social media. Since then, her video has sparked a couple Reddit threads and collected a bunch of comments on Instagram:
“But the REAL question is: do you now have X-Ray vision?”
“You can just say you're a superhero.”
“I would make a few stops on the way home just to freak some people out!”
“I would have lived it up! Grab a coffee, do grocery shopping, walk around a shopping center.”
“This one would pair well with that girl who ate something with turmeric with her invisalign on and walked around Paris smiling at people with seemingly BRIGHT YELLOW TEETH.”
“I would save those for fancy special occasions! WOW!”
“Every time I'd stop I'd turn slowly and stare at the person in the car next to me.”
“Keep them. Tell people what to do. They’ll do your bidding.”
In a follow-up Instagram video, Wargola showed her followers that she was safe at home with normal eyes, showing that the damaged contact lenses were so stained that they turned the saline solution in her contacts case into a bright Gatorade yellow. She wasn't mad at the nurse and, in fact, plans on keeping the lenses to wear on St. Patrick's Day or some other special occasion.
While no harm was done and a good laugh was had, it's still best for doctors, nurses, and patients alike to double-check and ask or tell if contact lenses are being worn before each eye test. If not, there might be more than ultra-green eyes to worry about.