Tom Hanks typewriter app tops iTunes store chart

Paul Newman mixed salad dressings, David Lynch does a mean cup of Joe, now Tom Hanks has proven himself the daddy of celebrity sidelines after a typewriter app he helped develop hit No 1 on Apple's iTunes Store.

Titled Hanx Writer, the app comes in three versions for the iPad, with the basic model available for free download. The Oscar-winning actor said he was inspired by the colourful, charming experience of typing on a real typewriter, complete with satisfying clicks and that unmistakable "ding" as the machine moves to the next line.

"In the late '70's, I bought a typewriter – portable enough for world travel and sturdy enough to survive decades of ten-fingered beatings," writes Hanks on the app's intro page. "I've since acquired many more – each different in design, action, and sound. Each one stamps into paper a permanent trail of imagination through keys, hammers, cloth and dye – a softer version of chiseling words into stone.

"I write without caring about typeovers, XXXX'd out words, goofy syntax, & bad spelling because the feel & sound of a typewriter is satisfying in ways that couldn't be matched. - Until now!

"Behold, Hanx Writer - the app that provides the ease and speed of an iPad with the sound and pace of a manual typewriter. With Hanx Writer, you'll hear the rhythm of your work with SHOOK SHOOK or FITT-FITT. You can rely on a DELETE key to correct your typos, or turn that off. Be bold and fearless!"

Despite its old school veneer, Hanx Writer features the ability to email, print or share documents, as well as saving them for future revision. Additional versions available for £1.99 (or $2.99 in the US) offer support for saving multiple documents, blue and red ribbon colours and background colours (the Hanx 707) or multiple documents, text alignment and the ability to build title pages with pictures (the Hanx Golden Touch).

Hanks developed the app, which works on iPads running iOS 7.0 or later, with mobile-development studio Hitcents.