Hilarie Burtonhas a permanent reminder of her friendship withWillie Garson.
Burton, 39, says she met Garson on the set of the police drama shortly after exiting the “toxic” environment ofOne Tree Hill.
To honor her late friend,Burton got a new tattooshortly before his death. The script on her left forearm reads, “Calm down.”
“He would pay you the biggest compliment in the world, and the second you’d start to get bashful about it, he’d be like ‘Calm down, calm down,’ " she explains. “It was his way of forcing you to accept the compliment, because he would diffuse it, which was a lovely habit.”
Hilarie Burton/instagram (2)
The note read, in part: “Somewhat hard to gift people I care so much about — so here goes — first edition, first printing (the book jacket is a reproduction of the original, mint ones are like $15,000 — I mean I like you, but calm down).”
In her caption, Burton wrote that she included the note “because it illustrates a quality of Willie’s that I loved” — and would become the inspiration for the new tattoo.
She continued, “Before I went to see him, I needed him to know how I felt. And @hudsonvalleytattooco was so kind and understanding and got me in the night before my flight. I wanted Willie to know that I was carrying that ‘calm down’ with me forever.”
Hilarie Burton/instagram
Burton also shared that Garson wrote a book prior to his death, which she promised to get published"for his son Nathen.”
“It is a love letter to our industry, to storytelling and to the hundreds of people he worked with and made better over the decades,” she said. “To Willie’s family, especially @nathen_garson… on my honor I will see it through. You have been so generous in sharing him with the rest of us. Love you.”
Burton and Garson starred together on USA’sWhite Collar, which aired from 2009 to 2014. Garson played Mozzie, while Burton, who joined the cast in 2010, played Sara Ellis.
Their fellowWhite CollarcostarMatt Bomeralso shared a tribute to Garson following his death, calling the actor “some one who lifted me up, who made me better, and who always,always made me smile.”
source: people.com
