Writer: Tim Surette
Crush: Sherilyn Fenn (Twin Peaks)
Why the crush? Sherilyn Fenn was the first woman I saw tie a cherry stem into a knot with her tongue, and if that isn't love at first sight, I don't know what is. She was a perfect fit for a David Lynch television program, as Lynch loves to work against the grain and Sherilyn was atypical of her era. She seemed plucked from a perfume ad from the 1950s; buxom, with a brunette bob, and oh my, those eyebrows. The way she played her sex appeal was personal; you're not going to believe this, but her coy act was done just for me (I like to think). Then Audrey blew up in an explosion. Saddest. Day. Ever.
Where is she now? After Twin Peaks, Sherilyn went on to star in some less-than-stellar films and largely appeared in it roles on various programs. She's stepped back from acting and has taken a recent interest in directing and being a mom to her two kids, neither of which are mine no matter how hard I wish. She's also deeply into Kundalini yoga and blogs about whatever it is yoga-practicing moms blog about.
Writer: Stefanie Lee
Crush: Jonathan Taylor Thomas (Home Improvement)
Why the crush? I don't know if it was the awesome acronym (JTT), the slightly-wavy hair, the sparkling white smile, the insanely dry wit, or the steel-blue eyes, but it didn't matter. Jonathan Taylor Thomas was my first love. I watched The Lion King just to hear his voice. I bought Man of the House on VHS with my pittance of piggy bank change. I envied Rachel Leigh Cook, JTT's love interest in Tom and Huck. And I could always be found parked in front of the TV if Home Improvement was on. Yes, I pined after the Tiger Beat poster-boy for years, but it was totally legit because he got hotter with age.
Where is he now? After ending his run on Home Improvement in 1998, Thomas dropped off the radar and has only returned to acting a handful of times since. He's opted for bit parts in shows like Veronica Mars and Smallville, and controversial roles in indie films like Speedway Junky and Common Ground. Oh yeah, and he also attended Harvard for a little while.
Writer: Ilana Diamond
Crush: Jared Leto (My So-Called Life)
Why the crush? While not the brightest bulb in the bunch, Jordan certainly had the tortured-soul, I'm-a-rebel-in-a-band shtick down pat, which as far as my loner-girl high school heart was concerned made him totally crush-worthy material. His moodiness and awkward silences spoke volumes about the poetic depths of his soul. His long-ish golden-brown hair, the flannels he wore just a little bit too big (I always imagined they smelled like that perfect combination of dryer sheets and boy), the silver ring which he clearly wore for sentimental reasons, the coffee he took black with 3 or 4 sugars, and his ability to not just write but sing and play formulaic love songs about his red Plymouth all added up to the man, the mystery, the oft-disappointing Jordan Catalano. I will always think fondly of the times he and I shared, (me with my Angela Chase wannabe haircut watching him on the screen with his totally vapid and doe-eyed adorable face) whenever anyone mentions the words "boiler room."
Where is he now? Well, post Requiem for a Dream, in which he played an off-the-deep-end junkie who winds up with a stump for an arm, Leto now fronts a weird Evanescence-y band (30 Seconds to Mars) and occasionally collaborates with Kanye West. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that Jared and I, well, we've grown apart. In retrospect, I was better off crushing on Brian Krakow. He was the real deal. He could read, was totally reliable, loved foreign films and he was in love with me, er, I mean Angela, the whole time! If only I knew then what I know now...
Writer: Matt Jaffe
Crush: Mary Tyler Moore (The Dick Van Dyke Show)
Why the crush: While the other guys debated the merits of Ginger vs. Mary Ann or Marcia Brady vs. Laurie Partridge, as an addicted fan of reruns of the original Dick Van Dyke Show, I remained fixated on Mary Tyler Moore as Laura Petrie. Her Mad Men-era incarnation certainly made a mad boy of me. I defy you, go on YouTube and type in Laura Petrie. Click on the first clip that comes up and watch Mary shimmy and shake in her Capri pants and flats as she sings and dances some number about Cleopatra—with a pre-Hogan Bob Crane as lascivious neighbor "Hanglip" Harry Rogers on conga. Then try and tell me that there wasn't truly something about Mary. Granted, back then I also formed crushes on teachers (though not Mrs. Grayson, who had a voice like Barry White). But even though the latter-day Mary Richards had her own attributes, she couldn't compare to the Van Dyke-era Mary Tyler Moore. Talk about turning the world on with just a smile. And those hips didn't hurt either.
Where are they now: Boy, it's almost 50 years down the line from the original show. Last time I saw Mary Tyler Moore, she was playing Ben Stiller's mom in Flirting With Disaster. Mary, believe it or not, is 73 now and lives in Greenwich, Connecticut. Diagnosed with diabetes when she was 33, she is the international chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and is also active in animal rights issues. In 2009, she wrote a memoir, Growing Up Again: Life, Loves, and Oh Yeah, Diabetes. Just last week, Season 6 of The Mary Tyler Moore Show was released on DVD.
Writer: Claire Zulkey
Crush: George Clooney (Sisters)
Why the crush? My adolescent TV crush was just some guy who you've probably never heard of: George Clooney. When I was young, I enjoyed me some Friday night TV on NBC, especially on nights when I was babysitting and the kids had gone to bed. I lived for the soap Sisters, and never moreso than when Sela Ward's character Teddy Reed started dating the handsome, dark and brooding Detective James Falconer, known to everyone, including Teddy, as "Falconer." Falconer was tough but sensitive, but moreover I loved his face. And his hair. Before he cut it off for some medical drama, Clooney had one of those awesome full '90's loafs of hair. I loved it. Sadly, the Cloonester was only on Sisters from 1993-1994, before he moved on to ER. Maybe it was because the hair was gone, or maybe because he played a cockier character, or maybe I just didn't like Julianna Margulies as much as I did Sela Ward, but I never crushed on Clooney as much as I did when he played Falconer.
Where is he now? What's Clooney up to now? Beats me. Obviously he fell off the radar once his television career was finished.
Writer: Dale Conour
Crushes: Valerie Bertinelli & Mackenzie Phillips (One Day at a Time)
Why the crushes? They were the One Day at a Time sisters, making a go of it with their single mom Ann Romano (Bonnie Franklin). They were right around my age, my mom was divorced too, and the show featured plenty of teenage drama and angst. Mackenzie was the older, rebellious Julie Cooper, an alternative chick before there were alternative chicks; Valerie was the—what did we call them then?—oh yeah, a fox. She was the younger, but more level-headed, Barbara Cooper. I would have run away to Indianapolis for either of them.
Where are they now? I lost Valerie to rock star Eddie Van Halen; she divorced him after a long, troubled marriage. (Okay, Valerie, you know, I'm just sayin'.) After a long career on TV, including joining the cast of Touched By An Angel, she's become a "weight-loss activist," posing on the cover of People in a bikini. Mackenzie I lost to drugs and alcohol, and not too long ago she came out on Oprah with some really dark stuff about incest with her dad John Phillips (of The Mammas & the Papas fame). It turns out she's been a total train wreck since the age of 10. Sigh. Look Mackenzie, just try taking it one day at a…
Writer: Jen Trolio
Crush: David Schwimmer (Friends)
Why the crush? When it comes down to it, I love cute nerds. That's pretty much it. I fell for Schwimmer early in Friends' run, while he—as the dorky, lovable paleontologist Ross—was still pining over Rachel from afar. I just couldn't get enough of his goofy admiration for her. Season 2's "The One with the Prom Video" reserved a permanent spot for Schwimmer in my teenage heart; I use the phrase "he's her lobster!" to this day.
Where is he now? Schwimmer pretty much dropped off my radar after Friends; I think he may have filmed a rom-com or two. These days, he's wearing green mascot outfits for guest spots on 30 Rock, voicing the animated Madagascar franchise, directing British movies, that sort of thing.
Happy Valentine's Day! Who's your childhood TV crush?
I'm with Dale Conour on this one. I had (have) a crush on <strong>Valerie Bertinelli </strong>since forever. I had a picture of her from a TV Guide article for YEARS. I too was devastated when she married Eddie, but at least she was marrying a rock God, so I couldn't be too mad. <br /><br />My other crush was on <strong>Linda Carter</strong>, aka <em>Wonder Woman</em>, but surprisingly not as the stupendous she-hero but as herself. Added bonus, my grade 7 English teacher was a dead ringer for Linda Carter. I loved that class.<br /><br />Don't forget <strong>Erin Gray</strong> from <em>"Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"</em> aka Col. Wilma Deering. Drop dead gorgeous AND she has the sexiest laugh, all throaty and sexy.
Almost forgot John Williams and Mark Goddard from "Lost in Space" John died late 80's and Mark was on
"One Life to Live in 80's and did cameo in remake of
"Lost in Space"
I had several: Batman and Robin Adam West did some B movies in the 80's Returned for a retrospective early
90's and some other TV spots Not much from Ward who
had one of the cutest doll faces in the 60's He had picked up weight over the years Kinda was hard to recognize
Whoever played Ultraman back in the 60's on WDCA 20
Wow what a dark hunk of Japan
Robbie from "My Three Sons" Can't remember the actor
name David Cassidy of course What a voice!!!
Bobby Sherman, again, What a voice!!! Both of them
had to die for looks Va Va Varoom
Dean Jones of " Two on a Guillotine" and " The Love Bug"
THE STREETS OF SAN FRANCISCO; CYBORG; HAWAII FIVE-O
ALL CAST OF STAR TREK; HERCULOIDS; BATMAN (ADAM WEST, BURT WARD AND YVONNE CRAIG-YES! THIS BATMAN)
RON ELY (TARZAN);
Gosh! George Clooney became THE star when joining ER! Its the best medical drama ever made, and Julianna Margulies was fantastic! The only female star who is worthy and works well with The Cloonster :D
It was JTT. Now it's Johnny Depp, Jensen Ackles from Supernatural, Dave Pirner from the band Soul Asylum, & Kirk Hammett from Metallica.
Johnny Depp in 21 Jump ST. Whatever happened to him. I thought he would become a big star.
My childhood crush was Amy Jo Johnson (The Pink Ranger from Power Rangers) and my teenagehood crush was Katie Holmes (Josephine Joey Potter from Dawson's Creek)... Life has been good to both,especially to Katie as you all already know... :)
I still love James Marsters (aka Spike) from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas, all the way. My walls were covered with all the pictures and posters from all those teen mags he was in. I taped every Home Improvement episode and watched it over and over. I went into mourning when he left Home Improvement. When he filmed Man of the House my friends and I would try to sneak onto the location shoots to catch a glimpse of him; we succeeded once, when they were filming the rain dance sequence in the park. Also, Devon Sawa was a big crush of mine; the number of times I watched Casper for the, what, three minutes he was actually there as a real boy instead of a cartoon over and over again.
add a comment Valerie Bertinelli, Maureen McCormick, Dawn Wells, Marie Osmond, Justine Bateman, Jenna von Oy, Alison Arngrim, Pamelyn Ferdin (Space Academy) & Jean Marie Hon (Ark II)
i used too have the biggest crush on JTT!
Definitely Joshua Jackson and then I'd have to say Johnny Depp, James Lafferty, James Masters, Chad Michael Murray, and now I'd have to say David Henrie, the Jonas brothers and Ed Westwick
Who can forget Patrick Swayze! I was in love with him. I watch Dirty Dancing over and over. Then Road House. He had a body fit for the gods. He will truly be missed! I also love the older guys Sam Elliot is my favorite along with Sean Connery and Anthony Hopkins. I know waaaay tooo old for me but I love them.
My first big crush was Gregory Harrison who played Logan on Logan's Run
Mine are David Cassidy (big time in the '70's), George Clooney, Richard Dean Anderson, and David Hassleoff.
Tom Nardini who was in the movie Cat Ballou and the tv show Cowboys in Africa. He seemed to always play American Indians, although he was actually Italian.Haven't heard anything about him in years.
My celebrity crush was and still is Bruce Davison.
Eyes so blue you could drown in them.
Alexandra Bastedo from "The Champions" was the one for me, I never understood why they dressed her the way they did though, far too frumpy for such a beautiful young woman.
Sajid Kahn. Most of you probably don't remember him, but he starred in a show called Maya with Jay North. He was a cutie!
I loved Neil Patrick Harris, until he went all gay on me. I like the character he plays now, but I'm soooo over my crush. Loved Rider Strong, Pete Duel, Michael Douglas from Streets of San Francisco, Michael Landon, Robert Urich, John Ritter (was devastated when they died), Adam West, Robert Conrad from The Wild Wild West (you can guess my age - I have crushes from different decades).
Mary t. m., was the prettiest funny lady on t.v. ever. the sexiest wife ever, she was hot before hot meant hottie. David S he was a dork
Oh, c'mon. When I was growing up--and for decades after--the question people always asked you was "Ginger or Mary Ann." I was definitely in the Mary Ann camp.
How the heck is 30 Seconds to Mars like Evanescense? I'm not really a fan of either band, so I'm not taking offense or whatever... I just don't see it.
Also dating myself...Randolph Mantooth from Emergency
David Cassidy, Shaun Cassidy and Donny Osmond....those are mine! George Clooney ranks right up there now! Yum!
I may be dating myself, but...Shawn Cassidy was my biggie, Donnie Osmond, Johnny Depp, Richard Dean Anderson. All from 20 years ago. But Richard is still hot!
This goes more years than even I care to remember, but my first crush was Iain Gregory. He played Blondel in a series called 'Richard the Lionheart' and was later in a film called 'The Yellow Teddy Bears' I think...I was too young to go to see it :-( I still have a copy of his records 'Can't You Hear the Beat of a Broken Heart' and 'Mr Lovebug'. I don't suppose anyone knows what happened to him.
My TV Crush, was and still is... Alyssa Milano. As a child/teen growing up watching Who's the Boss and then as an adult in Charmed. Throw in a number of movies and guest spots. She has always been, and still is a beautiful and wonderfully sweet woman.
mine was Clint Eastwood as Rowdy Yates in Rawhide!
Don Johnson & Miami Vice was our Friday Night Treat! Crush continued with Nash Bridges! We're waiting Don - MUAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Fred Savage on "The Wonder Years" when I was about 12-13. Later it was Johnny Depp and David Duchovny.
drwoowooci:Agreed. Elizabeth Montgomery was babalicious. And boy, could she work her "magic."
For me, it was Jared Leto, John Stamos and Jonathan Brandis. Gosh I loved Jonathan as Lucas in SeaQuest. Sadly though, where he is now is 6 feet under... he committed suicide in 2003.
How about the great debate from the 60s: witch or genie? Elizabeth Montgomery was sexy, smart and good hearted, while Barbra Eden was ditzy but cute. I gave the edge to Montgomery. Though I also liked Mary Tyler Moore and the underrated Pat Crowley from Please Dont Eat the Daises.
My teenage tv crush was Alex P. Keaton, also known as Michael J. Fox. The cuttest character ever! Where's he now? It seems he keeps on amazing me with his fight against Parkinson's, if my memory helps.Michael is LOVE!My adult tv crush is currently kicking demons behinds: Jensen Ackles forever!
Richard Dean Anderson, from General Hospital all the way through Stargate SG-1 and its spin-offs. Ricky D is da man!
Ike Eisenmann (Return From Witch Mountain)! I first true love! Till this day I have nothing but good feellings toward him and wish he'd never given up acting. There was also Shaun Cassidy, Donny Osmond, and a little later, Billy Zabka. I also had/have a thing for the guys who were older than me like Lee Majors, Martin Milner, Kevin Tighe and David Soul.
Her autobiography, published in 1994, is A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes: My Story.
Bobby Sherman---still think quite fondly of him!
Vincent on Beauty and the Beast was my idea of the perfect man. What can I say - he brought out the beast in Catherine and in me! Still love the show and just bought all three seasons on DVD.
Peter Duel from Alias Smith and Jones. I was heartbroken when he died.
Interesting list, but don't you have anything new about JTT in "Where is he now" ? This Harvard-stuff is very old.
I would like to know, where he really is now.
I wouldn't name it a crush, but I found him good in HI and some of the movies.
Other names:
What about Gregory Smith, Kevin Zegers, David Gallagher, Shane Meier and nowadays Thomas Dekker ?
Faye grant from V sci fi mini series. Maureen McCormack (Marcia) from Brady bunch.
Clearly I am very old as my crushes include Ricky Shroder, Kirk Cameron and Johnny Depp. Funnily enough 20 years later Im still crushing on younger men like Robert Pattinson, Joshua Jackson and Jensen Ackles.