This where I apologize in advance for going rogue with the blog but I wanted to put this out in the world tonight while I’m thinking about it.
Today I was absolutely gutted to hear about the untimely death of the first person I ever had a crush on, Jonathan Crombie. For those of you that are in your 30’s (or have mothers who really are awesome) you will know him best as Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables. For those of you that didn’t know him, he was an immensely talented actor from Canada. Growing up, I was OBSESSED with Anne. My friend and I would role play it and we always fought over who ‘got’ Gilbert. I refused to watch Anne of Avonlea (we won’t even talk about the renaming of it LOL) for years because I thought Diana ended up with Gilbert so I would only watch the first series. It wasn’t until “The Continuing Story” came out in 2000 that I finally watched Anne of Avonlea again and was stunned at what happened after I got mad and refused to watch any more of the show. Ha. Anyway, he was my first “boyfriend” (even if he didn’t know it…) and always held a spot in my heart. This love of Anne of Green Gables has not only taken me to Prince Edward Island but also to Toronto to an Anne of Green Gables and Road to Avonlea Convention and also to New York City where I was lucky enough to meet Jonathan himself.
A few years ago I decided to go see Jonathan in The Drowsy Chaperone as Man in Chair on Broadway. It was my first completely solo trip to NYC and I went JUST to see his play. He was AMAZING in the role – I was so surprised and delighted with his performance that I ended up buying matinee seats for the following day before I left. The first night he didn’t do the stage door but I lucked out and he came out the second day and I got to meet him. There weren’t many of us out there and he took the time to talk with and get to know every person there that wanted to chat with him. I’ve done a few stage door things in the past and it’d always been a “hey” take the picture and get a scribbled signature. He went above and beyond and it really left an impression on me.
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Later that year The Drowsy Chaperone went on tour and when they came to Cleveland I got tickets straight away for me and my nephew who loves broadway shows. There was a contest for opening night seats so I entered thinking I had NO chance in the world of winning… AND I WON. Not only did I win tickets but they loved my letter so much that I got tickets to the afterparty as well because they wanted me to meet Jonathan again. Yes, my letter was about him and how wonderful he was and how great the show was. We went to the after party and I was bummed to not see him there. Some of the cast came over to chat with us (because literally, everyone was cast or crew… there were VERY few nobodies so we stuck out like a sore thumb) and I told them my story and everyone was amused and thought it was sweet. EVERYONE kept saying just how lovely he was and what a great guy he is. When Jonathan came in (yay he was only late!), one of the guys I was chatting with drug him over to me to meet his “biggest fan” which made me cringe and he filled him in on how/why we were there. Jonathan however was as kind as one could be and we chatted for a long time just about random stuff and he was so nice. I know I’ve said this a lot but seriously, he was one of the kindest people I’ve ever met in my life. He was HAPPY to meet me and chat with me and wasn’t phased by the “biggest fan” stuff at all (which I did NOT bring up on my own after the introduction). After about a half hour he was called over to a table of the cast and said he’d be back. After a little bit I decided we should just leave because I already took up enough of his time and I didn’t want to be rude. On the way out my friend said I should ask him for a picture as he said we’d do one. I wasn’t going to but he caught my eye as we were walking out the door and waved us over. He was SO apologetic for not coming back over yet and agreed to a picture and tried to get us to stay. I said we had to leave but I told him I had tickets a few nights later with my nephew and he insisted we come to the stage door afterwards to meet him and he’d take my nephew on a tour of the stage.
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When we went later in the week my nephew LOVED the show and we went to the stage door. We decided not to ask for him as we didn’t want to be a bother but my nephew wanted to meet him. He came out and chatted with us for quite a while and said we should have asked for him. He talked with my nephew at length about Broadway and plays and was just incredibly kind to him. We also discussed the movie he was slooowlly working on (Waiting for Ishtar) and how the editing process was going. We also talked about the new Anne of Green Gables movie that was being filmed at the time – FYI he wasn’t asked to be a part of it. It was time to go and we walked out of the alleyway together and he actually walked us to my car which I think shows JUST how kind of a soul he really was. He was a true gentleman and just a good person.
While it’s been a few years since I’ve seen him I’ve continued to follow his acting and also on Twitter. I was lucky enough to have chatted with him there as well. He seemed to truly appreciate his fans and his tweets always made me smile.
When you grow up idolizing someone it’s hard to match the person that you have in your mind, ESPECIALLY when one portrayed such a beloved character as Gilbert Blythe. However, in person, Jonathan Crombie made Gilbert look like a chump. Jonathan was immensely talented and a true sweetheart. While my interactions with him were brief at best, from everything I’ve ever heard about him he truly was the salt of the earth. My thoughts go out to his family and loved ones in this time of sorrow. Rest in peace Jonathan. You will not be forgotten and you will be deeply missed.
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You have been soooo blessed!! Thank you for sharing your stories about Jonathan! <3
Corey I am SO SO SO envious that you got to meet Jonathan in person. I am absolutely crushed that he died : (
So jealous you got to meet him he was my schoolgirl first crush too and thank you for sharing your story he is now everything I thought he would be from portraying Gilbert so perfectly a beautiful man actor and my heart goes out to his loved ones and all those fans. RIP
What wonderful memories to keep with you. Thank you for sharing them. I am also crushed that he has passed away.Hewas my first crush. It makes me happy to know that he was a really kind and gentle soul. He will be forever missed.
I use to watch this show and i was so in love of gilbert blythe!! I always thought Anne character was lucky to find a best friend and love just like him. The new version of Anne is good but i will always remember gilbert as Jonathan.