It’s been 26 years since Dawson’s Creekpremiered on January 20, 1998 and changed the television landscape forever.
The series became the fledgling WB network’s breakout hit and helped usher in the wave of youth-oriented shows alongside Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Felicity, Roswell, Charmed and Angel, among others.
And while Dawson‘s made stars of its main cast of James Van Der Beek, Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams and Joshua Jackson, gays of certain age were also fixated on the show’s handsome and fit father figure, John Wesley Shipp.
How about we take this to the next level?
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In honor of today being Shipp’s 69th birthday, let’s take a gander at this gorgeous man’s trailblazing status.
For nearly five seasons, Shipp showed off his impeccable bone structure, sun-kissed complexion, and gym-toned physique through his oversized button-downs playing Dawson’s very handsome father Mitch O’Leery.
Shipp was more than just a feast for young sore eyes.
On top of being a caring dad, Mitch was a substitute teacher, guidance counselor and the football coach at the show’s fictional Capeside High School AND co-owned the family restaurant, Leery’s Fresh Fish.
How did he even find time to go to the gym?!
The character was also ahead of its time. After finding out about his wife’s adultery, Mitch suggests the couple explore an open marriage. Yes, sir!
The late ’90s were wild, y’all:
It’s easy to see why many of us were shipping Shipp.
Which only makes the way he was written out of the show even more heartbreaking.
In what many of have dubbed one of the worst character deaths in TV history, Mitch was killed off in a car crash after dropping ice cream while driving as “Drift Away” played on the radio.
Justice for Mitch!
Even prior to Dawson’s Creek, Shipp had been mesmerizing impressionable audiences with his God-given talents on soap operas.
In the ’80s, he starred on Guiding Light, As the World Turns, Santa Barbara, and One Life To Live, and won two Daytime Emmy Awards.
He also deserves all the accolades for his speedo-clad performance alongside Kevin Bacon in this clip from Guiding Light. This alone was responsible for thousands of gay awakenings from coast-to-coast. [Bacon comes in around the 1:15 min mark.]
In the early ’90s, Shipp continued to flaunt his stellar musculature on primetime shows like Sisters, JAG, and NYPD Blue.
From shirtless boxing scenes to baring it all for the cops, even more queers began to rise.
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