Meet Henry Steve Melendez—a.k.a. “Henry Dez”—the handsome gay television staffer living our dream.
Not only does he work as an executive assistant on the critically acclaimed ABC sitcom Abbott Elementary and gets to call Quinta Brunson “boss,” but she just gifted him the ultimate cameo—one that most gays would shell out top dollar for…
On Sunday night after the Academy Awards, Brunson was one of many glamorous guests at the iconic Vanity Fair after-party, an event almost more exciting than the Oscars themselves because of all the incredible fashion and the chance to see celebs from all walks of life mingle and cut loose.
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Case in point: The Abbott creator was spotted partying it up with Orange Is The New Black‘s Uzo Aduba and *gay gasp* Queen Kylie Minogue!
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Proving that she really might be the best boss in the world, Brunson not only snapped some shots with Minogue, but also convinced the “Padam Padam” singer to film a special video for Melendez, popping in to say “Hi Henry!” and blow the assistant a kiss.
Can you imagine receiving that video out of the blue from your boss? We would faint from excitement!
Melendez clearly appreciated the gesture, stitching the clip into a video of his own where he’s seen reacting, saying thank you to Kylie and Quinta.
“I lost my today!!!!!,” he wrote on Twitter X. “I truly have the best boss!”
I lost my ? today!!!!! I truly have the best boss! Thank you!
Actually, Melendez had a pretty major night on Sunday even though he wasn’t at the Oscars himself. After the awards show wrapped, ABC aired a brand-new special episode of Abbott Elementary, which had been teasing a big surprise.
In the immortal words of ‘The Other Two’s’ Lance: “Aw hell yeah!”
Turns out, Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper stopped by the sitcom playing himself—as a proud Philadelphia native, it wasn’t too big of a narrative stretch that he might pop by the local school, and it was hilarious seeing him interact with the show’s quirky cast of characters.
Once the secret was out, Melendez was finally able to share his sweet snap from set with Cooper:
According to his Instagram, Melendez has been living in Los Angeles and working in the industry for the past decade. His previous credits include serving as a director’s assistant on the serial killer drama You, and a production assistant on series like The Big Bang Theory and Westworld.
And while we’re sure he’s had some cool experiences over the past 10 years in Hollywood, we don’t know how anything could top reporting to the Emmy-winning Quinta “People Be Gay” Brunson each day. It sure seems like he’s living his best life on Instagram, whether he’s hanging out with Oprah or dressing up in some sexy Namor cosplay.
Come to think of it, we’re actually not sure if we want to be Melendez, or be with him…. Either way, we’re thrilled for him and will happily share a few more cute pics below:
today!!!!!,” he wrote on T
