Who is Your Fictional Crush?

Might it be Gilbert Blythe or Anne Shirley?

I read a fun article on literary crushes by Alison Flood at The Guardian today that mentions Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables. Flood describes a petition that was launched in Japan to legalize marriages between humans and cartoon characters. Flood writes, "it made me wonder which fictional character I'd marry, legal niceties permitting. As a teenager I'd have plumped for any of the Georgette Heyer heroes (particularly the Earl of Rule), or Jilly Cooper's Rupert Campbell-Black, or Rhett Butler. Before those days I had quite a crush on Gilbert from Anne of Green Gables and Laurie from Little Women."

Do you have a fictional crush? If so, who is it? L.M. Montgomery's Gilbert Blythe is surely on my list. And I know from my many years on the Anne of Green Gables Forum that Jonathan Crombie's Gilbert makes many women swoon. We joked for years there about solid chocolate Gilbert dolls.


Reference:
Flood, Alison. (2008, October 30). Who is your literary crush? The Guardian. Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2008/oct/30/literary-crush-alison-flood

Image credit:
Photograph of Jonathan Crombie as Gilbert Blythe and Megan Follows as Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel © Sullivan Entertainment

Created October 31, 2008. Re-posted online April 19, 2024. Last updated April 19, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

Anne of Green Gables (1985)

Anne of Green Gables is a made-for-television miniseries that first aired on CBC TV in 1985. Sullivan Entertainment loyally adapted L.M. Montgomery's novel of the same name for the screen.

Directed by Kevin Sullivan, Anne of Green Gables starred Megan Follows as Anne Shirley, Colleen Dewhurst and Richard Farnsworth as siblings Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, Jonathan Crombie as Anne's rival Gilbert Blythe, and Schuyler Grant as Anne's bosom friend Diana Barry. The film's music, composed by Hagood Hardy, is distinctive and memorable. Filmed in both Ontario and on Prince Edward Island, the beauty of the Canadian scenery is candy for the eyes.

The movie was highly acclaimed for its script, cast, and loyalty to the novel's character. The Toronto Star glowingly described Anne of Green Gables as, "Cult phenomenon. Cultural ambassador. Canadian heroine."
 
The miniseries earned countless awards in 1986, including nine Gemini Awards and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program. Kevin Sullivan received the George Peabody Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting for his work in bringing the film to life.

Image credit:
Photograph of Megan Follows as Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables © Sullivan Entertainment.

External link:
Anne of Green Gables: The Official Website

Purchase and watch Anne of Green Gables:

Created April 17, 2001. Re-posted online March 18, 2021. Last updated March 18, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com