Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
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Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Of all the great things about television, the greatest is that it’s on every single day. TV history is being made, day in and day out, in ways big and small. In an effort to better appreciate this history, we’re taking a look back, every day, at one particular TV milestone.
IMPORTANT DATE IN TV HISTORY: December 28, 1976
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT: At some point in the last decade or so, sexy vampires stopped being a thing. It’s probably attributable to the Twilight franchise; once the cultural image of vampires became sparkle-skinned, broody teen boys who always looked pained by their emotions, the sex appeal waned. Unfortunately, this happened in the middle of True Blood‘s run on HBO. So what to do when vampire sexiness was at en ebb? Cast a werewolf. Werewolves definitely became the go-to for big, muscled sex monsters. They were always ripping through their clothing, for one thing. And all that late-night wolfing must really work out your core, because all werewolves have dynamite physiques. Just ask literally any character on Teen Wolf, if they’ll stop doing crunches long enough to talk to you.
So into the True Blood universe came Alcide the werewolf, played with brooding, shirtless intensity by Joe Manganiello. While the show struggled to give the character serious purpose on the show — they were never going to abandon Sookie and Bill’s one true pairing, so what was the point, really? — he was unmistakably a draw if only for his out-of-this-world physique.
It wasn’t until Magic Mike and its sequel that we got a true picture of what Joe Manganiello could do, the personality he could meld with that sexiness to create a kind of Voltron of sex appeal. But ever since, it’s been that personality that’s shined through. In Netflix’s Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, Manganiello plays himself, and is a creature of such uncomplicated magnetism that he gets Pee-wee to follow him across the country just to be his friend. As we said of the performance at the time:
It’s a kind of floaty middle-ground between childlike and winking adulthood. Too far in either direction would throw the balance off. But among Manganiello’s many talents are an ability to know what to do with his frame. If your instrument is a body that big, know how to use it; Joe does, whether he’s crouched into a playhouse or hulking over a chocolate shake.
Definitely worth checking out for yourselves.
So happy birthday, Joe Manganiello. Here’s hoping we see a lot more of you in 2017.
