My first love returns…

This is Tony Vincent back when I
fell in love with him.

Ever had your past come zipping back into your life?

It happened to me just recently.

True story: I once fell in love with a guy named Tony Vincent. He was a singer, pretty well-known in the Christian contemporary music scene. I was pretty sure he was the cutest guy in the whole world.

I was also pretty sure one day we’d get married. And I’d go on tour with him as a backup singer.

Yes, I once painted his name on my face. (Okay, fine, multiple times.)

Yes, my sister and I practiced and memorized the dance moves from his music video.

Yes, we had a Tony Vincent stand up doll.

Oh, and around the time his second album came out, CDs were just becoming the norm. I didn’t have a CD player yet, but I hoped my parents would give me one for my next birthday. Which caused a quandary: buy the cassette tape in the name of instant gratification or purchase the CD in hopes I’d soon become a CD player owner?

And here he is today…

Yup, I bought both.

Well, time went on. I grew up. T.V., as I liked to call him, went on to Broadway.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago. I get a text from my sister: “Um, I just saw Tony Vincent on the TV show The Voice, for real!”

It’s true, my first love is now a contestant on the reality music show. I’ve never watched The Voice, but I did check out his blind audition on Hulu. He’s…um…different than the man I once loved.

He also wears a lot more eyeliner and fingernail polish these days.

But I’ve changed, too, since my days of plastering Tony’s photo all over the inside of my closet door. (For instance, I really can’t remember the last time I painted someone’s name on my face.) But it sure was fun, those few minutes watching his audition…remembering how I swooned the day I got to see the guy in concert, pose with him in a photo. My own little “Thirteen going on Thirty” moment.

Oh nostalgia. 

I hope this post wasn’t too terribly self-indulgent. Maybe you can join me in playing “remember when…!” What’s something from your past that’s shown up in your present? Any first love stories? 
*Full disclosure: According to the all-knowing Google, Tony Vincent is married with a baby on the way. So I’ve once and for all given up on my plan to marry him. Besides, one day when I do get married, I’d like to think I’ll be the only one wearing eyeliner.


And here’s the music video I used to watch…over…and over…over…

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    Comments 24

    1. Hmmm…in terms of crushes from back in the day, I look at the guys now (like Devon Sawa, Rider Strong, JTT) and think, “Wow, they were kinda scrawny and like little boys.” Ha. And yes, I was convinced that if one of them knew me, really knew me and how different I was from all of the beautiful Hollywood actresses they knew, they’d want to date ME. 😛 I think things turned out alright for me, though. Happy Monday, Melissa!

      1. Rider Strong and JTT, oh my goodness. Mega flashback. Honestly, I was never that into JTT, but my cousin, she was crazy about him. It is funny to look back and think, um, really, that’s who/what I liked?

    2. That’s who that is?! WHAT?! You know he was one I really liked as the Voice is one of my favs! Wowzers! He is indeed married with a wee babe on the way. 21 Jump Street’s about to become a movie, which they’ll botch b/c it’s a spoof and not a drama, but it brought back memories. And Dark Shadows is coming out as a movie and I loved the remake series in the late 80’s. It’s Tim Burton, so they’ll botch that too. He’s weird in a morbid way. Johnny Depp is Barnabas Collins though…as a Tim Burton freak (downside). 🙂

    3. Hahahaha! I love The Voice, and I saw that episode. I would have never matched that guy with the guy in the video. Too funny. I had a crush on the lead singer of Jars of Clay, but there was no face painting involved. 🙂

    4. Whoa — people do change a lot, don’t they? But people who knew me back when would probably say the same about me, ya know? I watched both The Voice audition and his earlier video … wow.

      1. I know, big difference, huh! But, you can definitely hear that it’s still the same dude singing. He’s got a voice, that’s for sure!

        You’re right, people would say the same thing about all of us!

    5. LOL, as I’ve gotten older and I look back at the actors that used to make our hearts flutter as teens, I have to say most look a whole lot better to me older and more mature…I guess ’cause I’m older too. But nope, not your former heartthrob. 🙂

      1. Hehe! Yeah, it’s probably a very healthy thing when our tastes mature with our age. I mean, at 30, I really shouldn’t be looking back at teenage crushes and still getting all heart-pitter-pattery over their teenage look. (Which is why I get concerned when I hear about 45-year-old women going ga-ga over a teenage vampire!)

    6. No WAY! That was HIM? Never even caught it – but he was one of our favorites:) All my past is coming back through my kids – Strawberry Shortcake, Care Bears, Barbie (yeah, talk about one that’s changed!)…but not a lot from those teenage years. I never really got into the boy bands, etc. b/c I was flipped out over Broadway shows – Les Miz, Phantom…I thought I was so artsy:) HA!

      1. Yay, I love that you know who Tony Vincent was/is! I like that you liked Broadway shows. I’m a musical girl myself – pretty much anything Rogers & Hammerstein makes me happy. 🙂

    7. I had a crush on Davy Jones of the Monkees. He wasn’t that much older than I am, and he was short like me. And, oh, was he cute when he was young. I was sad when I heard of his death.

    8. This post would have made a great vlog! Would have loved to seen you with the face paint…lol.

      Isn’t funny how people change? Sometimes we end up thinking – What was I thinking? lol

      @Jessica Patch – you remember the “remake” of Dark Shadows series in the 1980’s – I remember the original goth “soap opera” in the early 1970’s…Yikes!

      1. Oh yes, totally should’ve vlogged this. If I hadn’t been out of town over the weekend, I would’ve gone digging for old photos of me with T.V., or with my face painted, or posing with the stand-up doll! 🙂

    9. LOL! Loved the only one wearing eyeliner line. 🙂

      I have no idea who Tony Vincent is. And I don’t watch the Voice either.

      My teenage crush was Patrick Swayze. Loved Dirty Dancing–Nobody puts Baby in a corner.

      I cried when Patrick Swayze passed away. I loved that he was married for so long.

    10. Remember how mad Nicole would get if we talked to her while she was dancing along to the video!?! Actually, dad I and were talking about this, (after I read your blog to him on the phone as he was driving to work) we remember your crush on Rebecca Saint James brother being more concerning than Tony Vincent. But I guess you never had a cardboard doll of him. 🙂
      Oh…and just want to go on record saying, we are both glad about the fact that you want to be the one wearing the eyeliner. ~love from mom and dad

      1. Yes, I remember that about Nicole! Don’t we have it on home video or something? And you had to bring up the RStJ brother!! I don’t blame you for being concerned about that because, um, I was several years older by then. I really should’ve grown out of the celebrity (or in this case, celebrity sibling) crush thing a lot sooner! 🙂

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