Growing up, we spend most of our lives idolizing and fantasizing. We place fashion icons, actors, athletes, anyone we look up to with celebrity status on a pedestal and consider them role models who we aspire to emulate.

And, of course, we were known to have more than a few posters plastered  around our bedroom, deifying the teen heart throbs who captivated us with their boyish good lucks, wit, and bowl cuts.

Many of them went on to pursue successful, well rounded careers in the spotlight, still gracing us with their presence on screen in a variety of roles. And others seems to have fallen off the grid completely. We would be remiss in our duty to entertain our readers if we didn't provide them with a little glorified nostalgia. So on that note, here is WOMAN.CA's top 5 washed up celebrity crush list:

Jonathan Taylor Thomas  -  We slept with him under our pillows every night, his adorably dimpled face beaming at us from Teen Beat or whatever fluffy drivel he was inevitably featured in each month. From Home Improvement to Wild America, we followed JTT's short lived acting career, swooning over his precocious charm and frosted tips.

Rider Strong - When anyone asks, "Why do girls love bad boys?" there is one simple answer. Shawn Hunter. Boy Meets World. The misunderstood rebel who sports leather jackets and lives in a trailer park when he's not living in detention after class. Rider Strong was dark and mysterious and in true bad boy fashion he vanished into the night just as quickly as he swooped in. Since his teen comedy drama debut, we haven't seen much of this dreamboat save for a few cameos here and there  - and of course, the staple washed up celebrity appearance on Law & Order.

Luke Perry - In keeping with the theme of bad boys, one of our favourites and most memorable from the 90s is Dylan McKay of hit TV series Beverly Hills, 90210. More significant than his sexy, coy attitude was his hair, basically its own separate entity. Guys teenage to mid-twenties mirrored his 'do as best they could but, let's face it, without the motorcycle, cryptic one liners, and those squinty eyes no one could ever measure up. We would have done anything to be Brenda. 

Joey Lawrence - The next best thing besides a dark and brooding tortured soul is its opposite prototype: the comically dim-witted clown. As long as he's got a cute smile and awesome hair. And that sums up Joey Lawrence exactly. Best known for his role as Joey Russo in Blossom, he melted us into puddles with his charisma, mismatched print vests, and of course his legendary catch phrase "Whoa!"

Devon Sawa - Canadian born Devon Sawa took to the silver screen in the early 90s with film credits like Little Giants and Now and Then. It wasn't long before his blonde hair and big blue eyes were in competition with JTT on the front covers of BOP and Tiger Beat. To date, there has been no moment in my life as joyous and fulfilling as the one in Casper where he descends the spiraling staircase towards Christina Ricci with his back to the camera, and we discover that the dreamy (well, ghostly) apparition in human form in none other than Devon Sawa. That may speak more to the lack of excitement in my life but, shut up, you know you loved it too. Later roles would include co-starring with Jonathan Taylor Thomas in Wild America and then the 1999 horror comedy Idle Hands. Since then,  his career has dwindled considerably, however he has refrained from any guest starring criminal drama roles, which is respectable. Still, without him around the gap in our lives is nearly as big as the gap in his front teeth. Come back to us, Devon.

Image from MorgueFile
 

Courtney Gilmour
		About the author:
		Courtney is a published writer, stand-up comic, and shameless Internet enthusiast. She holds a double bachelors degree in English Literature and Communication Media Studies, specializing in semiotic theory, however she doesn't get Shakespeare and has never won a game of Scrabble. Currently she lives in Toronto and works as a writer for WOMAN.CA.
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