Entertainment
From a teen bad boy on Gilmore Girls to the Pearson patriarch on This Is Us, fans have been obsessed with Milo Ventimiglia for what seems like forever. And for all the hardships we've endured in the past year or so, the universe was good to us in delivering more of his beautiful (sometimes mustached) face. We've craved more of him after his brief stint in the Netflix Gilmore Girls revival, and seeing him on NBC once a week just isn't enough. But luckily, the internet exists so you can lightly stalk — I mean — learn more about him during the empty lulls of your own life. There are plenty of Ventimiglia fun facts just waiting to be discovered.
Not that you don't know a lot already, you adorable fangirl, you. You may not have forgotten when he dated his Heroes co-star Hayden Panettiere (12 years his junior) and they formed Haylo, you may know all about his proud support fur our nations veterans, and you quite possibly even remember that he's vegetarian (so if you ever go on a date, you shouldn't take him to Outback Steakhouse). But unless you're running, like, four Tumblrs about the dark-haired heartthrob's life right now, chances are that there's still much more you can learn.
Scroll down and see for yourself.
1
His First Agent Wanted Him To Go By "Milo Vent"
Maybe to cover up that partial Italian heritage? Who knows. It's a little too concise for my tastes. Regardless, this fact comes courtesy of a 2003 story from Vanity Fair.
2
He Was Big On The Distillers, Like His 'GG' Counterpart
It's possible that Jess' flavor for punk was informed by Ventimiglia's real-life musical picks, including his penchant for The Distillers. In fact, when asked if he was Team Britney or Team Christina, he was firmly Brody Dalle (then Armstrong).
3
But He Also Had A Taste For Hip-Hop
In the early aughts of Gilmore Girls, he also had a penchant for the likes of De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and Wu-Tang Clan.
4
His Older Sisters Used To Dress Him Up As Madonna
OK, this tidbit has circled around enough times, especially through a stint on The Ellen DeGeneres Show some years back. It was during the "Lucky Star" era, which he considered a blessing.
5
But You Will Never See The Receipts...
... because at age 13 he found the pictures, realized they were probably intimidating, and disposed of the evidence. But we all know it happened, so maybe that's enough.
6
He Had The Tiniest Role In 'Sabrina The Teenage Witch'
You already know he got his start with a one line role on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. This, blink-and-you'll-miss-it spot, however, you may have missed.
7
And You Can Spot Him In 'She's All That'
He's on the junior varsity, cleaning up Laney's house.
8
He Had A 'Deadliest Warrior'-esque Web Series
That helped settle pop culture debates like, "Who's tougher, Harrison Ford as Han Solo, or Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones?" In theory, very cool, very important. In reality? You can't find scraps of that show anywhere.
9
And He Directed Another Web Series... With American Eagle
The series in question was called "It's A Mall World" and followed the misadventures of an AE sales associate and her fellow mall employees... for some reason. Weird?
10
That's Not The Only Time He Worked With The Clothing Company
The above example wasn't even the last time Ventimiglia partnered with American Eagle, as his production company, Divide Pictures, also worked on their animated holiday miniseries Winter Tales. Double weird.
11
He Starred In A Sexually Charged WB Show With Penn Badgley
For like, a hot sec, Bedford Diaries stuck around for a season. Still, it's amusing to know that two generations* of CW teen shows that start with "G" and end with "Girls" co-existed for a brief, beautiful time.
*A CW generation is like three years, right?
12
Initially, He Said Returning To 'Gilmore Girls' Was "Never Gonna Happen"
Now, this was largely because Amy Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino left the series after Season 6, so I'm not going to call him out as a hypocrite for that one. Just of note. The quote comes from a 2006 TV Guide interview.
13
If He Could Have A Superpower, It Would Be The "Power Of Persuasion"
Why? "Think about it: You could walk into a foreign country and start a war - if you're so evil," Ventimiglia said in the same TV Guide interview mentioned above. "If you're peaceful, you could walk into a foreign country and end a war just by talking to someone." Very cool.
14
He Once Gave Extensive Advice On How To Take Care Of A Car For 'ELLEgirl'
It was a very strange little spot where hot celebrity dudes shared their car tips, and he provided millions of probably-not-license-owning girls with insightful knowledge like, "For your first car, don’t buy a certain brand just because it’s trendy." Bless.
15
He Once Testified Against The Paparazzi
On a more serious note, Ventimiglia once went to court with the likes of John Mayer and Eric Roberts to get stricter rules thrown on aggressive paparazzi after a dangerous car incident in West Hollywood.
16
He Recorded A Video For An Epilepsy Support Organization
It's a small spot, but very sweet. In it, Ventimiglia says that if you have epilepsy and participate in sports, don't be afraid to tell your coach and teammates about it. Aw.
18
And He's Voiced X-Men's Poster Boy, Wolverine
Sure, it was only for the Marvel Anime version, but thats counts for something. I personally have never voiced Wolverine.
19
But He Really Wanted A Stint As The OG Boy Wonder
During the Christopher Nolan era of Batman films, Ventimiglia was jonesing to take up Dick Grayson's mantle as Robin... or Nightwing, if we're going to be more dignified about it.
20
There's An Alternate Universe Where He May Not Have Been An Actor
That is to say, in a Reddit AMA, Ventimiglia was asked if he considered any other career options when he was younger, to which he responded, "Doctor and military life were my other choices. Acting ultimately won out." And thank goodness for that (not that he would've made a bad Dr. or Private Ventimiglia or anything).
21
Most Importantly, His Favorite Dessert Is Chocolate Trifle
I'm sure you can find a way to incorporate that delicious tidbit into your fanfiction.
