Last year, it started innocuously enough for me with “Cute Boys With Cats” on Tumblr. Then came John Fulton’s Animal Planet show Must Love Cats, followed by Jackson Galaxy’s My Cat From Hell.
Pretty soon, it seemed cat men were literally clawing their way out of the woodwork to declare their love for furry four-legged felines. It was solidified in November of 2013, when several events occurred forever linking hot men with their love of cats.
Let's take a look at the year in cat guys:
1. Ian Somerhalder
People magazine’s "Sexiest Man Alive" issue dedicated an editorial to five sexy Hollywood men with their beloved cats. Ian Somerhalder, star of The Vampire Diaries, was photographed with his orange cat, Moke.
In Somerhalder's behind-the-scenes video from the magazine shoot, he says about Moke, “He’s my Valium. The cat is Valium. He sedates me.”
2. Norman Reedus
Also in the People feature, Norman Reedus of The Walking Dead explains how his cat, Eye in the Dark, got his rather unusual name from his son.
3. Ricky Gervais
Of his cat Ollie, Ricky Gervais says, “She’s fickle. I quite like it when she bites me, because it’s her letting me know that she used to be a lion.” He tweeted, "It's nonsense that pets look like their owners. Furry face, wide spongy nose, and a big mouth with fangs? Ridiculous."
4. Gilles Marini
The star of Two Broke Girls was also featured in the People article. Here he is with his cat Penelope.
5. James Franco
Franco appeared on Ellen and told Ellen DeGeneres and her audience, "We were raised as cat people." He even shared photos of his entire family holding cats, and went on to announce his recent adoption of black cats Lux and Max from the set of his movie, Homefront.
While Franco’s character in the film steals one of the kitties, in real life he adopted both cats (the actor cat and his double!).
Ellen being Ellen, she presented Franco with the perfect (or is it purrfect?!) gift of a calendar of half-naked shots of Franco posing with (Photoshopped) cats. Franco clearly got a kick out of it, because it was shortly up on Twitter.
Apparently Ellen isn’t the only one enamored of the idea of Franco with cats. There’s an entire (mostly Photoshopped) Tumblr site dedicated to James Franco with Cats.
6. The tough cat guys of Show Your Soft Side
Show Your Soft Side is a wonderful campaign in Baltimore created “to change the mindset of young people who often view the maiming and torturing of defenseless animals as a sign of 'toughness' or 'manhood.'" The campaign uses often well-known athletes or musicians.
On the heels of Indycar driver Josef Newgarden posing with and later adopting kitten Simba, the campaign featured local cop Jon Boyer holding Lilly, one of his six rescue cats (rumor has it a seventh might be coming soon!).
Someone quickly put up an I Love Jon Boyer Facebook page, and a date with Jon was auctioned off to help raise money for BARCS Animal Shelter in Baltimore. Suddenly his face and story were on blogs and websites, such as Love Meow and my very own I HAVE CAT. This twentysomething cop who rescues cat after cat from inner-city neighborhoods and will seemingly do anything to help out animals really struck a chord.
7. Cats Who Look Like Models
I discovered a French Tumblr site, des hommes et des chatons, which translates to “men and kittens” but somehow became “cats that look like models.”
So if you know any cat men still hiding in the shadows, I encourage them to come out and be proud about their love of felines. There’s never been a better time. Wouldn’t you agree?
Check out some cuteness with Catster:
- Could You Learn to Love a Cat With No Eyes?
- So There Was That One Time a Cat Was Raised by Ferrets
- Gift Guide: 10 Cat-Themed Stocking Stuffers for the Family
Read more about cat guys and cat-loving celebrities on Catster:
- 10 Celebrity Cat People You Simply Must Follow on Twitter
- 10 Exquisite Cat Tumblrs You Must Follow
- Cat Guys (Catster section)
- Jackson Galaxy Interview: The Cat Dandy Meets the Cat Daddy
About the author: Tamar Arslanian is a singleton living in New York City with her three cats Kip, Petie, and Haddie. Tamar writes about cats, relationships and life in the Big Apple on her nationally recognized blog, I HAVE CAT. She was recently quoted in People StyleWatch “What’s In What’s Out” about cat toy trends. Her biggest secret? She didn’t grow up with animals (unless you count goldfish and a hamster). When she finally got her first cat she was in her early 30s and it was all thanks to a man she was dating at the time. You can follow Tamar and I HAVE CAT on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.