[FACT OR FAKE #59] Hey Girl, Did Ryan Gosling Really Adopt A Nine-Month Old Baby?
On Father's Day, almost 1 million Facebook fans' ovaries exploded when Ryan Gosling confessed on Facebook— among other things — that he had briefly adopted the nine-month-old son of a deceased friend. What really happened?
By Sadho Ram — 22 Jun 2014, 06:32 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
The Internet, as we keep experiencing from time to time, is a cruel and capricious place. However, there are a few favourites that can reliably turn our hearts to putty: kittens, Jennifer Lawrence—and, of course, Ryan Gosling.
So enamoured is the whole World Wide Web with the movie star that memes spring up like weeds about him, from Feminist Ryan Gosling to Ryan Gosling Won't Eat His Cereal
And so the Internet positively exploded with excitement when the universal heartthrob, sensitive soul and all-round deity Ryan Gosling announced on Facebook—on Father's Day—that he had adopted a child of a deceased friend
Gosling broke the news on Facebook, explaining: “This little guy was only 9 months old when I became his dad. His mom and I were great friends before she passed away from cancer. I promised her, I'd always look after him. So, I had decided to step up and become his dad. He brought me so much joy. He was my everything.”
The reaction was overwhelming, with the post racking up almost 1 million Likes and gushing comments like "my ovaries just exploded". The post also urged fans to purchase a USD22.50 charity T-shirt from the site TeeSpring.com.
The story, with its accompanying photo of Gosling clutching an adorable, anonymous infant, was like catnip to the star's legions of fans.
refinery29.comIt prompted outpourings of saccharine heartfelt good wishes, including: “I'm a single dad, raised my 3 sons without their mom since 2002 and they are and will always be the biggest treasure of my life. Mr Gosling, God bless you", "Well, my ovaries just exploded" and the charmingly worded: “Oh my freaking god penetrate me right now Ryan I want your babies.”
But before any ovaries could really explode, Facebook took it down. Why? Lets find out what was the deal with it.
For one, the now-deleted Facebook page that posted it, RealRyanGosling, is fake
For the record, RyanGoslingOfficial is also not affiliated with the movie star, nor is Ryan-Gosling: If in doubt, look for the blue verified check mark.
dailydot.comAnd, despite almost 650,000 followers, Instagram account Ryan_Gosling is not official either. Gosling does have a verified Twitter page, @RyanGosling—though it’s rarely used.
snopes.comWow, so many fake accounts of Gosling. So, did he really adopt a nine-month old baby of a deceased friend? How much of the story is FACT or FAKE?
FAKE: Ryan Gosling, to the best of our knowledge, has never been a father or adopted a precious orphan
There’s also the sheer implausibility of the story: In the modern 24-hour news age, it’s inconceivable that a high-profile celeb like Gosling could adopt and keep a child for a year without someone getting wind of it. If the Croatian football team can’t take a bath without paparazzi around, what chance does one of the world’s sexiest men have of going through a lengthy custody battle in perfect secrecy?
dailydot.comAs far as we know, there is nothing to this story: we've found no previous account of Ryan Gosling ever having an adoptive child, much less losing one. And, as a number of family law lawyers have pointed out, the scenario described above (i.e., a biological father reclaiming his child a year after it was adopted by someone else) isn't possible, as the adoption couldn't have taken place had the father not first surrendered his rights to the child or had them permanently terminated by the court for some reason (such as abuse).
snopes.comThen what's the rationale behind the fake story? While trollish and self-congratulatory ego-stroking is no doubt is a strong driving force, there is a more prosaic motivation: money.
The post linked Gosling aficionados to a page called Teespring where they could buy T-shirts purporting to support the Orphanage Home Foundation, along with the chance to meet Gosling.
refinery29.comGuess what turns up when you Google Orphanage Home Foundation? Nothing. Basically, the so-called charity, the Orphanage Home Foundation, doesn't exist.
dailydot.comThe shirt's logo, incidentally, is "Young, Wild & Free" — a fairly inappropriate slogan for anything connected to an orphanage. Yay, orphans! So young. So wild. So free.
refinery29.comMoreover, the Teespring site has now issued a statement about the misleading Gosling rumours
"The Teespring campaign in question has been officially canceled and pulled down from the site with refunds issued in full to all of the buyers. The seller violated key points in Teespring’s terms of services as it included an unverified charity and solicited a giveaway. Teespring apologizes for any inconvenience the campaign may have caused during this time."
refinery29.com