The sad death of Cory Monteith this weekend at just 31 became more shocking when contrasted with what we saw of his life.
On a show called “Glee,” for heaven’s sake, his was a face of optimism and possibility.
At a time when those playing teenaged high schoolers are imbued with unrealistic cool and cynicism, Monteith conveyed honesty, charm and warmth in his portrayal. How much Finn Hudson was actually Monteith? Well, in real life he dated co-star lea Michele as he did on screen.
That his personal life may have also been clouded with drug abuse raises the same question that occurs whenever tragedy strikes those high up in the public eye: Was there no one watching over this young man? A friend who would help keep him from faltering?
Monteith was always too old for his character on “Glee,” though his enthusiasm and childlike wonder made him fit in — at least on the first couple of seasons. That he was transitioning into a student-teacher type character made a more realistic presence inside the school and pointed to a longer run on a show where stars are starting to be dropped and new ones hired in the more realistic manner of high school progress.
Whatever private demons that stopped this life robbed us all of this sunny personality.