The Urban Dictionary* defines a Man Crush as “When a straight man has a "crush" on another man, not sexual but kind of idolizing him.”
Many men are still embarrassed to admit it because of the homosexual inclinations, but really it has nothing to do with sex…and everything about admiration. Many men crush on action heroes (my husband declared his “love” for Bruce Willis recently) or sporting legends because of their skill and extreme bloke-ness. It’s more of an “I want to be like him” rather than I want to be with him mentality.
It is a positive thing for people to want to better themselves, and a Man Crush can result in motivation for success especially when they are crushing on someone higher up the career ladder. Many politicians display their Man Crushes openly, and often become the Crushee’s right hand man.
Common celebrities that men crush on include Clive Owen, Will Ferrell and of course, Elvis Presley (just think how many Elvis impersonator’s are out there!).
When a Man Crush becomes two sided it becomes a Bromance, which is a mutual affection between two males. A Bromance is like a male version of a BFF, but as men are seen to generally socialise in a group rather than in pairs their close bond can be hard to deal with for some women.
The Bromance is a special thing; it can outlast all other relationships as it is similar to the bond between two brothers. In recent times we have seen Ben Affleck and Matt Damon as well as Aussie comedians Hamish and Andy. In the Wedding Crashers the mateship always came before the women and in the television series House, the only person Gregory House truly needs is his best bud, Wilson.
The interesting and often distressing occurrence that often happens when a woman starts dating a new man is being disliked by one of his friends for no particular reason. Many times this is due to the demise of the Bromance and he is left feeling replaced. It’s a break up for the boys, but something that many men don’t like to discuss.
* Ref.The Urban Dictionary: www.urbandictionary.com
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