Hewitt is a Southern belle through and through! The actress was born in Waco, Texas on February 21st, 1979. Her mother, Patricia Mae, was a speech-language pathologist — while her father, Herbert Daniel Hewitt, worked as a medical technician. Jennifer grew up alongside her older brother Todd in Texas.

Sadly, Patricia and Herbert got a divorce, after which Mae and her two children moved to Nolanville. Little did the residents of the small town know that there was a budding star in their midst.

At just three years old, Hewitt performed Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love of All”, showing that despite being a small child, she had some big talent. Jennifer continued to display her abilities and was the talk of the town by the time she was four years old.

At the age of five, it was clear that singing alone wasn’t going to do the trick. So, the little star began learning tap dancing and ballet too, in order to bulk up her resume.

Jennifer Love Hewitt continued to train for a life of stardom throughout her childhood. At nine years old, she joined the Texas Show Team, which allowed her to showcase her abilities to people outside her hometown — including as far as the Soviet Union.

By the age of 10, Hewitt was getting attention from talent scouts and was encouraged to expand her performances to Hollywood. It was winning a state-wide talent competition that finally convinced Hewitt’s mother to move to Los Angeles and make Jennifer a star!

While most people struggle for years before making any sort of dent in Hollywood, Hewitt found success almost immediately. The actress booked over 20 commercials, which swiftly gained her the recognition she needed to score a role in Disney’s Kids Incorporated, from 1989 to 1991.

Boasting three Young Artist Award nominations, Hewitt met talent scout Jonathan Neville, who recommended her for the dramatic TV series Party of Five.

Like all of us, Hewitt had a first crush, and hers was in the form of Fred Savage of The Wonder Years. The two met when they were just teenagers and embarked on an adorable childhood romance.

Unfortunately, young love was short-lived, as there was a third party that made Savage break up with Hewitt. No, it wasn’t another man; it was the actress’s pet pig that creeped Fred out. Wisely, Jennifer chose the pig over the boy.

Luckily, Jennifer Love Hewitt was able to move on from Savage and find a man who could handle a pig’s presence. The actress began to date Joey Lawrence, whose career was also headed in a promising direction thanks to his work in the hit TV show Blossom.

The pair dated for a few months in 1996. However, they were each at the peak of their careers at that time, and the media covered their relationship relentlessly, causing them to break up due to “business.”

In 1997, Hewitt starred alongside Will Friedle in Trojan War, a project that reunited the pair who previously worked together on Boy Meets World. This time, sparks flew, and the two actors started dating.

Although their love didn’t last, it seemed to have been a positive experience as Hewitt gushed, “Will takes good care of himself. At the same time, he takes care of me.” It appears that care was demonstrated in their breakup as well, as the pair split amicably.

Although her acting career was skyrocketing, Hewitt got her first taste of failure when it came to music. The star’s debut album, Love Songs, was only released in Japan but did extremely well there.

However, when Hewitt tried to become a singer in Hollywood, Let’s Go Bang and Jennifer Love Hewitt both flopped, leading Atlantic Records to drop the singer from their label. Understandably, Jennifer took a break from music to focus on her acting, which seemed to be going much better.

Hewitt’s role in A Party of Five was meant to last only nine episodes of the series’ second season. However, the actress’s performance was so impressive that producers chose to keep her on the show.

Jennifer’s work earned her numerous awards — including a Kids’ Choice Award, a Teen Choice Award, and a YoungStar Award. Hewitt swiftly became a star, landing roles in major movies like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Can’t Hardly Wait.

As a relative newcomer to Hollywood, Hewitt found a mentor in Jamie Lee Curtis, who she met while filming House Arrest. Curtis was already a well-established actress at that point, and she grew up in the spotlight, making her the perfect person to help Hewitt manage a public life.

Rumor has it that Jamie Lee would visit Jennifer on the set of I Know What You Did Last Summer to offer her advice.

Beautiful Jennifer Love Hewitt’s looks were noticed, and she became known as a Hollywood bombshell. The actress was typecast as “the attractive girl next door,” which she admits earned her a lot of roles.

Although Hewitt leaned into her appearance at the time, she’s since expressed frustration at how her looks were the center of fans’ focus. Interestingly, Jennifer was taken by surprise that she was considered alluring, as she didn’t see herself that way before entering the spotlight.

With her career going strong, Hewitt began a relationship with fellow ‘90s heartthrob Carson Daly of MTV fame. The couple dated for roughly a year and seemed to be perfect for each other. Clearly, Daly was very much in love, as he even tattooed Jennifer’s name on his leg!

She, however, obviously didn’t feel the same way. The actress used an appearance on The Howard Stern Show to inform Carson — and the rest of the public — that they were no longer together.

Once she had established herself as a successful actress, Hewitt decided to add producing to her resume. The star produced the comedy film The Suburbans in 1998 and the Party of Five spin-off show Time of Your Life.

Seeing as how she was successful in every other aspect of Hollywood she tried, Hewitt chose to give her first love — music — a second shot. This time, Jennifer was successful, cracking both the Hot 100 and the Top 40 Mainstream charts.

In 1999, Hewitt began dating That ’70s Show star Wilmer Valderrama. After the short-lived relationship ended, Valderrama went on The Howard Stern Show and was (disgustingly) asked to rate his ex’s performance in bed.

The actor gave Hewitt an 8 out of 10, to which she responded, “I was told, like, that we had all these very steamy encounters, and I was like, really? Well, I would have loved to have been there!” We rate that burn 8 out of 10, too!

Shortly after things ended with Valderrama, Hewitt met LFO singer Rich Cronin backstage at the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (remember Blockbuster?) The pair dated for a year, during which Cronin wrote the song “Girl on TV” for the actress.

According to the singer, Hewitt cheated on him, which is what led to their split. However, he admitted that he was apprehensive about dating such a big star anyway, as he wanted to live a normal life. Tragically, Cronin passed away from leukemia in 2010.

In 2000, Jennifer Love Hewitt tried to move away from her role as the woman who’s always objectified by playing Audrey Hepburn in the biographical drama The Audrey Hepburn Story. However, critics complained that Hewitt lacked Hepburn’s natural class and grace.

So, Jennifer then leaned into her alluring nature by stripping down in 2001’s Heartbreakers. The public then whined that Hewitt was being overly promiscuous in that role. Women truly can’t win!

Hewitt continued down her road of starring in music videos with Enrique Iglesias’ “Hero”. Given their obvious chemistry, the public was hardly surprised when Iglesias and Hewitt began to date. However, their passion was clearly only prevalent on-screen, as the pair split up after eight months together.

That said, Jennifer was on a music-centered roll, and she wasn’t slowing down! The actress moved on to the guy that every ‘90s celeb dated (so, that era’s Pete Davidson) — John Mayer.

John Mayer and Jennifer Love Hewitt dated in 2002, but – according to Mayer’s oversharing – apparently never made it to the bedroom. Given the singer’s reputation for mistreating women he’s with, rumors swirled that his single “Your Body Is a Wonderland” was written about Hewitt.

However, both stars deny the claim, and the timing doesn’t add up anyway, as John met Jennifer after the song was written. The actress further fought her ex’s negative reputation by calling Mayer “one of the coolest people I ever met.”

Unfortunately, being a celebrity means being susceptible to less stable members of society and their fantasies. Hewitt learned that when she got a stalker who pretended to be friends with the actress in order to get into the premiere of The Tuxedo.

Apparently, the woman was infatuated by both Hewitt and Steven Spielberg (who was also involved in the film) and threatened both their lives. The terrifying incident ended with the stalker being placed in a facility and prohibited from having any contact with either celebrity.

Having tried her hand in both music and movies, Hewitt decided to attempt another aspect of the entertainment world — books. The actress penned a five-issue anthology comic series titled Jennifer Love Hewitt’s Music Box. The series involves each book’s protagonist coming across a music box with magical abilities.

The celebrity called creating her own comic “like a very fun nightmare come true.” The book was well-received, proving that Jennifer has a lot more to offer than just her beauty.

Hewitt’s second book, The Day I Shot Cupid told the story of her various romances and relationships, and it started a movement. While promoting the book, the author explained that there was a chapter about “vajazzling,” which is adorning one’s privates with decorations such as rhinestones.

It didn’t take long for people to become fascinated with the term, as it became the most-searched word on Google the very next day. Whether you love or hate the concept, just know that Hewitt popularized it.

In 2002, Hewitt released her fourth – and arguably most successful – album, BareNaked. The album’s single “BareNaked” was extremely successful, making it onto all the major charts. It was even featured in Ghost Whisperer, which the singer starred in.

However, “Can I Go Now” wasn’t well received in the US, although it fared much better overseas. Despite BareNaked’s success, Hewitt has been essentially inactive in the music industry since 2004.

At the age of 28, Hewitt met Alec Baldwin — who was 49 at the time — on the set of Shortcut to Happiness. Immediately, rumors of the two having a romantic relationship began to fill tabloid pages.

However, the actress vehemently denied the claims and insisted that Baldwin had contacted her asking for advice on how he could help his daughter through his divorce. Hewitt explained, “He looked at me as somebody who had been through what his daughter was going to go through.”

Fans of the TV series Charmed know that Shannen Doherty was booted after the show’s third season due to her inability to get along with co-star Alyssa Milano. What Charmed viewers may not know, though, is Jennifer Love Hewitt was offered Doherty’s role.

However, the actress declined, as she felt the audience wouldn’t accept anyone but Shannen playing Prue. In the end, Rose McGowan stepped in as the third sister — and she didn’t get along with Milano either! We wonder if Hewitt would’ve fared any better.

Continuing with the theme of almosts, Hewitt almost married fellow actor Ross McCall. The pair met in 2005 while filming Ghost Whisperer and got engaged in 2007.

It was clear that both celebrities were smitten. McCall proposed with an engagement ring that had been in his family for over a century, and Hewitt gushed about her fiance any chance she got. Sadly, it wasn’t meant to last, and the couple broke up in 2008.

A source close to the couple claimed that the actress’ raving about her soon-to-be-husband may be what caused the split.

They said, “Ross didn’t want his relationship played out in the press. Jennifer’s need for media attention put a strain on their relationship and resulted in the split. Being in the limelight wasn’t important to Ross. He valued privacy more than she did.” Regardless of the reasons, it was clear that the breakup was difficult for both of them.

Fresh off her split with McCall, Hewitt faced another disappointment – and this one was related to her career. The actress starred in the animated film Delgo, which was such a spectacular flop that it’s regarded as a cautionary tale in Hollywood.

To this day, the movie is considered one of the biggest failures in cinematic history. In fact, production company Fathom Studios went bankrupt after the release. Many fans believe that was the beginning of the end for Jennifer’s bright spotlight.

In 2009, Hewitt began dating another Ghost Whisperer co-star. No, this isn’t déjà vu, and she didn’t get back together with McCall. This time, the actress was in a relationship with Jamie Kennedy, who was friends with both Jennifer and Ross when they were engaged.

Despite the rumors of there being some overlap between the relationships, Hewitt insisted that wasn’t the case. Regardless of how it started, the romance ended a year later.

At this point, someone should make a show about the drama behind the scenes of Ghost Whisperer, as there seemed to be more of it backstage than on-screen. The series was canceled abruptly due to financial issues but left a lot of cliffhangers.

Fans were furious, and so was the cast, as they apparently had no idea they were about to lose their jobs. Jennifer Love Hewitt, in particular, expressed frustration with how producers handled the situation.

Once again, Hewitt found love, this time with actor/producer Alex Beh. However, fans smelled the breakup from a mile away, as Beh was notorious for trying to stay out of the public eye, while Hewitt was known to enjoy the attention.

After nearly a year, Alex pulled a Rich Cronin and chose his privacy over love. Perhaps, like the public, Jennifer saw it coming, as she was reportedly “doing fine” right after the split.

In 2010, Hewitt made a comeback from the Delgo disaster with the movie The Client List (not to be confused with the TV show of the same name). The film itself got mixed reviews, but the actress’s performance was praised, and she earned a Golden Globe nomination.

With some long-overdue success under her belt, Jennifer was back on track in Hollywood! Whether or not that meant her love life would follow suit remained to be seen.

Shortly after Beh broke up with Hewitt because he wanted privacy, Jarod Einsohn disrespected hers. The actors dated for a little under a year before Einsohn broke up with Hewitt via text message. To make matters worse, he said some pretty unflattering things about her to the press, including speculations as to why her past relationships didn’t pan out.

Whether or not someone likes being in the public eye, they don’t deserve to have their dirty laundry aired! Karma got Einsohn, though, as no one knows who he is anymore.

Hewitt capitalized on her film The Client List’s success by creating a TV show of the same name. As the producer and star, the actress got a lot of say in the final product, which is evident by the fact that roughly 50% of the script is just people commenting on her beauty.

Of course, with another production comes another love – or at least rumors of love — and the press quickly speculated about Hewitt’s co-star, Colin Egglesfield.

As the world watched Jennifer Love Hewitt, Colin Egglesfield, and Brian Hallisay act out a love triangle in The Client List, people began to speculate if art was imitating life. Hewitt and Egglesfield were rumored to be in a relationship, which neither actor confirmed or denied.

Eventually, Hallisay and Hewitt publicized their own romance, leaving people to wonder if all three actors’ feelings led to the show’s demise. Eventually, The Client List was canceled due to “creative differences” between Jennifer and the other producers.

Despite whatever drama may or may not have been involved in the early days of Hewitt and Hallisay’s relationship, the pair clearly felt it was all worthwhile. The couple had a baby and got married in 2013, right before the due date.

The pair gave birth to their daughter, Autumn — and later had two sons, Atticus and Aidan. It’s clear that Hewitt loves being a wife and mother, as the actress has called her children “incredible” and her husband “the most handsome and awesome man.”

Hewitt was starring in Criminal Minds when she decided to take a break from acting in order to focus on her family. According to the actress, her choice wasn’t well-received by everyone.

Jennifer spoke about her colleagues’ comments, saying, “They were like, ‘You’re in the middle of a career; you can’t do that.’ But I was like, ‘I can because that’s what’s in my heart.’” Although wanting to focus on oneself or one’s family is reason enough, there was something else keeping Jennifer away from the spotlight.

Sadly, Hewitt lost her mother, which played a big role in her decision to step away from Hollywood. The actress explained, “I had needed to take some time for myself and needed to grieve my mother.”

She continued, “I think because I was so fearful, for me to act and to have to tap into those things not in a safe place, would have been really hard for me. So I do think that that was part of why acting scared me at that time.”

Jennifer Love Hewitt returned to Hollywood starring in the TV show ​​9-1-1. The actress has expressed that she enjoys working on the series, and her character Maddie “has a toughness to her. But she’s also empathetic and sensitive,” which resonated with her.

As of the time of writing, the show is still going strong in its seventh season, after initially being canceled but picked up by another network, showing that Hewitt’s luck hasn’t run out.

In 2024, Hewitt got into some trouble with the internet (who doesn’t, these days?) The actress posted a photo of herself to Instagram and happened to use a filter on the image.

People thought Jennifer was trying to set unrealistic expectations of how women look in their 40s by covering her signs of aging in the picture. Hewitt explained that she altered the photo without really thinking about it, but she’s since deleted the perfectly tame post.

The actress sparked controversy again when she spoke on a podcast about being “objectified” when she was younger. Hewitt recalled, “I didn’t feel self-confident. I felt watched. I felt like I had to be everything for everybody all the time.” Some people felt bad for the star and applauded her for calling out Hollywood’s tendency to focus on looks.

However, others pointed out that Hewitt benefitted from the attention she received for her appearance, and that she accepted certain roles that pushed that narrative further.

Being famous today is different than being a star in the ‘90s, which Hewitt seems to have accepted. The actress explained, “Aging in Hollywood is really hard because you can’t do anything right.”

She continued to say that fans “have this moment when they fall in love with you. That’s who they want you to always be. And there’s something really beautiful about that, but there’s also something really not okay about that.” Well, love her or hate her, Jennifer Love Hewitt has proven that she’s here to stay!

Imagine, if you will, a straightforward test that could dig up the buried origins of your family history. Would you take it? This is the very dilemma which came before Whit Johnson, co-anchor of both Good Morning America and ABC World News Tonight. Whit knew his parents weren’t together anymore and understood his father was adopted, but beyond those facts, Whit didn’t know much about his family’s past.

Defying his dad’s hopes, Whit found himself deeply linked to something he never expected. He discovered a massive family secret, one that promised to turn both his and his father’s lives upside down, and permanently alter the way they saw things.

Whit Johnson, who was born and grew up in San Francisco, California, always harbored dreams of becoming a reporter. He didn’t waste time turning this dream into reality, jumping right into a career in broadcasting after he had completed his studies. He earned his degree in Television and Radio Broadcasting at San Francisco State University.

Johnson had a fulfilled and renowned career amongst the ranks of CBS News and KNBS Los Angeles. His accomplishments further extended when he covered the 2016 Olympics. Later, in 2018, he embarked on a new journey with ABC. Eventually, he became part of the correspondent team of Good Morning America. Little did he know that his career would lead him to a personal, remarkable discovery about his own family.

For Whit, the things that matter most in life are his wife and children. In the year 2018, he accepted an offer from ABC News to work full-time as a correspondent, which led him to move to the vibrant city of New York. His wife, Andrea Fuji, who also is a journalist for ABC News, accompanied him on this journey. The couple has two lovely daughters named Leah and Summer. Whit is the epitome of a family man, showcasing immense pride in his roles as a father and a husband.

Whit, the child of divorced parents, Sharon and Steve, has started his own small family. Now, he’s grappling with questions about his own genetic history.

Whit’s father, Steve, holds a special place in his life. The bond between the father and son has always been tight and Steve remains the person Whit admires the most. Whit once captioned an Instagram post back in 2020, declaring his affection for his father. It read, “Happy Father’s Day to the man who taught me what it means to be a dad.” Steve’s influence had a large part in showing Whit just what a father’s role truly is.

Sure, Whit and his dad share a strong bond but some parts of his dad’s life remain a mystery to him. It wasn’t too long after when Whit started becoming curious and began to ask questions about his own familial background.

Whit’s parents are not together anymore, and he’s had a strong bond with the partner of his mom. Whit also has credited his stepfather, who is also a respected radio host named Dean Edell, for being the one who sparked his interest in the world of broadcasting.

In an interview that Whit gave to ABC News, he talked about his story and gave his mom the credit for piquing his interest in tracing back their family’s roots. Whit said, “My mother and father divorced years ago, and my mother had this growing curiosity about my ethnicity.” So Whit comes from a large extended family and it was from his mother’s side that his fascination towards learning more about his family genealogy began. They were both intrigued by their ethnic background and it had been growing over the years. This came especially from his mother, who had always been the curious one after her divorce from his father.

In the beginning, Whit was not exactly excited about the idea of a DNA test. His mother Sharon was the one who brought it up, but Whit did not quite understand why it was necessary. “What difference does it make?” he remembered wondering out loud. Sharon, on the other hand, had already taken the plunge and had a 23AndMe test done. She had received her results and they didn’t contain anything surprising.

Whit’s background was a mix of European and Caucasian roots, leading him to ponder, “Okay, what sort of British/Irish/Scottish lineage could I potentially have?” However, he was completely clueless about the real findings the test was going to reveal.

Steve, who’s Whit’s father, was adopted when he was just a little baby in the year 1950. He had spent his earliest days in Salt Lake City, Utah, where his biological family had decided they couldn’t keep him. And that was all the information he had. Of course, there was a lot of curiosity that came with having such limited information about his own roots.

Steve had a strong bond with the family that adopted him, especially with his mum and dad, and he didn’t really feel the need to delve into his biological roots. There was a valid reason as to why he was avoiding the exploration of his personal history.

“Whit expressed to ABC News, how he was very aware that his adoptive parents were extremely significant in his life. He was always careful not to upset them and believed that uncovering any information about his biological family could potentially cause disruption or an upset within his family.”

Steve didn’t have any desire to dig up the past, so Whit practically stopped his exploration before it could properly take off. What Steve was completely oblivious to was the fact that his own son was gearing up to go against his wishes. His son was warming up to the task of unveiling a secret history, a history that would reconnect Steve to his biological family-line that he was completely unaware of.

Whit stopped asking when his dad showed no interest. However, it didn’t stop his mind from wondering, from questioning. He was always curious about what lay beyond known boundaries. Luckily for him, two people stood by his side, his mom and his loving wife, Andrea. They continued to encourage him even though his father was not on board.

Whit’s mom played a critical role by actually giving him the test. Whit said, “My mom literally walked out with the test tube and said, “All you have to do is spit in this,” effectively explaining the simplicity of the process.

None of them in the family knew just how much their lives would shift because of the choice they were about to make. Whit and his mother jointly completed the virtual profile at their dining table, dispatched the sample tube, and with that, the entire procedure was completed.

“Subsequently, I made my way back home, giving it no further thought,” Whit recounted. He resumed his daily routine, the test he had taken nearly erased from his memory. It wasn’t until a month afterward when he opened an unexpected email that he was reminded of it again.

Whit couldn’t hold back his curiosity, and he immediately opened the email from 23AndMe, which carried the simple subject line, “We have your results”. He was redirected to his user profile, and there, right next to his own DNA information, he could see the results of his mom’s DNA test because she had already taken one.

However, what he found was more than he had expected. “We were able to see everything from Western Europe, such as Britain, Ireland, Scotland, and similar areas, but then there was this extra portion,” he mentioned in an interview with ABC News. This unfamiliar part of his genetic ancestry wasn’t entirely unexpected. But then he noticed something out of place, something he couldn’t immediately identify.

Whit discovered something unexpected in his genetic makeup. “There was this other part that showed that I’m Basque Spanish, and I had a small percentage of Native American, as well,” he told the reporters. This surprise component wasn’t found in his mother’s genes, which led him to the conclusion that this unique part of his heritage had come from his father’s side.

Whit wasn’t entirely sure about the service he used. He completed all the necessary steps, swabbing his cheek and spitting in the tube, thinking he’d only get details about his ancestry. But, interestingly, there was another feature in the service that would reveal even deeper truths and undisclosed secrets.

The service linked him with family members through DNA. He navigated his way on the webpage and discovered a section labeled “Your DNA Relatives”. He didn’t realize that this was a gateway to discovering a completely different side of his family. “This line of relatives pops up, but they’re all distant relatives, like third, fourth, fifth cousins,” Whit detailed. He was giving the account of how he found out about these unfamiliar family ties he was unaware of previously.

What grabbed Whit’s attention the most was the collection of names that were Spanish in origin. Whit had the last name “Johnson,” inherited from his dad’s adoptive parents, and he had spent his entire childhood with it. So, this part of his family’s past was entirely unknown to him—until that moment.

Whit declared that the site ensures to alert its users that they might be in for some unexpected revelations surrounding their DNA, displaying the notice, “Hey, get ready for some potential surprises.” It was no surprise that his mother, Sharon, came up as a close relative on the results.

Under the category “possible first cousin”, another unfamiliar name showed up. Whit was aware that his mother had brothers and sisters, but on his understanding, they didn’t have any offspring. Was it possible that he had stumbled upon a cousin he never knew he had?

He understood that if there was a first cousin out there, it would be possible to unravel a substantial part of his heritage that was previously untouched. Whit was well aware of the importance of this revelation. As he remembered later, “That’s immediately under the umbrella of your grandparents.”

Steve had many more relatives than he initially realized, and Whit recounted the moment when he made his groundbreaking find: “I looked at this profile, and I clicked this potential first cousin, and a name and a picture popped up.” So, who was this mysterious person?

Whit was taken aback to discover new family members, particularly when a picture of one turned up! He distinctly remembered not even glancing at the name—the photo alone was enough to stun him. His reaction was one of sheer astonishment at what unfolded before his eyes, “My jaw dropped. I fell back into my chair.”

“The news presenter had to take a brief moment to step back from his computer, simply because he was taken aback by a photograph of a man bearing an uncanny resemblance to his father,” is how the story was explained.

Whit had never witnessed anyone who resembled his father that closely. It was extremely clear, the man staring back at him from the screen must be blood-related, and then, Whit reached a phenomenal realization. He slowly murmured, “At that moment, I knew this had to be my dad’s brother. It had to be.”

This was the very first occasion when Whit got information about his dad’s real blood relatives. Steve had decided to keep distance from it all, but for Whit, it was clear that the man in the photo was the maiden answer to the questions he had been asking.

Whit studied the photograph, one of a man he’d never encountered or even laid eyes upon previously. In that single moment, he recognized the profound significance it held. As he relayed to ABC News, “We didn’t know if he had siblings or anything, but in that picture and the way this man was sitting in this chair, his eyes, his mouth, my dimples — I just knew it.” The mannerisms, the way the stranger sat, the eyes that mirrored Whit’s, along with his distinctive dimples, were all he needed. He simply knew from within, a deep surety in the mirroring features they shared.

He caught sight of the name, Bear, and felt a jolt of surprise. “This is a family revelation here. This is going to change everything for us,” he said, knowing that this news was a radical shift in his understanding of his family. He realized how things would never be the same again.

Whit was now faced with a challenging decision: figuring out how best to break this shocking news to his dad. There’s no simple method to relay such impactful information to your parents, leading Whit to contemplate his next move. Should he reach out to this individual to gather more details about the story or go ahead and share the surprising discoveries he’d stumbled upon with his father?

And so, unable to control his curiosity, he made a choice to contact this newfound kin. Little was he aware of the significant influence this single decision was going to have on his own life and the lives of his dear ones.

Whit realized he needed to make contact with Bear. He confessed that he hadn’t anticipated what he was venturing into. His approach was more casual, like starting a conversation with a simple question normally asked among people – “Hey, you know, where are you from?” This is what most want to ascertain about others, Whit expressed, “Where are you from?”

Naturally, Whit found himself plagued by a torrent of queries. However, his dad had never expressed a desire to investigate their lineage or understand the past of his birth family. Whit was stuck in a dilemma – should he risk offending his father and contact Bear to uncover the mysteries of their roots?

Steve was brought up by his adoptive parents, who were also the grandparents of Whit. These grandparents had passed away since then. Understandably, Steve’s curiosity started to catch up with him. Encouraged by this curiosity, he decided to start digging into his past, his family’s history. However, he wasn’t successful in finding what he was looking for, and his efforts did not yield any results.

Whit couldn’t have picked a better time to share his big news with his dad, Steve. However, before he could have that important father-son chat, Whit thought it would be best to consult his mom and also his wife to get their viewpoints and advice.

Whit took it upon himself to write an email to his stepmother, aware of her spending time with Steve on that particular day. “I said something to the effect of, ‘We need to talk to Dad. I made some kind of family discovery by accident on 23andMe,’” he reminisced. He vividly remembered conveying this unexpected revelation relating to their family that he had stumbled upon accidentally on the genealogy website, 23andMe.

As anticipated, she bombarded him with queries. “How intriguing! What platform did you utilize?” she probed. And Whit came back with, “Honestly, I’m kind of freaking out because I may have just found someone related to Dad. VERY RELATED TO DAD.”

Whit was looking for just the right time to share the exciting news, and when the opportunity came, the conversation wasn’t a short one. He said, “I let her know about a gentleman, who, just like my dad, was born in Utah in 1956, but six years later.” Whit is a news host, and this was his way of revealing his findings.

She replied swiftly with the words, “Oh, my God. Yes, Dad wants to know. We’ll call you later.” The timing of it all couldn’t have been more impeccable. With Steve’s birthday just a few days around the corner, Whit already had an ideal gift at hand.

Whit was eager and nervous as he waited for his dad to call him back. During this time, he continued to communicate with his fresh DNA match on the site. They were apparently now “close” relatives. Gradually, the two shared personal details with each other. Remembering the discourse, Whit revealed that this newfound kin appeared to be just as puzzled as everyone else in their family. They were both left wondering, how was it that they were unaware of each other’s existence till now?

At last, the man wrote back, “Huh, I’ve been exploring all these DNA websites for years and never saw a relative this close. Tell me your story.” He’d been on a quest of sorts, you could say, examining countless DNA sites over the years. But, he’d never before stumbled upon a relative so closely related. So now, he wanted to hear the story of how this happened.

Whit eagerly shared everything he knew about his dad’s history with the stranger. He said, “Well, my dad was adopted in 1950 in Utah… I’m looking at our genetic markers.” Whit was full of hope that this unknown man could shed some light on their family’s past and clarify how exactly they were related.

When the man shared his reaction, his words turned out to be even more shocking than Whit had assumed. Saying, “I think I’m your dad’s brother,” he seemingly confirmed Whit’s hunch.

Perhaps this was more than a relative by birth, after all. This DNA link really seemed like Steve’s sibling. Whit continued his conversation with Bear when Steve finally gave him a call back, and he remembered that his dad already had tears in his eyes just by picking up the phone.

“You can see he’s a bit rattled, and he says, ‘Whit, what’s the deal here?'”, Whit quickly spills the beans to his dad, responding, “Dad, I believe I’ve stumbled upon something amazing that could turn all our lives around here.”

When Whit revealed to his dad that they had found his long-lost brother, it was like bursting a dam of emotions wide open. Whit felt as though both of them had embarked on this journey together. “I could sense in him that this was a release. He had been trying to find a way to break through to start looking. He had been suppressing these feelings,” Whit explained. It seemed to Whit that his father had finally found a way to express his hidden emotions and start his quest for his brother.

Whit made sure his dad didn’t have to make “that first step anymore”, as stated in his words for ABC News. And the truly awesome thing is that neither of them had to brave this experience on their own.

In just a few short hours, everything had changed for the family. This unexpected news turned out to be one of the most special and extraordinary birthday presents Steve had ever received. Although he had not been keen on doing any searching at first, he was overjoyed and incredibly moved by the surprising news.

“He remembered the aftermath of that unexpected phone call vividly. Instantly, my dad and I were both in tears, my stepmom joining in. Everyone was shocked, no one could believe what was unfolding before us. As the day continued, emails started to go back and forth between my dad and his brother. It was something none of us had anticipated.”

Steve plunged ahead, beginning to correspond with his newly discovered family member, and Whit found himself completely involved in the emerging situation. Steve’s first touching email had the powerful opener: “I woke up an orphan…And am going to bed thinking maybe I have a brother out there.”

When Whit spotted the email thread, it was captioned in a simple yet understated way, “INTERESTING DAY”. In his message, Steve communicated his bond with Bear because they both had similar stories of being adopted. “So Bear, we share the life of adopted children—always thinking about what might have been,” he wrote, expressing their shared history.

Steve received a message back from Bear in no time at all. The message read, “Steve, it’s good to hear from you.” The plain and straightforward exchange between these two brothers is all it takes to stir our emotions.

They spent the entire afternoon in conversation, and Steve’s final words truly captured the flurry of emotions he was going through. His farewell message was, “I’m going fishing and wondering if I have a long-lost brother out there named Bear”. Very touching, indeed!

Whit uncovered another intriguing connection amidst the family chaos. Bear made his home in Utah, a location that Whit was no stranger to. Whit recalls his past job in a heartfelt revelation, “I can remember when I was employed as a journalist a few years ago. As it turns out, my uncle was one of my viewers when I used to appear on television as a news presenter and reporter in Salt Lake City, and the funny thing was, he didn’t even realise that I was his own kin,” he explained.

In an unexpected twist of fate, it turns out the family members had unknowingly been part of each other’s lives for much more time than they had initially believed.

After exchanging a few emails, it didn’t take long for Steve and Bear to desire an in-person meeting. The anticipation was high. Whit, having a strong passion for journalism and reporting, took it upon himself not just to arrange this historical meeting, but also to thoroughly document the entire episode.

Steve conveyed how tough it was juggling the roles of the journalist, reporter, cameraman, while also fulfilling his personal roles as a nephew and a son. “This is the oddest experience”, he laid out in the video. He was pretty eager to discover if there was something more linking them apart from their strikingly identical physical appearance.

When Whit and the other person finally got together in Utah, Whit recorded it all. They stumbled upon lots of common traits they didn’t know they had. As Whit told ABC News, they found out they’re both into things like “their little geeky traits, how they’re into fixing things, and their habits, and how they walk and how their hands look the same and their dimples look the same.” They noticed how much they resembled each other not just physically, but also in their mannerisms and hobbies.

One can only guess how utterly peculiar it must have been for Whit to gaze upon his dad’s lookalike, in person, in real life. Equally odd must have been the revelation for the brother and sister, who got to discover, after an awful lot of years, that they did, in fact, have a long lost brother.

After the shared emotional journey they all had, the unexpected revelations were not finished yet. Steve and Whit maintained strong communication with their newfound relatives, even learning that Bear had a daughter, which meant that Whit had been introduced to his first cousin. “We had them both come to California to meet my family there, which was incredible,” Whit enthusiastically explained during his interview with the news channel.

Steve and Bear carried on with their investigation into more of their legal papers and documents. What they discovered was the most favorable outcome they could have hoped for.

DNA testing companies have their limits, and they can only identify relatives who have themselves undergone DNA testing. It’s not uncommon, therefore, for some family members to go unnoticed in these searches. However, the information these two shared revealed that they have another brother as well.

Taking a deep breath, they decided to reach out to the man of mystery–there was much to talk about after all. Steve took the first step, penning a letter that explained their entire circumstance, and fortunately, his brother responded.

They found their eldest sibling, Uncle Gerry, who himself was put up for adoption when he was just a kid. His home was in Wyoming and he went on an adventurous road trip all the way to Salt Lake City, bringing the family together. Their third brother, just like Gerry, was equally keen and excited to unravel the mystery of their complex family history.

“Now, we know there are three brothers, each with a unique genetic profile indicating that they had three separate dads, but the same mom, as the tests revealed,” Whit told ABC News. It turns out Gerry had a lot more information about our birth mother, who has been a mystery all this time. He suggested we have another meeting to discuss it further.”

At the gathering, Gerry shared a bit of their complex family history. It turned out that while they both shared the same mother at birth, he had been raised by their birth mom’s parents – their biological grandparents. They had taken him under their wing, providing him with a home. Meanwhile, their birth mother remained a sporadic figure in Gerry’s life, being present at times, and absent at others throughout the years.

The third sibling had significant revelations to their family inquiries that had everyone on edge. He arrived with family photographs under his arm, and for the first time in his life, Steve managed to lay his eyes on a picture of his biological mother.

“Whit talked about an interesting comparison of old photos. My dad’s high school photo was placed right next to her picture from about the same time in life, and what stood out were the clear similarities”, Whit said. By looking at the pictures, it’s clear to see that the connections between this group are not just coincidental, they’re family.

The brothers were filled to the brim with feelings when they finally got to meet their long-lost family members. Whit, whose career entirely revolves around crafting beautiful words, was at a loss on how to express the monumental family journey they’ve been through.

“Each tiny movement was like a fresh surge of feelings. My dad felt this the most, because for him going on this trip was a big step, one he had resisted for so many years,” detailed Whit. Oddly enough, the string of surprises that the Johnson family had undergone still wasn’t at its end. It may seem impossible, but more was yet to come.

“Our family story still has a lot of surprises left for us,” he went on to say. By going through legal documents and genetic information they discovered an unexpected truth— their birth mother had not only them, but she also brought a daughter into this world.

Whit made it clear, “We know that there’s another sister out there, but we have no idea where she is. We’re really hoping to reach out to her someday and share the discoveries we’ve made, but we haven’t managed to do so yet.”

The brothers have gone on with their journey into the depths of their family’s past, exploring public records and official documents. One mystery yet to be unraveled though, is the identity of the trio’s birth fathers. Whit and the rest of the family have, so far, not managed to link them all together.

Despite many big discoveries, the mystery of The Johnson Family continues. The three brothers, still have not found out who their real dads are. On top of that, there might be even more Johnson kids out there they still don’t know about.

Indeed, Steve meeting with his formerly lost but now found two brothers was the most splendid event Whit could ever dream of. Their family encountered a genuine whirl of feelings, discovering a completely different and unknown part of the family which, if not for a single, straightforward test, would have forever stayed a secret.