Jennifer Garner celebrated her 50th birthday on April 17, but the celebrations began a few days earlier when she received a surprise from her childhood celebrity crush, Donny Osmond.
On Instagram, the actress posted a video of the event. She may be seen in the video seated in a restaurant, startled, as she watches a personalized video greeting from Osmond, 64, who was singing her a birthday song.
She had no idea that she would be confronted by her idol a few seconds later.
Before he could thank the individual who made the virtual greeting possible, the pop singer crept up behind Garner and sang, “Jennifer!” It’s your birthdayday! ”
Garner jumped up from her seat, blushing and fighting back tears, and hugged Osmond, who had brought her a birthday cake that said, “13 Going On 50!” Love Donny! ”
“My first (pre)birthday surprise was a doozy— the one and only, legend in his own time, object of my childhood adoration and devotion— @donnyosmond showed up to knock my purple socks off,” the “Alias” actress wrote in the video’s caption.
The crooner took a seat alongside Garner and joined her in an impromptu performance of some of his prior classics, including “Make the World Go Away,” extending the pair’s beautiful musical moment.
Garner appreciates Osmond taking the effort to make her pre-birthday celebration more memorable.
“He took an hour and a half of his day to sit with me, sing my favorites, and to give me a master class on how to be a class act,” Garner wrote. “Thank you, Donny.”
She also gave a shoutout to Osmond’s former onstage partner and sister, Marie, and his wife, Debbie.
Osmond shared Garner’s video on his own Instagram page with a message of his own, which included an invitation.
“Surprising fans is one of my favorite things to do, so when I had the opportunity to surprise the lovely @jennifer.garner for her 50th birthday, I was overjoyed,” the singer wrote. “Thanks for letting me celebrate with you! Next time you’re in Vegas, come see me at @harrahsvegas so you can be my special guest on stage.”
The comments on Garner’s post were filled with birthday wishes from fans and her friends in the industry.
“I seriously think this is the best surprise that could ever be! The joy!!!” Rita Wilson said.
“This is unreal,” wrote Gwyneth Paltrow.
Garner’s Instagram page is a breath of fresh air for anybody who follows her. Garner is the type of person you’d want to be friends with, from her entertaining faux cooking shows to her recommendations for how people can give back to the community.
The adorable exchange between Osmand and Garner demonstrates that even great actresses are just like the rest of us who grew up idolizing specific idols.
During the late 1970s, the “Donny & Marie” program was a hit all over America. Osmond was a popular adolescent idol at the time, with swarms of adoring female admirers all across the world, including, supposedly, Garner.
Garner was up in West Virginia and had a rather ordinary upbringing. She grew up in the center of a household of working parents who used to take the family to church on Sundays. She also took ballet lessons, and when she wanted to pursue acting, she had to work as a waitress to make ends meet.
Jennifer Garner, happy birthday! We’re delighted to see you celebrating your 50th birthday with such joy. This was, without a doubt, a boyhood fantasy realized.
In the video below, you can see how the surprise went down.
