LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: ‘Little House on the Prairie’, which ran for almost 10 years from 1974 to 1983, brought Melissa Gilbert into the limelight and made her a household name. The then child artiste, Gilbert, 59, was recently in the news for spending a night at an ER in New York City due to an insect bite. While she would like to forget the harrowing experience soon, there are a couple of experiences she would rather not forget, involving her then boyfriend, Tom Mapother.
Who is Tom Mapother? While many might not recognize this larger-than life Hollywood megastar by his birth name, everyone will recognize him by his stage name, Tom Cruise. Yes, as you might have guessed it right, Gilbert was in a relationship with the ‘Mission Impossible’ star when both of them were teenages and Cruise was just a struggling actor then.
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‘When I dated him he was Tom Mapother still’
In an appearance on Andy Cohen’s ‘Watch What Happens Live!’ in 2014, the ‘Safe Harbour’ star spilled the beans on her short but sweet relationship with the then teenaged Cruise, whom she described as one of the best kissers. She said, “Actually, when I dated him he was Tom Mapother still,” adding, “It was when he first moved to Los Angeles and I think I was … 16 maybe or 17?”
‘Sugar momma’
Referring to Cher saying “he was one of the best lovers she ever had” on the show previously, Cohen asked Gilbert whether she had anything to share about her relationship with Cruise. “Did you have a similar experience?" he. Gilbert, in her characteristic sweet way, revealed that while they never did the deed, she did make out with the ‘Vanilla Sky’ star.
"I did not have sex with that [man]," said ‘The Miracle Worker’ star. She continued, “I did not have sex with him. We made out, but honestly, there was no sex.” However, she called him a “good kisser,” per USA Today.
Gilbert added that one of her gifts for the young Cruise was a set of dishes. She said, “But you know, he was like a struggling, starving actor and I was working. I actually bought him his first set of dishes,” which earned her a nickname from Cohen, "sugar momma," as per Nicki Swift.
While Gilbert and Cruise's relationship did not last, it definitely made up for some juicy news. The ex-couple broke up as they were in different cities for their work after Cruise moved to New York for filming 'Endless Love'.
