You have to wonder if Getty photographer Rich Lam had any idea that he’d create an international sensation when he snapped the photo of that couple kissing on Wednesday night in Vancouver. Within hours it inspired some hilarious photoshop memes and has left many people wondering, “Who are these people and what the hell were they doing?”
Well now we know! The CBC did some sleuthing and discovered that they’re Australian Scott Jones, an actor and bartender, and his Canadian girlfriend Alex Thomas. According to Jones’ father, the two were leaving the game when they got caught between some of the rioters and the local police. In the melee, Alex got knocked to the ground by a cop with a shield, and stayed down for a brief period in a daze. When Scott leaned in to give her a kiss as he tended to her, Lam snapped his photo.
Now all together now… AWWWWWWWWWWW!
Reports the CBC:
Hannah Jones, Scott’s sister from Perth, told CBC News in an email that the man in the pictures is her 29-year-old brother, and he recently started dating Thomas, who attends the University of Guelph in Ontario.
And via Skype from Perth, their father, Brett, also confirmed that the pair are his son and his new girlfriend, and that Scott ended up being a knight in shining armour of sorts.
Brett Jones said the couple had been at the NHL final game, and after the frenzy following the loss spilled into the street, the two were caught in the violence.
“They were between the riot police and the rioters, and the riot police were actually charging forward, and Alex got knocked by a [police] shield and fell to the ground,” he told CBC News. “[Scott] was comforting her and gave her a kiss to say, ‘It’s going to be OK,’ and the photographer just took the shot at that moment.”
An eyewitness to the incident gave an even more detailed account to the Vancouver Sun…
“The girl who was knocked over landed head first on the pavement with her boyfriend landed partially on top of her. She was in visible pain, crying, but the 2 officers gave them a parting shove and moved on. Bystanders went to go make sure she was ok. I understand that the front line police have to control the crowd but it is a bit ridiculous that they couldn’t have other officers or paramedics behind the line to help anyone who is hurt.”
Oh, and apparently Scott is an aspiring stand-up comedian! We found a clip of him doing a set in a small club on YouTube. It’s pretty meh, with lots of Australian jokes — but hey doing stand-up is HARD — though he did get a decent Steve Irwin joke in there…
(Pic via Buzzfeed)