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YouTube, the New Matchmaker

Ain’t nothin’ like a man in dress uniform.

Sprinkle in a few medals and salutes, some polish, a shiny sword and broad shoulder to lean on and it’ll make a woman’s knees crumple. I know this because many, many moons ago, I attended a Marine Corps ball with just such a gentleman. I’ll never forget the pomp and circumstance, decor, patriotism and general ambiance of the evening.

Fun and magical are pretty good descriptives.

So it made me smile last week when I saw that actress Mila Kunis has accepted Marine Sgt. Scott Moore’s YouTube invitation to his Marine Corps ball in November. Sgt. Moore reportedly asked Kunis out as part of a bet between his buddies.

The video soon got lots of traction and, well, a few weeks later, here he is with a celebrity date. Of course, it didn’t hurt Moore’s chances when Kunis’s Friends with Benefits co-star Justin Timberlake publicly challenged her to accept the offer for her country. She seemed genuinely happy to do so, though.

And then began the copycatting.

Marine Cpl. Kelsey De Santis upped the ante by asking Justin Timberlake to her ball. He accepted, too, but what else is he going to do but accept? Saying no would make him look like the biggest creep in Hollywood—at least for a day or two.

Then, pretty soon, Marine Sgt. Ray Lewis asked Betty White to his ball, saying, “She’s funny, she’s sweet, she’s mature, she’s the all around perfect woman.” Well, Betty, the perfect woman, has reportedly turned down the offer.

It all made me wonder what people’s motives are.

Did Kunis accept Moore’s offer because she genuinely cared about giving a soldier his dream date? Or was she merely promoting Friends With Benefits, her soon-to-be-released film? Is Timberlake more interested in the Marine Corps ball or his Friends With Benefits box office and trying to save face? And are these Marines potentially just looking for their own 15 minutes of YouTube fame? And where does this activity end? Will asking celebs out via YouTube become the new viral video trend?

I don’t know. The hopeful part of me says these people were honestly concerned about relationship—or, at least, having a bit of fun on “dates” they never thought in a million years they’d be taking. The cynic in me says, “Yeah, right.” But it’s not mine to judge. So here’s hoping that Kunis, Timberlake and their dates all have a great time at what could be a wonderful evening.