Thomas Bridegroom

Thomas Bridegroom ( April 22, 1982 - May 7, 2011) was an American film and commercial actor, television host and photographer, who hosted MTV's The X Effect in 2006-2007. On May 7, 2011, he died while photographing a model, after falling off the balcony of a building in Silver Lake, Los Angeles.

Early life
He attended Vassar College.

Personal life
Thomas Bridgeroom's story became widely known to the public in May 2012, a year after his death, when his partner, fellow actor Shane Bitney Crone, released a widely viewed YouTube clip titled "It Could Happen to You," in which he told his and his lover's story in order to speak out in favor of rights for same-sex couples.

Bridegroom, a native of Knox, Indiana, had been in a relationship with Crone for six years before his death. While Crone's family was loving and accepting of his sexual orientation, Bridegroom's disclosure of his homosexuality to his parents went badly and resulted in threats of physical violence against him.

Tom passed away on May 7, 2011, following a fall from a rooftop during a photo session. His mother flew out to his and Shane's home in Los Angeles to retrieve Tom's body, even though Tom had not thought of Indiana as his home. Shane cooperated when Bridegroom's mother asked him about her son's bank accounts and to go through his possessions, but while on his way to Indiana to attend his partner's funeral, he received a phone call from Bridegroom's family telling him he was not welcome at the funeral and threatening him with physical violence if he showed up. Shane was not mentioned in Tom's obituary or in the memorial program at all. In addition to the cold, unwelcoming reception from Bridgeroom's biological family, Shane had not been allowed visiting rights in the hospital and was not legally recognized as Tom's lover or family.

In his video, Shane wrote, "Whatever your sexual orientation, I plead with you to take the necessary steps to protect yourself and the ones you love."