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Dr. Sanjay Gupta

I have a confession that doesn’t involve having altered the weight on my driver’s license. No, this is one of those tell-alls best reserved for a mature game of “Truth, Dare, Double dare.”

Truth: Life was easier when I could write off the idea of “epic leading man” as nothing more than a mythological Hollywood creation. My safety-blanket disbelief in that well-scripted, well-cast, artificially-orchestrated character constructed to sell movie tickets to heart-fluttering females and feet-dragging boyfriends made life more bearable. “Oh, sure, she got the guy. But guys like him don’t really exist.” I could actually see the balding big-shot in his office overlooking the Hollywood sign: “Hmmmm,” as he swirls his martini. “Our hero is a well-respected neurosurgeon, a regular CNN correspondent, and—while it may be far fetched—one of People magazine’s ‘Sexiest Men Alive.’ It is, after all, only a movie.”

What if our leading man was also a tireless, award-winning humanitarian? Forget Clooney. Forget Pitt. And forget Cruise (if you haven’t already). This time, think real life. Think Gupta—Dr. Sanjay Gupta. And then, ask yourself: Is the myth of the perfect man really a myth after all?

As I perused his list of accomplishments, my initial thought was: “Oh God, make it stop.” Senior medical correspondent for CNN’s health and medical unit? Check. Host of Weekend House Call with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and co-host of Accent Health? Check, check. Regular contributor to Time magazine? Chief of Neurosurgery at Atlanta’s Grady Memorial Hospital? White House Fellow and one-time special advisor to the First Lady? Check, check, check. And check. Just reading the list made me crave a Red Bull.

My only hope was that he’d be a little aloof. Please, I urged the universe, let him be rude. Let him tell me my questions are a silly waste of his (much sought-after) time. Let him insult my mother. Anything so that I can go on watching chick flicks believing guys like him aren’t real.

My pleas to the universe went unheard.

It only got worse. Because in addition to the above accolades, there’s an “and more” umbrella that includes an endearing loyalty to his friend, Bosco, the “world’s greatest dog,” according to the good doctor. (When someone with his credentials claims a superlative like that, you don’t argue.) A Weimaraner whose personality is “every bit as good as his looks,” Bosco was the natural choice for the active Dr. Gupta, who wanted a companion who loves to run. And Bosco’s webbed feet make him a natural swimmer. (I once dated a guy with webbed feet, but Bosco’s better looking.)

While Bosco does get to visit CNN on occasion, a schedule like the doctor’s means that every day can’t be Take-your-son-to-work-Day. Dr. Gupta’s professional role is not relegated to the station and hospital, and has included stints in war-torn Iraq and Kuwait, and Tsunami-devastated Sri Lanka. In addition to witnessing human suffering, he has been affected by the world’s animal atrocities as well: from nerve gas testing on puppies in Afghanistan to Hurricane Katrina’s countless stranded pets.

“There’s something so philosophically disheartening when you see a population of animals who are completely defenseless,” he says. After the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre, he remembers hearing the howls of distressed animals in surrounding buildings, knowing many of their owners would never be coming home.

Perhaps it’s what he has witnessed on a global scale—or just that he’s one of those all-round good guys—that contributes to his insistence on providing Bosco with an excellent life.

“Having a dog in your life is remarkable,” says Dr. Gupta. “It forces you to be more responsible.” Which is a good thing since, clearly, this man has a propensity for slacking off. Bosco’s happiness is paramount to his owner, who says: “It makes me happy he’s such a happy dog.”

I, on the other hand, am less than happy. My days of licorice-consumption with friends as we console one another that men like those on screen are make-believe, are over.