Actor and director Regina King is unfortunately known for more than her career, namely the tragic death of her son Ian, who died by suicide in 2022.
In a recent segment of the House Guest podcast with Scott Evans, she and Evans discussed one of the ways she is honoring his memory with a new line of orange wines, which she and Evans poured and drank solemnly on the show.
The wine, MianU, is one way she is honoring her late son. She went on to explain that the wine represents the good parts of Ian.
"It is all things Ian, all things that he loves, all things that he represents, which is connection, art, and just good energy."
During the segment, King thanked Evans for taking her lead and speaking of Ian in the present tense. Evans seemed a bit choked up, and let a moment of silence grow between the two of them, before moving to pour a glass.
The moment was not unnoticed by commenters, who felt moved.
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At the time of her son's suicide, King described herself to the Sun Times as being "devastated at the deepest level." Ian Alexander was her only child, and often accompanied his mother to red carpet events. He had a burgeoning career as a DJ before his death.
Many commenters expressed the terrible wrongness that comes with a parent losing a child, no matter at what age.
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Evans' and King's segment brought many commenters to tears.
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King, though still grieving her son, has sought ways to honor his legacy and the joy and comfort he used to bring to others.
She spoke to the common saying that a person is not truly gone until there is no one to remember them, and how she's tried to find a way to help keep his memory alive.
"How can we always continue to be saying his name and saying it in the joyous space that, for Ian, if it's a moment, we gon' make it special and make the most out of it."
"And the idea is celebrating connection, and usually with a bottle of wine is when you have those great conversations, when you go a little bit deeper, and so it just seemed perfect."
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Her celebration of his life had some commenters ready to contribute.
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MianU Wine's first 2024 bottling is already sold out, but you can register for a waitlist for the next bottling when it becomes available.
