Huntington Beach man goes viral and gets sober with help from 87-year-old landlord

Bryan Blackmon enjoys sitting on the porch in Huntington Beach with his landlady Elaine Montgomery.

Montgomery is the original owner of her two-story home, purchased in 1976 and located a short walk from the beach on 9th Street.

On a beautiful afternoon in June, two young men in swimming trunks happened to pass by.

Montgomery, now 87, tried to be thoughtful.

“She interrupted our conversation and said, 'Hey, do you guys need to use the water hose to get the sand off of you before you get in your car?'” Blackmon recalled. “I thought, 'What are you doing?' I started to stand up and give them the waterskin and she literally hugged me to my chest and said, “No, I got this.”

“She grabbed the water hose and started spraying the water in all the 'appropriate' places,” he added with a laugh.

Bryan Blackmon and his landlady Elaine Montgomery laugh together.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Blackmon found humor in the situation and got a video. He added music and lyrics and hit “upload” on his TikTok account just before heading to his Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in nearby Seal Beach.

By the time he left the meeting, the video had reached more than 100,000 views and he had gained thousands of followers.

“The next morning at 6:30 a.m. it already had 800,000 views,” Blackmon said. “It had gone viral to the max and it just kept going.”

The next video he uploaded, in which he showed Montgomery that he had created her own TikTok account, achieved even greater numbers. It now has more than 13 million views.

They play off each other well in the videos, and that has given Blackmon and his no-nonsense landlord some celebrity status on social media. He now has more than 108,000 followers on his main account.

He said the videos are never scripted, but they are often funny. When Montgomery isn't in the mood, she simply tells him, “Don't take my picture,” and he respects her request.

Montgomery wasn't ready for the sudden fame. She said she went to the grocery store the day after uploading the first video and a lady asked her if she was Elaine and mentioned that she had seen her on TikTok.

“I was just completely blown away,” Montgomery said. “I just couldn't imagine it. This is my story and I’m sticking with it.”

Blackmon's story is about finding yourself. He has embraced TikTok celebrity status by going live on his account every morning at 5:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. at night, and often goes to the Huntington Beach Pier to watch live streams.

But during his three-year stay in Montgomery's home, he also changed his life. After battling alcoholism for most of his adult life, he will be sober for a year in January.

Blackmon, 46, moved to California from Texas five years ago. He traveled through Venice Beach, Santa Monica and the San Fernando Valley, often living in his car. He later moved to Huntington Beach and became homeless again, sitting in his car on the Pacific Coast Highway before responding to a “room for rent” sign in Montgomery's front yard.

He also had some dark nights in the upstairs bedroom. Blackmon, who works in the audio/video industry, told Montgomery one day that he was going on tour for a month.

Elaine Montgomery, 87, has owned her home in downtown Huntington Beach since 1976.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“I lied to her,” he said. “I actually checked myself into rehab for 30 days. I didn’t know how to tell her.”

After a bad experience at a facility in Santa Ana, Blackmon came home and told her the truth. She was supportive.

“Who knows what would have happened if Elaine had kicked me out?” he said. “Would I have stayed sober? I mean, I don't know the answer to that. All I know is that things worked out in a way that will help me continue to stay sober and turn my life around.”

Montgomery, who has two adult daughters who live nearby, as well as seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, understands the struggle.

“I didn’t like his [tattoos]But I missed it,” she said. “I was completely unaware of his addiction because to me he was always doing well. I have a family of alcoholics, they are recovering but I know all the signs. He covered it very well.”

Now sober, Blackmon has been able to monetize his TikTok account. Last week, the money from the account allowed him to take a trip with Montgomery to Palm Springs, where they rode the aerial tram.

Bryan Blackmon and his landlady Elaine Montgomery recently went viral on TikTok after Bryan began recording short videos of him and 87-year-old Elaine together in their no-nonsense attitude. A Huntington Beach local since 1976, Montgomery is a fixture in the neighborhood.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Montgomery is as lively as ever, but she also feels like she has a new member of the family.

“He goes with me to all my family affairs, that’s a given,” she said. “Everyone has accepted him as part of the family and I feel in my heart like he is my grandson… And he feels the same way about me. At least that’s what he says.”

Blackmon enjoys encouraging others and interacting with his followers on TikTok. He said two friends from Texas, Erin Green and Chrisie Allen, would help him manage the account and serve as moderators during his live sessions. He tries to “heart” or respond directly to every comment someone makes.

“I want to continue to help people as much as I can,” he said. “I was there. I know what it's like to be homeless and drunk. I know what it’s like to be out of control.”

As for his personal life, Blackmon obviously now sees it as more than just a room. He helps a lot around the house, although he now calls Montgomery “Danda” in his videos because of her persistence.

It's all fun. Blackmon also made T-shirts with Montgomery's face and one of her trademark phrases: “You must be confusing me with someone who gives a damn.”

He and Montgomery, whose husband died years ago, seem to be two people who needed each other.

Earlier this week he was a little startled when he heard loud music coming from downstairs.

“I came here and she was putting all her pills together and her phone was just on the highest volume,” Blackmon said. I said, “What are you doing?” You rock down here?” She said, “Well, honey, I just felt lonely.” I just hugged her and she hugged back. She said, 'Now that you're here, I'm fine.'”

Huntington Beach resident Bryan Blackmon and his landlady Elaine recently went viral on TikTok.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Montgomery also continues. She had a heart transplant 19 years ago. She was given a 32-year-old heart, leading her to joke that she is now just over 50 at heart.

She has a 94-year-old boyfriend and enjoys playing bridge six days a week – every day except Sunday, which is reserved for church.

However, don't ask her to explain her TikTok fame.

“I think it's remarkable, but I think it's kind of stupid that people would be so interested in a stranger,” she said matter-of-factly before walking out the door to go into the store.

Blackmon, who knows the generation gap very well, just laughed.

“She acts like she doesn’t [like it]but she does,” he said. “She loves the attention.”