In the backstory, Gibbs was born on May 2, 1958, and was shown in the episode "Heartland" to have grown up in Stillwater, Pennsylvania.[2] The town is real, and the scenes in the episode were modeled after Bellisario's hometown of Cokeburg, although they are actually 250 miles apart. His father, Jackson Gibbs (played by Ralph Waite), owned and ran the Stillwater General Store. He is named after his father's close friend and partner in the store, Leroy Jethro "LJ" Moore, after they worked together in the coal mines (Winslow Mining Company).[2] In "The Namesake", it is revealed that LJ, a World War II veteran and Montford Point Marine, had influenced the teenaged Gibbs to join the Marines. Gibbs left Stillwater in 1976 at age 18[2] to join the Marine Corps and, according to his own statements, did not return for over thirty years. In a flashback scene in the episode, as a teenager, Gibbs often provoked violence with defiance to his father, who constantly comes to his unwanted aid with a Winchester rifle or shotgun. He was also known around the area as a delinquent, as said by the new sheriff, one of the other delinquents during his teenage years, stating, "Funny, never expected to find you on the same side of the law." He met his first wife Shannon (portrayed by both Darby Stanchfield and Aviva Baumann ), who worked at the local department store, when both were teenagers. In subsequent episodes, Gibbs is shown to be often known by his first name Leroy to family and people in his hometown, whereas at work, he is known as Jethro or "Boss