‘Golden Bachelor’ star Theresa Nist addresses Gerry Turner’s rocky dating history after shocking divorce news
His past had nothing to do with their present problems.
Theresa Nist, who’s divorcing “Golden Bachelor” Gerry Turner after only three months, said his previous behavior did not factor into their split.
In November, the LA Times published a report — just days before “The Golden Bachelor” finale on ABC — claiming that Turner had dated multiple women after the death of his first wife, Toni, who passed away in 2017. The Hollywood Reporter published a similar report.
One of the women claimed that Turner fat-shamed her.
“My only response is that I have so many positive things in my life right now,” Turner told the LA Times. “I have the wonderful love of Theresa, my partner. I don’t have time to reflect on comments like this.
“I’m happy to look forward.”
Nist said on Friday’s “GMA” that she was good with Turner’s dating history before they tied the knot.
“Gerry had already discussed that with me,” Nist, 70, said on “GMA,” where the couple appeared together to announce their shocking news.
“He had explained it to me before the report was ever released,” Nist said, “so we were good with that.
“That didn’t play into it.”
“The Golden Bachelor,” which premiered last fall, helped revitalize “The Bachelor” franchise in featuring people of a certain age looking for love (as opposed to the show’s usual much-younger star and contestants). The show’s ratings shot up as viewers were riveted with Turner’s search for a partner, and with his back story.
ABC will air a spinoff show, “The Golden Bachelorette,” this fall (but has yet to name who will star).
Turner proposed to Nist during “The Golden Bachelor” finale in November and they married Jan. 4 in a live primetime special on ABC.
After their wedding, the couple said they would move in together — and that they were looking at houses in Nist’s home state of New Jersey and South Carolina — but as time went on, and the spotlight faded, that never happened, and Nist remained in Jersey and Turner in his home state of Indiana.
They frequently visited each other, according to Us Weekly.
“Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations and we’ve looked closely at our situation — our living situation — and we’ve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it’s time for us to dissolve our marriage,” Turner said on Friday’s “GMA.”
He added that it’s “best for the happiness of each of us to live apart” and closer to their respective families.
Nist and Turner have two children each with their late spouses.
Still, Turner said they still love each other.
“I still love this person, there’s no doubt in my mind,” he told “GMA’s” Juju Chang. “I root for her every day.”
ABC had no comment.
