Disney/John Fleenor
Golden Bachelor’s Gerry and Theresa Reveal if His Dating History Scandal Is Why They Split
Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist announced their split after just three months of marriage on Friday, April 12. However, they made it clear that a 2023 exposé about Gerry was not part of the reason they broke up.
“Gerry had already discussed that with me,” Theresa, 70, said during the couple’s joint Good Morning America interview, where they confirmed that they were divorcing. “He had explained it to me before that report was ever released. We were good with that. That didn’t play into it.”
Right before The Golden Bachelor finale aired in November 2023, The Hollywood Reporter published an interview with a woman using the pseudonym Carolyn, who claimed that she dated Gerry, 72, for several years after the death of his first wife, Toni, in 2017. This gave fans a different insight into Gerry’s history than what he’d provided on the dating show, where he claimed that he’d only dated minimally since losing Toni. He also said he hadn’t kissed another woman since his high school sweetheart died.
The article also brought up inconsistencies about Gerry’s work history. While he was listed as a “former restaurateur” on The Golden Bachelor, the THR article revealed that he had actually sold his franchise in 1985 and had been working as a maintenance man.
Gerry only released vague statements about his dating history, but in December 2023, he did address the claims that he misrepresented his career. “The comments about what I did later in life, I did those after I retired,” he explained. “I retired at 55, and I was very happy giving back to the community and doing things that were worth something to other people.”
Gerry and Theresa tied the knot in January, just weeks after their engagement aired on The Golden Bachelor finale. When they shared the news of their plans to divorce, they assured fans that they still “loved” each other and explained that they were “dissolving [their] marriage” because they couldn’t agree on a place to live.
“The thing that strikes me the most and in our conversations, it’s been how dedicated both of us are to our families,” Gerry explained. “So we look at these situations and I think we just feel like it’s best for the happiness of each of us to live apart.”
While Gerry is from Indiana, Theresa hails from New Jersey. The estranged couple had been looking at homes in Theresa’s home state and in South Carolina before ending the relationship. “We just looked at home after home,” Theresa shared. “But we never got to the point where we made that decision.”
