‘The Golden Wedding’ Goes Off Without a Hitch

Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist made Bachelor Nation history as the first ever couple to get married. The pair, who met and got engaged on ABC’s inaugural season of the senior aged spinoff, wed in a televised ceremony on Thursday. The event, dubbed , aired just over one month following the “I’ve learned you are the woman I can’t live without,” said a teary eyed Turner during his vows.

“I promise that if you’re my partner in life, I will make you the happiest woman on Earth.” “I love your heart and your soul. I love your smiles and your laughter,” vowed an emotional Nist. “I promise to be your calm in a storm, to comfort you when you’re sad, to laugh with you when you’re happy and to stick with you throughout it all.

But most of all, to have fun for the rest of the days that we have left on this Earth.” Turner and Nist mark the ninth TV wedding for the franchise. It’s been nearly a decade since a wed on TV, with star Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici last exchanging vows in 2014. “We’re going to do it as quickly as we can because, at our age, we don’t have a lot of time to waste,” Turner explained of their decision following the finale.

“As quickly as we can put together a wedding plan, we’re getting married.” Turner, 72, and Nist, 70, are both widows who bonded over their shared grief while sparking up a romance on . Turner, as a retired restaurateur from Indiana, lost his wife of 43 years, Toni, in 2017 following a bacterial infection.

Nist lost her husband of 42 years, Billy, who died from kidney failure. A piece one day before the finale, however, questioned the show’s narrative of Turner not having dated since the death of his wife when a woman, who requested anonymity, identified herself as Turner’s ex girlfriend and said they dated for more than two years.

during post finale press, Turner acknowledged “there’s just enough truth in [the article],” but brushed it off as not fitting “with all of the positive things that are going on in my life right now.” Turner was not asked about the story by show host Jesse Palmer during the post finale live show, nor did the article come up during special Palmer, meanwhile, said his wife was in labor during the live special.

Turner was still confronted with plenty of exes, however, at the Bachelor Nation star studded affair. Among the eliminated castmates was Leslie Fhima, Turner’s runner up and the frontrunner pick for a first ever Golden Bachelorette season, should one be made official by ABC. “We’re really hopeful that this continues to expand.

People are really liking the stories that we’re telling, and so I’m really interested to see,” . “It will be different; it will be almost like doing it for the first time all over again with What is it going to be like with 20 some older men living in the Bachelor Mansion? We don’t know, but I’m pretty sure it will be different and interesting.

And that’s what makes me want to watch.” proved to be a ratings hit for the franchise, with the finale earning a since the 2021 finale of Matt James’ season of . In addition to renewed viewership, the age positive, wholesome charm of the series was a refreshing boost to the long running reality competition, as both Gerry and his 22 contestants set out to find their second and third chances at love in the third act of their lives.

During , Turner described his and Nist’s relationships with the other Golden Bachelorettes from their season as a “family.” One of those contestants, Susan Noles, even officiated the wedding. Also in attendance were like Trista and Ryan Sutter and Jason and Molly Mesnick, the first two Bachelor Nation couples to have televised weddings; season 20 Bachelor Ben Higgins; the most recent season 20 Bachelorette, Charity Lawson; and the next Bachelor, Joey Graziadei, who will lead the 28th season that premieres Jan.

22. The affair, which took place at La Quinta Resorts in Palm Springs, was planned by celebrity wedding planner Mindy Weiss. And, in the spirit of the franchise, the wedding was complete , as former contestants Brayden Bowers (season 20 of , season nine of ) and Christina Mandrell (season 27 of ) got engaged.

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