The first-ever leading man of 71-year-old Gerry Turner. It’s the first time in the history of The Bachelor franchise that a senior citizen was the star of the show. It was in May 2023 that ABC announced The Golden Bachelor was going to premiere in fall 2023. Interestingly, viewers had been teased via a casting call that aired during The Bachelor in 2020, over four years ago.

The Bachelor franchise has aired 61 seasons since its debut in 2002. However, what makes this season with Gerry (pronounced as “Gary”) so exciting is it’s for the golden years. So far, 20-30 cast have shown off their love stories to the world. Now Gerry is here to get the ladies swooning in a whole new kind of love story. Like Gerry, the women in The Golden Bachelor season 1 have a lifetime of experience and have lived through lives full of love, loss, and laughter, which helped them connect better with Gerry.

How Old Is Gerry Turner?

Gerry Was One Of The Oldest Golden Bachelor Cast

It took a while for The Golden Bachelor ladies cast to be announced. Gerry was the only known cast member for months after the show's announcement, and the historic spinoff's representative was a hopeless romantic who’s been given a second chance at love with a partner he would share the golden years of his life with, according to the ABC press release. Gerry turned 72 during The Golden Bachelor filming, and he got to celebrate with the ladies.

Gerry Turner's Job

Gerry Was A Restauranteur

Gerry has been called a “retired restaurateur” in the information provided by the network. Gerry worked for Mr Quick restaurant chain from 1971 to 1985 before he said goodbye to the hospitality industry. However, he does enjoy making and eating delicious food, which is an indication of the ion he has for his craft. When he’s spending time at home, Gerry is often busy hosting barbecues. Otherwise, Gerry spends time with friends and family at restaurants and popular local spots.

Where Is Gerry Turner From The Golden Bachelor From?

He's From The Midwest

Gerry has built himself a stunning dream house on a lake in Indiana. Here he hosts his famous barbecues, plays pickleball, and cheers for his favorite Chicago sports teams. One of Gerry’s favorite pastimes is going four-wheeling. The woman Gerry was going to end up with was meant to spend time in his beautiful lake house and Gerry in all the exciting activities he participates in.

Gerry Turner's Instagram

Gerry Is Active On Social Media

While Gerry hasn’t let age slow him down yet, and he sounds like someone ready for an adventure at the drop of a hat, Gerry has shown he’s not too internet savvy. Gerry does have an Instagram . However, it was brand new and was likely created to coincide with his The Golden Bachelor announcement. Gerry’s first post on his Instagram is the show promo.

He captioned the post, “Hi, I’m Gerry, the first golden bachelor. I’m ready for this journey to begin,” to reflect his charming personality.

He won his followers over early, and they've left comments like, “This is the most excited I’ve been about the bachelor in a long time.” Post-show, Gerry now has 148,000 followers. He goes through fazes of posting Stories and regular page shares to being off social media.

Gerry Turner's Family

Gerry Is A Proud Grandpa

Gerry has always been a romantic. He married his high school sweetheart, Toni, in 1974. With his wife, Gerry lived a happy and full life. They welcomed two daughters, Angie and Jenny, and later two granddaughters, Charlee and Payton, who can be seen above in a tweet from Variety.

Sadly, Toni ed away in 2017. The Golden Bachelor had been married for 43 years before his wife fell ill just six weeks after she retired. It had been six years since she died when Gerry went on the show, and with the of his family, Gerry was ready to fall in love again and look forward to a life of laughter and endless romance.

Gerry Is Now A Divorcee

Theresa Nist & Gerry Were Only Married A Few Months

At the end of The Golden Bachelor season 1, Gerry had narrowed down his search for the woman he couldn't live without to Leslie Fhima. It looked like Gerry was going to choose Leslie by what he was telling her, but he ended up blindsiding Leslie and choosing Theresa. Gerry proposed to Theresa in Costa Rica, and the two planned their wedding for January 3, 2024, after only six months of knowing each other. Their wedding was followed up by an extravagant honeymoon in Italy, courtesy of The Bachelor network.

However, the pair shocked everyone when they announced they were seeking a divorce after only three months of marriage in April 2024. They went on Good Morning America to announce their allegedly amicable split.

The pair cited that they could not agree on a place to live together, as neither one of them wanted to relocate.

However, in the background of their divorce, rumors swirled that Gerry was unhappy with Theresa's prenup proposal, and it also came to light that Gerry had dated a woman previously, whom he scorned and was allegedly rude to.

In any case, Gerry has gone on to enjoy his celebrity status, even if his reputation has been severely damaged by the divorce and subsequent negative press. He has hung out with the likes of The Kardashians, and rubs his happiness in Theresa's face on social media. Theresa has itted to having such a quick wedding for the purpose of getting the free honeymoon. She has kept a lower profile since the divorce, but also does share posts related to her happiness. The Golden Bachelor did not work out for Gerry or Theresa, but the show catapulted both of them into fandom.

The Golden Bachelor season 1 is available to stream on Hulu.

Sources: ABC, Gerry Turner/Instagram, Variety/Twitter, Good Morning America/YouTube