Inside Jon Bon Jovi’s marriage
While most of their ’80s-haired peers fell off the radar as the grunge scene unfolded, Bon Jovi is somehow as big as ever. Selling a staggering 21 million copies, their 1994 compilation Cross Road is one of the best-selling albums of the decade. And they continue to pack stadiums worldwide with their brand of epic music to this day.
Impressively, the marriage of Jon Bon Jovi, their impeccable frontman, lasted even longer than his band. Well, the proud New Jersey native (and avid Jersey Shore hater) has been with his high school sweetheart Dorothea Hurley since back in the early 1980s. And 4 decades on, the couple that almost no one can label ‘Jonothea’ is still going strong.
Not that their relationship was smooth sailing. Indeed, as Jon admits himself, he certainly wasn’t a saint during Bon Jovi’s emergence as one of the world’s biggest bands. However, the stories of the trashy and promiscuous playboy rock star were never actually those of the shtick’s singer, actor, and former Philadelphia Soul football team owner. Here’s how Jon and Dorothea came up with a good name for love.
Jon Bon Jovi attracts Dorothea Hurley after adhering to the three-week rule
Laura Luongo/Getty ImagesIt may seem hard to believe now, but there was a time when Bon Jovi’s predecessor was not a rock-god exquisite hairstyle with millions of women around the world collapsing at his feet. Back in 1980, he was just an ordinary New Jersey guy with a slightly different name, Jon Bongiovi, and one with his own version of the special code.
Jon first patted Dorothea when they both attended Sayreville War Memorial High School in 1980. Unfortunately for future star Ally McBeal, the object of his affection was settling down with another student at the time. But when the man in question joined the army, the singer took his chance to plunge in. Anyway, after a short time.
Jon recalled Best Life in 2017, ‘Dorothea dated one of the people who had joined the service. He left town, and hey, you know the five-second rule when you drop a piece of toast on the ground? I gave him three weeks. We started dating, and that was the end of that. “He’s not wrong there. From that moment on, the couple barely left each other for the best part of the next 40 years.
They wait a while to say ‘I do’
Dave Benett / GettyJon and Dorothea were certainly in a very different place from their teenage sweethearts by the end of the decade. There have previously been enjoyed two number-one albums, four chart-topping singles, and the adoration of millions of pop-metal fans worldwide. But he’s not yet a married man. Indeed, despite being together for 9 years, Jon and Dorothea can only call themselves boyfriends and girlfriends rather than husband and wife.
That all changed in 1989 when Bon Jovi played a three-night stay at the famous Los Angeles Forum. Talking to Best Life 18 years later, their manager explained, ‘We’re staying at the St. James Club, which is the beautiful art deco hotel on the Sunset Strip, across from the old Hyatt House. I pulled the curtains back to my room, and there was a billboard I was staring at right behind me. I turned to Dorothea and said, ‘I have an idea. Why don’t we go now? ”
The ‘idea’ Jon was referring to was a wedding ceremony. The couple then took a free flight to enjoy one of the rock star’s ultimate stereotypes: their Las Vegas wedding. Yes, Bongiovis exchanged their vows at Sin City Graceland Wedding Chapel. Unfortunately for them, not everyone gets approved.
Jon Bon Jovi’s manager believes his wedding was a career suicide
Kevin Winter / GettyIt appears that Jon Bon Jovi did not receive a ‘Congratulations’ card from his band manager after hitchhiking to Dorothea Hurley in Las Vegas in 1989. In 2018, the rocker recalled “ How His Impromptu Wedding” was considered career suicide by the man who helped lead Bon Jovi to success.
“It’s like Harry Styles or Justin Timberlake getting married. I used to be that with young girls of my time. When I came back from Vegas, my manager was furious. He was like, ‘The American guy is now married… It’s not a good career move.” “And there’s a lot of disgruntled reactions that come out of that. Jon’s record label was also extremely disappointed to learn that one of their top-notch products had taken itself off the market. The rocker’s mother wasn’t exactly thrilled to hear the news either. “No, she’s not impressed,” Jon added.
Not surprisingly, when many of his closest and dearest refused to throw any confetti during the celebration, Jon’s honeymoon period lost some of its luster. The Grammy winner explained, ‘America wasn’t happy that Monday when they learned about the wedding and a lot of people tried to ruin a beautiful thing. They tried to trick us out of that moment. ‘
Dorothea Hurley had no problem with the women watching her husband
Countess Jemal/Getty ImagesOf course, Jon Bon Jovi walking down the aisle declaring his undying love for another woman will never stop female fans from falling in love with the rocker. Despite his manager’s booking, the singer remained in the comment status for long after saying ‘I have.’ In fact, Jon is still doing the annual Everyone magazine The Sexiest Man Alive list as recently as 2010!
Fortunately, the woman who won his good heart seemed to have no problem with American tabloid readers salivating over her husband. In a 2016 interview with People , Dorothea Hurley was asked about Jon’s attraction to the opposite sex. With impressive diplomacy, she replied, ‘I think it’s great that they love music. They loved the band and were very loyal. ‘
Perhaps her husband’s remarks in a conversation with Men’s Health six years earlier helped quell any feelings of jealousy. He said, ‘I’m not looking at this week’s hot star and thinking about buying or selling or going up. I don’t have mistresses around or another family all over town. You’ll never read that story about me. I don’t care about that whole lifestyle. ‘
Jon Bon Jovi is said to have once left Dorothea Hurley for Diane Lane
Michael Tullberg/Getty ImagesJon Bon Jovi freely admits that he hasn’t always behaved at his best in his long-term relationship with Dorothea Hurley. And it certainly wasn’t in the mid-1980s when he reportedly gave up the love of his life for a future Hollywood star. Yes, according to Bon Jovi’s former manager Rich Bozzett, Jon once believed he would be better off with Diane Lane.
According to the Daily Mail , Bozzett alleges in his 2010 book, Sex, Drugs, and Bon Jovi, that his former client gave up on his high school sweetheart to pair up with the former child star, who was then a very party girl. But it finally came back with the tail in between her legs after Infidelity, the actress seemed to start finding bandmate Richie Sambora a more intriguing prospect.
Lane was happy to confirm in 2017 that she actually enjoyed a romance with the ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ hitmaker back when the abundance of hairspray was all the rage. During an appearance on Watch What’s Live with Andy Cohen , the Oscar nominees were asked about the rumors. She replied: ‘Five months, I’m 20. And I think every girl should have such a great experience at such a young age. However, it’s unclear if Lane is really a human thief or if Jon and Dorothea are resting.
They had four children together
Stephen Lovekin / GettyJon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley received a major scare in 2012 when their only daughter suffered a suspected drug overdose while studying at Hamilton College. Born in 1993, Stephanie Bongiovi was also arrested after being found in possession of heroin, although the charge later dropped. Jon told the Mirror a year later was the ‘worst moment’ he had to go through as a father. Thankfully, Stephanie has made a full recovery and seems to have cleaned up her act.
Fortunately, the couple’s other three children don’t seem to be causing them much trouble. It came two years after his sister, Jesse Bongiovi, went on to attend the University of Notre Dame of South Bend, where he played for the Irish Fight the Irish football team. He got his pop business started as co-founder of the Hampton Water liquor company, and in 2020, he said Closer Weekly was just how much inspiration he was getting from his former man. “He used to wake me up in the summer to let me know he had just finished a six-mile run. He works harder than anyone I’ve ever met, and I think it shows. ‘
Jacob Hurley Bongiovi was acclaimed to make his world debut in 2002 and went on to Syracuse University, while the family unit was completed in 2004 with Birth of Romeo’s son.
They try to give their children a normal life
Kevin Mazur / GettyYou might think it’s impossible for a chart-topping rock star for nearly 40 years to reportedly deserve $410 million to provide his children with a relatively normal education. But New Jersey’s second most popular music exporter Jon Bon Jovi certainly tried.
In a 2016 interview with Everybody, Dorothea Hurley insisted she and her husband have always tried to protect their children Stephanie, Jesse, Jacob and Romeo from the Hollywood lifestyle. “We try very hard to give our kids a normal life. I never pointed to the TV and said, ‘Daddy!’ ‘And it seems the Bongiovi pack doesn’t really mind missing out on the glitz and glamour that follows their dad.
Jon also revealed that he once asked his two sons if they wanted to attend a Bon Jovi show, to which they replied with a firm thumbs-up. ‘So that will help you stay humble,’ the witty star remarked. It’s not for that reason that the ‘Always’ singer is particularly passionate about hitting the road. He vowed to leave the family home to ‘splash and scream’ whenever a new tour was about to start, adding, ‘You see my nails in the driveway… I’m not a fan of journeys. I know some addicts to clapping. I don’t.’
Jon Bon Jovi believes Dorothea Hurley is the glue that holds them together
Rob Kim/Getty ImagesJon Bon Jovi demonstrated that his path in words goes beyond Bon Jovi lyrics in 2016 with his description of his wife, who pretty much raised the bar for other husbands to Valentine’s Day. In a conversation with People magazine about her strong marriage, the person praised Dorothea Hurley as ‘glue’. It gets more romantic, don’t worry.
The singer went on to add, ‘I’m a crazy visionary with all kinds of flying gear and seams being separated. She was my follower with glue, thread and needles, holding it all together. ‘ Oops. Dorothea wasn’t really as generous as her rock-star husband, but she did explain why she felt the couple managed to survive the pitfalls that caused more than half of all marriages in Hollywood to end in divorce. She said, ‘Somehow it works. I think because we’re growing at the same rate. We develop equally and not in the opposite direction. ‘
And Dorothea seems to have maintained his enthusiasm for Bon Jovi’s music. Discussing how often she would accompany her spouse on tour, she commented: ‘I usually stand on one side and watch. All the songs sound great, but then you’ll hear them live! ‘
Jon Bon Jovi wants them both to age gracefully
Alexandra Wyman/Getty ImagesIf Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley ever called time for their long-term marriage, then the former has helpfully created a checklist of the qualities he looks for in a woman. So if you still have hopes of becoming Mrs. Bongiovi, check out how much you own. The rocker likes his other half to be independent, strong and just relaxed by nature. Oh, and plastic surgery is a particularly big thing.
Yes, in a 2007 interview with the Daily Mail Jon listed all the things he liked about his wife Dorothea Hurley, and her distaste for cutlery being near the top. “I find that women are much sexier as they age gracefully,” he explained. I wanted to see them in cowboy boots and blue jeans and not liposuction so much that I couldn’t close my eyes. You see women wearing it everywhere in Hollywood and, … ‘
The ‘It’s My Life’ singer also confirmed that he has no plans to trade Dorothea for a younger model. In fact, he seems quite proud that they have one of rock music’s strongest marriages. However, Jon also made sure to give thanks to the U2 man in front of Link and his wife Ali, who actually started dating back in the mid-1970s.
Mutual respect is key to their relationship
Kevin Mazur / GettyIn 2020, Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley celebrated 40 years since they first met, but gave another gripping interview about their relationship with People magazine. Well, the couple proved once again that they have no problem with showing affection publicly in a conversation, which just happened to coincide with the release of Bon Jovi’s new LP in 2020.
When asked what the secret of their success was, Jon replied: ‘Mutual respect. Grew up together and developed together. And we really liked each other. We want to hang out. Later, his wife said: “I always say I’m also very good at spotting potential. I have a gift.’
The ‘Bad Medicine’ singer then backed Dorothea for being his rock music before reiterating that he never allowed all his adoring fans and passionate showbiz lifestyle to influence his marriage: ‘We work hard, But we like each other and we never fall apart to know what celebrities can do. We’ve seen that happen for years with people close to us and people we know from afar. That’s just what I do, not who I am. I write songs. I’m really good at doing them. That’s it.’
They also run an organization together
Dimitrios Kambouris / GettyThey say you must never associate business with pleasure. But let’s say it to Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley, who have been running their own charity successfully since 2006. The imaginative title Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation was launched to assist those affected by homelessness and poverty in the Philadelphia area. And five years later, it expanded with the opening of JBJ Soul Kitchen, a community-led eatery that proudly pays for what you can plan.
Jon was his usual modest when asked about the couple’s efforts in a 2020 interview with People . ”If we can roof someone’s head or put food in their belly [then] it’s pretty simple: We don’t need a scientist to find a cure [for COVID-19]. As the rocker adds, ‘I’m happiest if I enjoy what I do for a living, I’m doing right with my family and I’m making the world a little better.’
Dorothea also told the same publication that their decision to pay everything was essentially a no-brainer. “It’s a partnership. When we see injustice or people suffering, you want to help. We’re very lucky and we’re capable of doing that. ‘
Share:
