Americas new favorite hunk is a 72-year-old widower.
He may be the best thing ever to happen toTheBachelorfranchise.
The Golden Bacheloris on ABC.
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The Golden Bachelorshows me his dink.
I dont have the slightest idea how to play pickleball.
Lucky for me, Gerry Turner is a great teacher.
But then the Disney-ABC powers that be decided to look outside their usual Future Influencers of America demographic.
They needed someone genuine, someone rootable.
Turners submission caught the casting teams attention in the first week of reviewing applications.
Every minute we spent with Gerry, we liked him more and more.
He was just so kind and sweet and obviously handsome, Ehrlich says.
Everyone who met him, we just thought,Weve got to do this for him.
Its not as easy as it looks, at least not for me.
He wants me to know what it feels like.
Just whack it, he mouths from across the court, swinging his paddle like a bludgeon in demonstration.
It takes a few tries, but I do it, sort of!
He kicks one leg in the air in excitement: Yeah!
His enthusiasm is infectious to the point that I find myself believing him.
Iamgoing to get it.
By the time we head to breakfast, I am thoroughly sweaty.
Turner, more than twice my age, is fresh as a daisy.
He leads the way out into the gray drizzle sans umbrella.
Giddyup, lets go, he says, jumping a puddle at the curb.
If you had a bagel date with Gerry Turner, here are some things you might learn.
Hes a Leo, though hes not really astrologically in tune.
His favorite flavor of ice cream is chocolate cherry.
He doesnt care much for California or for rap.
Turner bristled at producers prompts for what he might say at rose ceremonies, to their consternation.
Host Jesse Palmer stepped in on his behalf.
He goes, Look, guys.
Hes doing it better than anybody weve ever had, so let him go, Turner recalls.
Exhibit A: Gerry Turner opening the rose ceremony in episode two.
A few days ago, we all met, he said.
We didnt know anything about each other.
And today, I look at this group of women and youre all my friends.
The ABC people would go, Oh my God, you cant talk about it!
But you dont realize, when you get to 70, people know how to keep a secret.
By 70, Turner had already experienced both deep love and loss.
She died just weeks after retiring in 2017, following a short illness.
When the time felt right, before television came calling, Gerry did try online dating.
It was not especially successful.
He had two rules: like be over the age of 60, and like live within 60 miles.
(He reneged on that second stipulation for the show.)
She turned out to be a catfish who had been using photos of her younger sister for her profile.
He took her out to dinner anyway.
But after a couple of seasons, he found hed really gotten involved.
The average age of the titular Bachelor the regular, non-Golden one is just under 31.
(Joey Graziadei, 28, will ascend the throne for season 28 in 2024.)
That was more than half of Turners life ago.
What advice would he give himself at that age?
Oh geez, he says, sighing.
Present-day Gerry, though, is averygood listener, a pro at eye contact, and altogether pleasant company.
In a way, that wholesomeness and the optimism and general good cheer was hard-earned.
Turner describes his late mother as an alcoholic and a drug abuser.
My mom was a bitter person, Turner says.
Thats the way it was.
So I said,No, Im not going to be like that.
Im going to consciously decide to be happy.
Turner is coy about how his season will end, in accordance with the universal tenets of reality-dating-show law.
Or what about Leslie, the fitness instructor from Minneapolis who supposedly inspired the Prince song Sexy Dancer?
In the meantime, hes not ready for it to be over anytime soon.
I love that part, he tells me.
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