What happened to Rosie O’Donnell’s first wife, Kelli Carpenter?

Before taking that job, Rosie O’Donnell had one of the most loved talk shows at the time and had acted in a number of well-known movies. Since then she has dabbled in a wide variety of entertainment fields including magazines, books and theater. O’Donnell’s relationships have received more attention than many other celebrities as she is one of the most prominent lesbians in the entertainment industry.

Former TV executive Kelli Carpenter was O’Donnell’s first wife. Before getting married in 2004, the two dated for six years during a time when same-sex unions were not recognized by the federal government. But since a law had just been passed allowing same-sex partnerships in the city, they chose to get married there. In 2004, Carpenter responded to fan questions for ABC News, calling their decision to fly to San Francisco a “political statement.” At the time, President George W. Bush supported the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have restricted marriage to relationships between men and women. “Why can’t I marry the man I love when he is? If one of his children or one of his siblings were homosexual, would he demand the same right for them?” Carpenter popped the question in her ABC Q&A.

Rosie O’Donnell and Kelli Carpenter had four children together

Rosie O’Donnell and Kelli Carpenter adopted four children during their ten-year marriage. According to People, O’Donnell adopted Parker in 1995 when he was still a newborn. Carpenter eventually took over as his second legal guardian, but she had adopted him as a single parent. Chelsea, the second oldest child, was born in 1997 and was also adopted by the two women. The third oldest child in the family, Blake was born in 1999. They eventually adopted Vivienne, a baby born in 2002.

Carpenter recognized the reasons why lesbian couples may be hesitant to adopt or start a family while responding to fan questions for ABC in 2004, shortly after she and O’Donnell got married. However, it is worth it. She said, “Any discrimination we’ve experienced pales in comparison to the joys kids bring to your life.”

O’Donnell and Carpenter also launched a cruise line while still married that catered specifically to gay couples and families. All of their joint work, including their marriage, was done for the public to demonstrate the “normality” of a lesbian relationship. as it is common.

Carpenter said on ABC’s “20/20” in 2004, “I also think it puts a face to what’s happening rather than just, you know, all these gay guys getting married.” ‘You know what, that’s it. These are my children, that’s me, and that’s my partner. And we raise happy, healthy children.”

Rosie O’Donnell’s first wife, Kelli Carpenter, has remarried

Even if their marriage was perfect, Rosie O’Donnell and Kelli Carpenter divorced in 2007. O’Donnell said in 2010 that they still live as a family of four. Kelli Carpenter divorced Rosie O’Donnell in 2007 and remarried a few years later. Carpenter proposed to comedian Anne Steele, according to a 2012 Us Weekly article. Carpenter announced, “We’re having a picnic barbecue in the backyard.” Carpenter stated that they were “on excellent terms”, despite Us Weekly’s claim that O’Donnell would not attend the wedding. They spent ten years together, three of them as a married couple. However, Carpenter and O’Donnell’s four adopted children were present.

In 2013, Carpenter and Steele were united in New York. According to The New York Times, Parker, who was the oldest, led Carpenter down the aisle. In that essay, Steele and Carpenter described how they met while dancing on a cruise ship in Hawaii. Steele noted that it was “fifth grade” when they started holding hands and many blushed.