It’s finally time to see Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist get married live on ABC, and it’s an event to remember.
The whole thing is going down at the La Quinta Resort & Club in La Quinta, California, and it’s just as swanky and over-the-top as you could imagine.
There was plenty of drama leading up to Gerry and Theresa’s big day, — at least in the headlines — but the senior couple didn’t let the chatter disrupt their PR tour, and they made it clear that the wedding was happening despite the rumors.
Jesse Palmer called The Golden Bachelor wedding “the live historic event,” and it truly is something to behold.
It isn’t surprising that Wells Adams is on hand as a bartender, which we learned when Kathy declared that she didn’t have a drink, which is “never a good thing,” before calling out for Wells.
He served special drinks to the crew of The Golden Bachelor women, including Kathy Swarts and April Kirkwood.
Kathy Swarts steals the show
Kathy Swarts is making the rounds, interviewing everyone she comes in contact with, and she’s a whole different person than who we saw on The Golden Bachelor.
This Kathy isn’t catty or mean like she was portrayed when she took aim at Theresa. The live and unfiltered Kathy with a microphone is actually quite funny and just a whole lot of fun.
She even joked about how hard she tried to marry their father when speaking to Gerry’s daughters, and it came across as really entertaining and lighthearted.
She even flirted shamelessly with upcoming The Bachelor lead Joey Graziadei.
It’s safe to say that Kathy has overcome her mean girl persona and reinvented herself as a classy and quite funny lady.
The biggest Bachelor event of the year was jam-packed with Bachelor Nation alums, including seemingly all of the women who tried to win Gerry over on the first season of The Golden Bachelor.
Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist’s wedding planning on display
Before the actual ceremony and cut in with glimpses of the live wedding before it all got started, we got an inside peek at Gerry and Theresa’s wedding planning.
We learned that there would be a milkshake machine to commemorate their iconic first date on The Golden Bachelor.
We also got a front-row seat during the cake tasting. The only thing that would have made it better would have been a piece of that delicious dessert.
It was somewhat surprising that dress shopping included Kathy Swarts, proving that the on-air beef wasn’t as real as it seemed. Susan Noles was also there, and so were Gerry and Theresa’s daughters.
This time around, Theresa is going all out for her wedding dress. We saw her first dress, and it was gorgeous, but Theresa revealed that she bought it straight off the rack with two days’ notice before she walked down the aisle.
Gerry spent much less time picking out Theresa’s wedding ring than she did picking out the dress, but he chose a gorgeous diamond eternity band that will surely dazzle her.
Theresa’s Bachelorette party was a night to remember – from the boudoir shoot to the strippers. These senior women surely know how to party!
Moments to remember from The Golden Bachelor wedding
Some showstopping moments really stood out that were not related to The Golden Bachelor.
The biggest moment was when Brayden Bowers dropped to one knee and proposed to Christina Mandrell after revealing that he was moving to Tennessee to be with her.
It was definitely a moment when Kathy Swarts made off with Charity Lawson’s man.
Gerry and Theresa’s ceremony had everyone in tears
Gerry Turner looked dapper as usual in a black tux.
As the ensemble played Ave Maria, his daughters made their way down the aisle in blue, and Theresa’s daughters wore pale pink.
Theresa was the last one down the aisle in a gorgeous Badgley Mischka gown that featured floral embroidery on the bodice and a stunning pearl-dotted veil.
There wasn’t a dry eye in the room (or in mine for that matter) as these two 70-somethings said their vows and looked forward to the rest of their lives together.
It should surprise no one that Gerry was bawling as Theresa walked down the aisle.
Susan was a delight as officiant, as she couldn’t imagine how anyone could not know who she was.
Gerry and Theresa’s daughters had everyone shedding even more tears with their words of love for their parents before vows were exchanged, and they were nothing short of magical, to quote Theresa.
I thought Kathy was just awful. Running around like she owned the place, sticking her nose in everyone’s business. She just rubs me the wrong way.