Jon Gosselin
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Keith "Jon" Gosselin (born April 1, 1977) is an American television personality, known for his appearances with then-wife Kate Gosselin
and their eight children on the American
reality TV show Jon & Kate Plus 8
.
, Pennsylvania
as the middle child in a family of three boys. Gosselin's mother was born and raised in Hawaii
as a second generation Korean American
(his maternal grandparents emigrated from Korea
), and his father is of French
, Irish
, and Welsh
descent. He graduated from Wyomissing High School
in 1995.
Gosselin met Kate Gosselin
at a company picnic on October 5, 1997. They married on June 12, 1999. Twin girls, Cara and Madelyn, were born on October 8, 2000. Initially, Jon was against having a third child, but he and Kate eventually decided to try to get pregnant again. On May 10, 2004, Kate gave birth to sextuplets: sons Aaden, Collin, and Joel, and daughters Leah, Alexis, and Hannah. The sextuplets were born 10 weeks premature, which is common in cases of multiple births.
offered the couple a reality series chronicling the lives of their family.
The Discovery Health special, called Surviving Sextuplets and Twins, first aired in September 2005. One year later, the family was featured in another special titled Sextuplets and Twins: One Year Later. Both specials received high Nielsen ratings
, and Discovery Health signed the couple to a series that aired beginning in April 2007. During this time, the family was filmed for three to four days per week, and received payment for appearing on the show.
They soon switched over to TLC
.
Gosselin co-wrote Multiple Blessings: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets with then-wife Kate Gosselin
and Beth Carson, a book that made The New York Times Best Seller list.
proceedings had begun. Gosselin then began looking for a new apartment
in New York City
, reportedly visiting Donald Trump
-owned Trump Place
in Manhattan
's Upper West Side
.
Jon stated that it is Kate who wanted the divorce, while Kate stated that "Jon's activities" left her with "no choice but to file legal procedures in order to protect" herself and the children. Jon released a statement in response, noting that his wife was the first to make a legal move, and speaking of his continuing love for his children. Speculation rose that Jon's relationship with Hailey Glassman, the daughter of Kate's plastic surgeon, was the cause for the divorce, but Glassman denied the speculation, saying that her relationship with Jon began only after Jon and Kate had been separated for months.
On September 29, 2009 TLC announced that, as of November 3, 2009, Jon & Kate Plus 8 would change its name to Kate Plus 8. Jon Gosselin would continue to appear on the show, but less frequently. However, on October 1, 2009, People.com
reported that Jon Gosselin filed a legal action against TLC to prevent the show from resuming and would consider the entry of production crews into the family home as criminal trespassing. The final episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8 aired on November 23, 2009, announced by TLC three days earlier.
In late September 2009, Jon filed paperwork seeking to stall the divorce
for 90 days, saying, "I regret my conduct since Kate and I separated ... I used poor judgment in publicly socializing with other women so soon." Among the terms of the divorce was a child support order for $22,000 a month.
On October 15, 2009 it was announced that TLC had filed suit against Jon for allegedly violating their contract with paid and unpaid television appearances he had recently made on several media outlets. The network claims it lost more than $30,000 as a result of his alleged breach of their contract. Gosselin's attorney responded that the contract was null and void once TLC renamed the show Kate Plus 8, and that in any event the contract is unenforceable because it was signed while Gosselin had no legal representation.
On December 18, 2009, it was announced that the couple's divorce had been finalized. Earlier in the month, Jon Gosselin's girlfriend, Hailey Glassman, announced that she broke up with Jon because she discovered during a deposition in the case against TLC that he has been unfaithful to her by having a relationship with Kate Major, a reporter for The Star
tabloid.
On December 26, 2009, upon returning to his New York apartment after visiting his children for Christmas, Gosselin discovered that his apartment had been broken into. The damage was estimated at $100,000 USD. A note signed by Hailey Glassman, his ex-girlfriend, was found attached to Gosselin's dresser with a knife, but law enforcement officials have questioned the authenticity of both the message and the signature. The police approached Glassman about the crime, but did not file any charges against her. Glassman admitted that she took her old television set out of his apartment on the same day the burglary occurred.
Jon started dating Ellen Ross in 2010.
show American Chopper
, in which he traveled to the motorcycle
shop to request a custom bike. He allowed Entertainment Tonight
to air an interview with him and Hailey Glassman, and other interviews before and after the twins' birthdays. Viewers of Entertainment Tonight also witnessed the couple argue on screen. Later on, the court declared that Jon's TLC contract forbade him from appearing elsewhere on television.
Jon began dating Ellen Ross in April 2010.
On February 18, 2011, Us Magazine, a product of Us Weekly
, reported that Gosselin had spent several months unemployed, had sold his vehicle to make money, and ultimately found a job as a construction worker for a Pennsylvania company that installed solar panels.
Kate Gosselin
Katie Irene "Kate" Gosselin is an American television personality. Gosselin achieved national recognition on the reality show Jon & Kate Plus 8, in which she and her then-husband Jon Gosselin are profiled as they raise their atypical family of sextuplets and twins.-Early life:Kate Gosselin was...
and their eight children on the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
reality TV show Jon & Kate Plus 8
Jon & Kate Plus 8
Jon & Kate Plus 8, named Kate Plus 8 from the sixth season on, is an American reality television series airing on TLC. It is produced by Figure 8 Films about the Gosselin family, consisting of parents Jon and Kate and their eight children: fraternal twins and sextuplets...
.
Early life
Jonathan Keith Gosselin was born and raised in WyomissingWyomissing, Pennsylvania
Wyomissing is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, established on July 2, 1906. The population was 8,587 at the 2000 census, but after the January, 2002 merger with neighboring Wyomissing Hills, the combined 2000 Census estimate was 11,155 making it the most populous borough in...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
as the middle child in a family of three boys. Gosselin's mother was born and raised in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
as a second generation Korean American
Korean American
Korean Americans are Americans of Korean descent, mostly from South Korea, with a small minority from North Korea...
(his maternal grandparents emigrated from Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
), and his father is of French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
, Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
, and Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
descent. He graduated from Wyomissing High School
Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School
Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School is a secondary school serving the Wyomissing Area School District. Located in the borough of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania the school boasts an enrollment in grades seven through twelve of approximately 975 students...
in 1995.
Gosselin met Kate Gosselin
Kate Gosselin
Katie Irene "Kate" Gosselin is an American television personality. Gosselin achieved national recognition on the reality show Jon & Kate Plus 8, in which she and her then-husband Jon Gosselin are profiled as they raise their atypical family of sextuplets and twins.-Early life:Kate Gosselin was...
at a company picnic on October 5, 1997. They married on June 12, 1999. Twin girls, Cara and Madelyn, were born on October 8, 2000. Initially, Jon was against having a third child, but he and Kate eventually decided to try to get pregnant again. On May 10, 2004, Kate gave birth to sextuplets: sons Aaden, Collin, and Joel, and daughters Leah, Alexis, and Hannah. The sextuplets were born 10 weeks premature, which is common in cases of multiple births.
Television fame
They received local media coverage until the sextuplets were 17 months old, when Discovery HealthDiscovery Health Channel
Discovery Health Channel is a website owned by Discovery Communications, created for people interested in health and wellness. Until December 31, 2010, it was a U.S. cable television specialty channel dedicated to television programming that highlights various aspects of health and wellness...
offered the couple a reality series chronicling the lives of their family.
The Discovery Health special, called Surviving Sextuplets and Twins, first aired in September 2005. One year later, the family was featured in another special titled Sextuplets and Twins: One Year Later. Both specials received high Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, and Discovery Health signed the couple to a series that aired beginning in April 2007. During this time, the family was filmed for three to four days per week, and received payment for appearing on the show.
They soon switched over to TLC
TLC (TV channel)
TLC is an American cable TV specialty channel which initially focused on educational content. Since 1991 TLC has been owned by Discovery Communications, the same company that operates the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and The Science Channel, as well as other learning-themed networks...
.
Gosselin co-wrote Multiple Blessings: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets with then-wife Kate Gosselin
Kate Gosselin
Katie Irene "Kate" Gosselin is an American television personality. Gosselin achieved national recognition on the reality show Jon & Kate Plus 8, in which she and her then-husband Jon Gosselin are profiled as they raise their atypical family of sextuplets and twins.-Early life:Kate Gosselin was...
and Beth Carson, a book that made The New York Times Best Seller list.
Personal life
It was announced on the June 22, 2009 episode of the show that the couple were separating, and that divorceDivorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
proceedings had begun. Gosselin then began looking for a new apartment
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, reportedly visiting Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
-owned Trump Place
Trump Place
Riverside South is an apartment complex originated by Donald Trump and six civic partners on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, in New York City.The $3 billion project on a site between 59th Street and 72nd...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
.
Jon stated that it is Kate who wanted the divorce, while Kate stated that "Jon's activities" left her with "no choice but to file legal procedures in order to protect" herself and the children. Jon released a statement in response, noting that his wife was the first to make a legal move, and speaking of his continuing love for his children. Speculation rose that Jon's relationship with Hailey Glassman, the daughter of Kate's plastic surgeon, was the cause for the divorce, but Glassman denied the speculation, saying that her relationship with Jon began only after Jon and Kate had been separated for months.
On September 29, 2009 TLC announced that, as of November 3, 2009, Jon & Kate Plus 8 would change its name to Kate Plus 8. Jon Gosselin would continue to appear on the show, but less frequently. However, on October 1, 2009, People.com
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
reported that Jon Gosselin filed a legal action against TLC to prevent the show from resuming and would consider the entry of production crews into the family home as criminal trespassing. The final episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8 aired on November 23, 2009, announced by TLC three days earlier.
In late September 2009, Jon filed paperwork seeking to stall the divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
for 90 days, saying, "I regret my conduct since Kate and I separated ... I used poor judgment in publicly socializing with other women so soon." Among the terms of the divorce was a child support order for $22,000 a month.
On October 15, 2009 it was announced that TLC had filed suit against Jon for allegedly violating their contract with paid and unpaid television appearances he had recently made on several media outlets. The network claims it lost more than $30,000 as a result of his alleged breach of their contract. Gosselin's attorney responded that the contract was null and void once TLC renamed the show Kate Plus 8, and that in any event the contract is unenforceable because it was signed while Gosselin had no legal representation.
On December 18, 2009, it was announced that the couple's divorce had been finalized. Earlier in the month, Jon Gosselin's girlfriend, Hailey Glassman, announced that she broke up with Jon because she discovered during a deposition in the case against TLC that he has been unfaithful to her by having a relationship with Kate Major, a reporter for The Star
Star (magazine)
Star is an American celebrity tabloid magazine.-History:Star was founded by Rupert Murdoch in 1974 as competition to the tabloid National Enquirer with its headquarters in New York City. In the late 1980s it moved its offices to Tarrytown, NY and in 1990 Murdoch sold the magazine to The Enquirers...
tabloid.
On December 26, 2009, upon returning to his New York apartment after visiting his children for Christmas, Gosselin discovered that his apartment had been broken into. The damage was estimated at $100,000 USD. A note signed by Hailey Glassman, his ex-girlfriend, was found attached to Gosselin's dresser with a knife, but law enforcement officials have questioned the authenticity of both the message and the signature. The police approached Glassman about the crime, but did not file any charges against her. Glassman admitted that she took her old television set out of his apartment on the same day the burglary occurred.
Jon started dating Ellen Ross in 2010.
Post-Jon & Kate
Gosselin appeared on an episode of the TLCTLC (TV channel)
TLC is an American cable TV specialty channel which initially focused on educational content. Since 1991 TLC has been owned by Discovery Communications, the same company that operates the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and The Science Channel, as well as other learning-themed networks...
show American Chopper
American Chopper
American Chopper is a reality television series that airs on Discovery Channel, produced by Pilgrim Films & Television. The series centers on Paul Teutul, Sr. and his son Paul Teutul, Jr. , who manufacture custom motorcycles. Orange County Choppers is in Newburgh, New York...
, in which he traveled to the motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
shop to request a custom bike. He allowed Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight is a daily tabloid television entertainment television news show that is syndicated by CBS Television Distribution throughout the United States, Canada and in many countries around the world. Linda Bell Blue is currently the program's executive producer...
to air an interview with him and Hailey Glassman, and other interviews before and after the twins' birthdays. Viewers of Entertainment Tonight also witnessed the couple argue on screen. Later on, the court declared that Jon's TLC contract forbade him from appearing elsewhere on television.
Jon began dating Ellen Ross in April 2010.
On February 18, 2011, Us Magazine, a product of Us Weekly
Us Weekly
Us Weekly is a celebrity gossip magazine, founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, who sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986. The publication covers topics ranging from celebrity relationships to the latest trends in fashion, beauty, and entertainment...
, reported that Gosselin had spent several months unemployed, had sold his vehicle to make money, and ultimately found a job as a construction worker for a Pennsylvania company that installed solar panels.