Jon Bon Jovi’s 35-year marriage doesn’t ‘need rules’ to be successful
Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley tied the knot in 1989
Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley are proof a 35-year marriage is possible.
In an interview with Fox News Digital promoting the upcoming “Thank you, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story” documentary, the band’s frontman explained he and his wife “don’t need rules” in their marriage.
“I don’t think that we need rules. I think it’s just the mutual admiration society,” he explained. “I think it’s as simple as that. You wake up in the morning excited to be with each other. And you admire each other. And you respect each other. It’s a pleasure to do. It’s a pleasure to be.”
Jon Bon Jovi and Dorothea Hurley have been married since 1989. (Getty Images)
During Jon’s interview with Fox News Digital, the musician shared how being a part of a successful band for 40 years has impacted his relationships, including the union with his wife.”Well, the relationships both with your family as well as the family called ‘the band’ have, in my eyes, only deepened with the decades and the trusts built,” Jon said. “Relationships truly matter. I can write a record like 2020 and be the observing reporter, but when you write something personal and people make it about them, that’s when magic happens.”
Jon Bon Jovi, 62, and Dorothea, 61, were high school sweethearts. In 2016, People reported the couple first met at Sayreville War Memorial High School in their New Jersey hometown.
In 1989, at the height of Bon Jovi’s success, the couple eloped to Las Vegas.
At the time, Bon Jovi told the outlet he’s no saint and, like any marriage, their union has endured its share of bumps along the way. However, he stressed that they make it work.
Dorothea and Jon will celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary April 29. (Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Disney+)
“She’s the glue,” he said. “I’m the crazy visionary with all kinds of things flying, and the seams are all splitting. She’s the one following me with the glue and the thread and needle, keeping it all together.
“Somehow, I became the poster boy for a long-married rock star. But I’ll accept the mantle because I’m so happy.”
Echoing his previous comments, Jon opened up to The Independent ahead of the couple’s 35th wedding anniversary and said he’s never lied about “being a saint” during their union.
“These are all the wonderful clichés of rock stardom,” he told the outlet. “It’s about never lying about having been a saint, but not being a fool enough to [mess] up the home life, either.”
Dorothea Hurley and Jon Bon Jovi with their daughter, Stephanie, 30. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Jon and Dorothea will celebrate their wedding anniversary April 29. They share four children: Stephanie, 30, Jesse, 29, Jake, 21, and Romeo, 20.
The rocker spoke to Fox News Digital about Jake’s pursuit of acting. The rising star appeared in his first film, “Rockbottom,” which released on Amazon Prime in March.
Dorothea Hurley and Jon Bon Jovi’s son, Jake Bongiovi, announced his engagement to Millie Bobby Brown in April 2023. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
“Well, he’s certainly my son, isn’t he? You know that DNA is strong,” Jon said of Jake. “I saw the film. I think it’s a wonderful first film. He had shot it two years ago. So, he’s already so moved on from it emotionally.
“But I was very proud of him for achieving a role in his first movie. He’s an aspiring actor, and like all young aspiring actors, they have to start somewhere. And he’s going to build upon that, but he’s going to do great.”
Jake, 21, rocked headlines when he and “Stranger Things” actress Millie Bobbie Brown, 20, announced their engagement on Instagram in April 2023.
At the time, Jon weighed in on his son’s engagement and didn’t believe their age should deter them from saying “I do.”
“I don’t know if age matters,” Jon told Andy Cohen on SiriusXM’s “Radio Andy” in May. “If you find the right partner, and you grow together, I think that would be my advice, really because growing together is wise.”
The “Bed of Roses” singer added he thinks “all of my kids have found the people they think they can grow together with, and we like them all.”
In Jon’s work life, he and his bandmates star in the upcoming Hulu docuseries, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story,” which premieres April 26. Bon Jovi’s 16th studio album, “Forever,” will be released June 7.