By Brian 
Bert Girigorie is the man Wendy Williams married before Kevin Hunter, and long before she became a daytime TV host. Their marriage started in 1994 and was over within months.
For years he was a footnote in her story. Wendy rarely mentioned him, and when she did, she kept it short. He stayed quiet until 2019, when he finally gave an interview about what went wrong.
Here is what each of them has said, and what remains unknown.
How Bert Girigorie Met Wendy Williams
The two met in the early 1990s at a New York City radio station. According to Bert’s account, reported by theGrio from his Radar Online interview, that was around 1992, and they dated for roughly two years before marrying.
The timing matters. Wendy was building her name on New York radio. She had joined WRKS (98.7 Kiss FM) in 1990, became the top-rated host in her time slot by 1993, and that same year won a Billboard radio award. In the year she married Bert, she moved back to mornings at WRKS in September and then jumped to rival station WQHT (Hot 97) in December.
So the marriage overlapped with one of the busiest stretches of her career.
Bert and Wendy: A Short Timeline
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Around 1992 | Bert and Wendy meet at a New York radio station, by his account |
| 1994 | They marry; Wikipedia gives his full first name as Bertrand |
| About five months later | They separate |
| 1995 | Divorce, as listed by Wikipedia |
| 2003 | Wendy’s memoir Wendy’s Got the Heat is published by Atria Books |
| 2019 | Bert speaks to Radar Online about the marriage |
| 2021 | Lifetime airs Wendy Williams: What a Mess!, where Wendy calls the marriage a rebound |
What Wendy Has Said About Him
Not much, and that seems deliberate.
In her 2003 memoir, written with journalist Karen Hunter, she reportedly gave him a pseudonym, “Robert Morris III,” rather than using his real name. Later retellings of the book say they honeymooned in Rio de Janeiro and argued through much of the trip. We have not been able to check those passages against the book itself, so treat them as reported rather than confirmed.
In Lifetime’s 2021 documentary, she was blunter. She described him as a rebound after her relationship with rapper Eric B. ended, and Essence reported that she called it a five-month “starter marriage” not worth talking about.
She married Kevin Hunter in 1999. Hunter, who also became her agent, is the ex-husband most people know. The two divorced in 2020.
Bert Girigorie’s Side of the Story
Bert broke his silence in March 2019, speaking to Radar Online. His comments were picked up by theGrio and others.
He said the trouble started on the wedding day itself. Wendy, he said, had a photographer and a reporter from a magazine ride with them in the limo from the church to the reception, which he hadn’t expected.
“It was very bizarre,” he said. “She just turned into a different person.” He described trying to hold the marriage together and being at a loss, until a big fight left things too strained to repair.
He also said Wendy told him she was using drugs during that period but kept it away from him, and that he only learned more after the divorce. Looking back, he suggested it might explain her mood swings. That is his account; Wendy has not publicly responded to these specific claims.
What Does Bert Girigorie Do Now?
He has kept a low profile. Nicki Swift reported that his own social media profile describes him as a sales and marketing professional. Beyond that, his current life is private, and we’re leaving it that way.
He is part of a familiar pattern: the first spouse of someone who became famous later, known mostly for a short chapter of their life. You can see the same thing with James Gandolfini’s first wife, Marcy Wudarski, and with Patricia Heaton’s first husband, Constantine Yankoglu.
Why People Are Searching for Him Now
Interest in Wendy’s past has grown since her talk show ended in 2022 and she was placed under a court-appointed guardianship. Lifetime’s 2024 documentary Where Is Wendy Williams? brought new attention, and her legal team was still fighting the guardianship in court as of April 2026.
Bert has no public role in any of that. His connection to her ended almost three decades ago.
Final Thoughts
Bert Girigorie’s place in Wendy Williams’ life was brief: a two-year romance, a 1994 wedding and a split within months, all during her climb through New York radio. She has brushed it off as a rebound. He has described a wedding day that went strange and a marriage he couldn’t fix. Beyond those few facts, he has chosen a private life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Bert Girigorie?
He is Wendy Williams’ first husband. They married in 1994 and separated after about five months.
How long were Wendy Williams and Bert Girigorie married?
They separated about five months after the wedding. The divorce came later and is listed in 1995.
How old is Bert Girigorie?
His date of birth has never been publicly confirmed. Ages listed on biography sites do not cite a source.
Did Bert Girigorie and Wendy Williams have children?
No children from the marriage have ever been reported. Wendy’s only child, her son, was born in 2000 during her marriage to Kevin Hunter.
What is Bert Girigorie’s net worth?
There is no reliable public estimate of his net worth.
For more background, see Wendy Williams’ Wikipedia entry and theGrio’s report on Bert’s 2019 interview.