Former football player Mel Owens stumbled right out of the huddle before even taking the field in his The Golden Bachelor Season 2 journey. The new lead of the ABC reality series made comments that sent fans reeling, with many wondering why any strong senior ladies would be interested in dating Owens on TV after the controversy.
But three of Owens’ contestants on The Golden Bachelor exclusively told Parade during a set visit how his offensive comments affected them.
As viewers know, 66-year-old Owens’ trouble began in June, when he said during the In the Trenches podcast with Jon Jansen that he’d told producers his preferred age range for his women would be 45 to 60. Owens bluntly said, “If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them.”
The lawyer also said that his contestants have “got to be fit” and that he wanted to “stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs.”
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Backlash erupted on social media as fans felt Owens had totally dissed the entire Golden concept that they’d first embraced during Gerry Turner’s inaugural season.
Adding fuel to the fire of skepticism around Owens was that his ex-wife, Fabiana Pimentel Owens, is 19 years younger than him.
Rumors flew that Owens might be replaced as the second Golden Bachelor. But he continued and his controversy took center stage during the show’s premiere episode on September 24.
Owens apologized for his comments to the 23 women who would be dating him on night one, saying on camera, “It was insensitive, unfair…I hope you forgive me and let me earn it back.”
Related: ' Golden Bachelor’ Mel Owens Breaks His Silence on Controversial Age Comments: ‘It Was Unfair, Insensitive’
The gals graciously accepted his apology, but Parade learned that behind the scenes, it wasn’t easy for some of them.
When asked about Owens’ misstep, yoga instructor Nicolle Kate, 64, exclusively told Parade, “Well, I consider myself an ageist activist. I really want to inspire women whose ages start with a 6 or a 7 or an 8 or a 9 to remain vital and beautiful and sexy—in fact, become more beautiful and sexy and vital than they ever were before. So of course, I was offended and I had a little bit of guard up around continuing this journey.”
Nicolle Kate on 'The Golden Bachelor' Season 2Beautiful blonde Nicolle explained, “But, out of the gate, when we first met him, he addressed it head-on, took full responsibility and accountability for it, apologized for it. And that’s all you can do as a person is to apologize. I gave him a second chance, and so far, he’s proven to be a real gentleman. We’ve proved him wrong and he admitted it. He said, 'You guys have really proven me wrong,' and he’s seemingly grateful to be here with all of us.”
Retired firefighter and bomb tech Peg Munson said Owens’ podcast explosion also gave her pause, snapping, “I think it’s bullshit. I think he opened his mouth and inserted his foot. Are you kidding me?”
Peg Munson on 'The Golden Bachelor' Season 2Owens’ loose talk might have ended Peg’s Golden experience, as she told Parade outside the mansion, “I almost did not come here because of that. Two days before coming here, I’m like, ‘I can date that all day long.’ He’s a dime a dozen, [like many] assholes.
"I had to really take a moment and suspend judgement," she continued. "And I said, ‘You know what? Let me just give this guy a chance to explain himself,’ because social media just ripped him a you know what — as well they should because what he said was extremely insensitive, extremely rude. I don’t want to date that. And if that’s who he is, I’m out, I’m done.”
However, as viewers have seen so far, Peg, 62, was satisfied with Owens’ explanation and has established a connection with him on the show.
Related: Original ‘Golden Bachelor’ Star Reacts to Mel Owens’ Controversial Age Comments
Celebrity fitness trainer Debbie Siebers, the only Owens’ contestant who has never been married, felt sympathy from the moment she heard about his controversy.
Debbie, 65, told Parade, “When I found out about that, my first thought, and I reached out to the producers [about it]. Being in the industry and understanding how social media works and how they can blow things out of proportion and take things out of context, before I really knew all the details, I asked producers, ‘How’s Mel handling this?’ And they said, ‘That’s really kind,’ And I said, ‘No, because he probably just was not thinking it through. He was talking to his buddy, and he said some really off-color comments. Of course he knew he was going to be meeting 60-plus women going into this.’ ”
Debbie Siebers on 'The Golden Bachelor' Season 2Debbie added, “But then, of course, I had my family and friends reaching out, sending me the news flashes. And I said, ‘I appreciate your concern, but I really want to form my own opinion about this guy.’ But did it make me a little reluctant? Yes. Because I thought, how am I going to feel knowing those things that he said with all these other women vying for his love and affection when he just really wants a 40-year-old.
"That’s been my biggest concern coming in because every guy that I have been interested in, especially since moving to Denver, that’s my age and older. As much as they love my company, whatever the case may be, they want a younger woman. And so if he said those things, I thought, 'Why am I going to set myself up for this?' [But] I’m so glad I came because I did meet the real Mel.”
New episodes of The Golden Bachelor air Wednesday nights on ABC.
Related: Everything to Know About ‘The Golden Bachelor’ Season 2 (Including the Premiere and Cast)
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