Jesse Palmer has bonded with many contestants on Joan Vassos’ season of The Golden Bachelorette, but there’s one who takes a special place in his heart: Charles L.
“He’s a national treasure. I knew that from the very first date card drop off when I was trying to explain how the dates work, and if you go on a one-on-one date, you don’t get a rose, you gotta pack your bag,” Jesse, 45, exclusively told Us Weekly of Charles L. while promoting his J. Palmer clothing line. “He asked me to re-explain everything again, but that’s who he is.”
The Golden Bachelorette host praised Charles L. for being “so sincere” and “organic,” before quipping, “You just wanna put him in your pocket and you just wanna carry Charles around with you.”
In Jesse’s mind, it’s not hard to understand why Charles L. has received an outpouring of love from the internet since the premiere episode earlier this month.
“I totally get why America has fallen so hard for Charles L.,” Jesse said. “He’s legendary. I love the guy.”
During his time hosting season 1 of The Golden Bachelorette, Jesse also formed connections with other contestants, including Mark, Gary and Keith. Jesse explained that he sought the trio out because they are girl dads, just like him. (Jesse and his wife, Emely Fardo, welcomed daughter Ella in January.)
“I just wanted to pick their brains on the dos and don’ts of raising a daughter,” Jesse explained. “The guys could not have been more genuine, more generous with their time and their advice [and] supportive of one another. They were funny.”
While chatting on the premiere night, Jesse recalled Keith poking fun at him for forgetting people’s names during his stint as the lead of The Bachelor season 5 in 2004.
“I knew on that very first night, I was just gonna love this entire group of guys,” Jesse said. “I mean this, I’m always trying to hang out with the cast off camera as much as possible. But this group of guys, they were such a joy to be around. I’m so happy that we get to show more of their personalities this season and peel the layers back to who they are because they really are a special group of guys.”
While Jesse is getting more screen time on The Bachelor franchise (remember when he played golf with Jenn Tran’s final contestants during season 21 of The Bachelorette?), the host noted that he hopes to “add value in some way, shape or form to the people.”
“I don’t ever wanna force myself into a scene or a situation because this is not about me at all. I’m a facilitator of this whole thing,” Jesse said. “I think there have been times over the years where it’s felt organic. There have been times where I think there was an idea to do something, and there were other times where it was spontaneous in the moment.”
He continued, “I hope I get to keep doing it, but as long as it is helpful to the people and it’s helpful to the show.”
Aside from his hosting gig, Jesse is keeping busy with his new line of elevated sports apparel, J. Palmer clothing.
“It’s for the guy that’s a sports fan that doesn’t wanna sacrifice on fashion,” Jesse explained, adding that there’s athleisure wear, blazers and dress shirts in the collection. “It’s your 13 essential pieces curated that are versatile and functional to allow people to go from home lounging to the gym, to the office, to the boardroom. Things you could wear to the bar after work to the game, on a date with your significant other and allow you that freedom and flexibility.”
Jesse gushed that this idea is one he’s had “for a long time,” adding, “I’m really thankful [to] Fanatics. I was able to partner up with them to make this come to life.”
Jesse’s J. Palmer clothing line is available at Fanatics. The Golden Bachelorette airs on ABC Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
