Being on The Golden Bachelorette was one of the worst decisions Guy Gansert ever made, and I strongly believe that he ruined his reputation. Not only did he damage his brand by being on the show, the 66-year-old ER doctor had his heart ripped out by 61-year-old Joan Vassos on national television. Joan, a private school administrator from Maryland, was married to John Vassos until he passed away in 2021, after 23 years of marriage. She made her television debut as a contestant on The Golden Bachelor, and was later named as The Golden Bachelorette.
Guy, a divorced father of four, was one of the 24 single Golden men who traveled to the iconic Bachelor mansion to date Joan during the inaugural season of The Golden Bachelorette. Gerry's season of The Golden Bachelor had solidified the show as an instant classic, and hopes were high for the female-led version of the Bachelor spin-off. Guy made it to Joan's final two, but didn't win her final rose. Adding insult to injury, all the public scrutiny ended up dragging some skeletons out of Guy's closet, and I think he may have been better off avoiding the drama.
Guy Gansert Was Eliminated By Joan
Her Heart Didn't Belong To Him
After a season of romantic dates, Joan narrowed her field down to Guy and 60-year-old Chock Chapple. During the final episode of The Golden Bachelorette season 1, Joan and her two suitors traveled to Bora Bora, where Joan was supposed to introduce the two men to her family, but it didn't work out that way for Guy. Joan introduced her family to Chock, and it went well. When it came time for Guy to meet her family, he was beyond excited. When he arrived at Joan's room, her family wasn't there.
Joan sat Guy down and told him that her heart belonged to someone else. Guy was devastated, and he dissolved into tears as he held Joan one last time. He even asked her if there was any chance he could change her mind, to which she shook her head. Joan obviously didn't want to hurt Guy, but when she accepted the role of The Golden Bachlorette, she knew she'd have to hurt people. I'd be willing to bet Guy wishes he had avoided the glare of the public eye, especially considering he didn't even win.
Guy Gansert Should Have Known His Restraining Order Scandal Would Leak Out
The Harsh Glare Of The Spotlight
While The Golden Bachelorette season 1 was airing, People reported that Guy's ex-wife, Heidi O’Gara, filed a temporary protective order in October 2021. Though Heidi dropped the order a month later, before it was officially granted, some of her accusations are disturbing. Heidi accused Guy of having anger issues, and engaging in threatening behavior. Though the order was dropped, Guy's contentious relationship with his ex-wife makes him look bad. I'm not sure if the show's producers knew about the situation when they cast him, but that opens up a whole other can of worms.
Being on the show gave Guy notoriety, but it also led to the leak of this sensitive family matter.
Guy addressed the temporary protective order on Instagram. The Golden Bachelorette season 1 contestant explained that he and Heidi, whom he was married to for 34 years and had four children with, struggled during their divorce. It was during that time she filed the protective order, but the couple came to an agreement, and she dropped it quickly. Though I applaud Guy's attempt to defuse the bomb, I'm not convinced he succeeded.
Guy Gansert Has Ruined His Reputation As A Doctor & Partner
He May Never Live It Down
Though it's unclear whether the producers of The Golden Bachelorette season 1 knew about Guy's problematic history, Guy certainly knew. He clearly wasn't thinking straight when he agreed to join the show's cast, because he had to have known being on the show would draw a lot of attention. Maybe it's just me, but if I had a restraining order in my past, I'd think twice about agreeing to be on a nationally televised television show.
