Faceboo/Dan Gasby Dan Gasby pictured with Alex Werner on January 2018.
Alex Lerner, the girlfriend of B. Smith’s husband, Dan Gasby, has been attracting the ire of the lifestyle guru’s legions of fans. Smith has been battling Alzheimer’s disease since 2014. Gasby went public about his relationship with Lerner in a Facebook post in December 2018. Gasby shares the Facebook page with his wife.
Gasby is Smith’s second husband, she was previously married to HBO executive, Donald Anderson, who passed away on January 18, 2018. In 1992, Smith married Gasby in Manhattan. Smith is the step-mother to Gasby’s daughter, Dana. Smith announced to the world in June 2014 that she was battling Alzheimer’s and said that her decision to come forward was based in part on her desire to fight the stigmas associated with the disease.
On February 23, TMZ reported that Smith had passed away at the age of 70. She passed away on the night of February 22. Her sad death was confirmed by Gasby.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Gasby Says that ‘You Can’t Love the Past, You Can’t Maximize the Now!’
GettyGasby and Lerner pictured together in 2017.
Gasby wrote in the post that he had been out for dinner with his wife and Lerner. Gasby said that “a**holes” had been staring at the trio. It took some time until a person inquired as to who Lerner was. Gasby replied, “I take care of my wife and love her… I’m in love with Alex.” Gasby said that he would love his wife until his dying breath and that he continues to take care of her. He added, “You can’t love the past, you gotta maximize the now!” Gasby concluded by saying, “F*** guilt, f*** religion, and f*** people who have a problem with my honest management of my life. I’m now healthy happy on one side of the coin of my life and deal openly and honestly with the other side!”
In a post on January 28, Gasby wrote on Facebook, “I love my wife but I can’t let her take away my life! 5-10 years from now when many of you who will have an almost predestined meeting with Alzheimer’s because of genetics, obesity, and a myriad of inflammatory diseases, you’ll be wishing for someone to share moments with and ease the pain of loneliness and despair. The clock is ticking I know I can and have manage this but can you do it too?”
2. Lerner Is a Divorced Mother-of-Three
In January 2019, the Washington Post published a feature on Gasby, Smith and Lerner’s relationship. That article refers to Lerner as a divorced mother-of-three. The piece goes on to say that Gasby and Smith met at a Hamptons bar in 2017 and hit it off. Lerner told the newspaper, “We were friends. I didn’t want to go out with a married man.”
Lerner, a native of Germany, goes on to say that when she saw Gasby with Smith she realized, “This is not a man cheating on his wife… What I admire about is that he takes care of her.” Lerner says that she now has a room in Smith and Gasby’s home and that she helps to take care of the famed restauranteur. Lerner divides her time between the Hamptons and her apartment in Manhattan.
3. Gasby & Lerner Host a Radio Show Together
Twitter/Thank You Dan & Alex
Lerner and Gasby host a radio show together, Thank You Dan and Alex, that airs on 77 WABC, Sundays at 7 p.m.
4. Lerner’s Former Boyfriend Was a Restauranteur Who Served 15 Months in Prison for Causing Brain Damage to Man
Lerner formerly dated Dard Coaxum, of Harlem Shake fame. In February 2016, Coaxum was sentenced to 15 months in prison after he was found guilty of assault following a June 2015 incident. The New York Post reported at the time that Coaxum found Julio Torres credit card at a party and when he returned to him, Coaxum demanded a drink in exchange.
The pair’s heated exchange was reignited when they ran into each other in a deli which resulted in Coaxum punching Torres, prosecutors said. During their altercation, video showed Torres offering some of his potato chips to Lerner. The pair began fighting in the store but the punch that actually caused brain damage occurred outside. The Post quoted a prosecutor as saying, “[Torres] toppled over like a tree that had been chopped down, cracking his head on the pavement.” During the trial, Lerner was pictured accompanying Coaxum to court. Coaxum goes by the moniker “Harlem Gatsby.”
5. Gasby’s Daughter Has Given Her Blessing to Her Dad’s Relationship
Gasby’s daughter, Dana, told the Post that her father’s relationship with Lerner has her blessing. Dana said, “Thank God, I’m happy… B. is my mom… She’s in the house. She’s here every day.”
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