Joe Scarborough has been married twice before. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for New York Women In Communications)
Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, the hosts of MSNBC‘s Morning Joe for a decade, are finally getting married. The network confirmed reports that they are engaged, 11 months after Brzezinski divorced Jim Hoffer. While this will be her second marriage, it will be the 54-year-old Scarborough’s third marriage.
Scarborough was previously married to Melanie Hinton and Susan Waren. He has two children from each marriage. They both ended in divorce.
Here’s what you need to know about Scarborough’s ex-wives.
1. Melanie Is Now Melanie Hinton Haupt & Lives in Pensacola
Scarbourgh was first married to Melanie Hinton, now Menalie Hinton Haupt, from 1986 to 1999. They had two children – Andrew Scarborough and Charles “Joey” Scarborough.
According to an August 2016 wedding announcement for Charles’ wedding to Catherine Brynes Grenfell, Malanie still lives in Pensacola.
Scarborough first gained national attention when he was elected to represent Florida’s first Congressional district in 1994, beating an eight-term Democratic incumbent. Scarborough was re-elected in 1996, 1998 and 2000. Five months after he started his final term, he resigned to spend more time with his family.
According to an Associated Press report from 2001, Scarborough got joint-custody of his kids in the divorce from Melanie. There were wild rumors about his sons’ health in Washington D.C. and Scarborough had enough.
“There are wild rumors going around in Washington these days that both of my boys have cancer and there are wild rumors going around my district that both of my boys are juvenile delinquents and nothing could be further from the truth,” Scarborough said in 2001.
As the Daily Mail notes, Melanie was Scarborough’s college stweeheart. The two met at the University of Alabama and lived in Gainesville while he attended the University of Florida Law School. They ultimately settled in Pensacola.
2. Their Son Andrew Was Diagnosed With Asperger Syndrome
Melanie and Scarborough’s 25-year-old son Andrew was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. Scarborough also revealed that Andrew was also diagnosed with diabetes.
Back in 2005, Scarborough appeared to suggest that vaccines were the cause of his son’s autism during an interview with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“My son, born in 1991, has a slight form of autism called Asperger’s,” Scarborough said. “When I was practicing law and also when I was in Congress, parents would constantly come to me and they would bring me videotapes of their children, and they were all around the age of my son or younger. So, something happened in 1989.”
However, as Autism Speaks notes, research shows that vaccines do not cause autism.
3. Susan Was a Former Aide to Jeb Bush
Susan Waren. (Twitter/SouthXNortheast)
In 2001, Scarborough married Susan Waren and they divorced in January 2013. The couple share two children, Katherine Clark and Jack.
Susan was an aide to former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. She appeared on Morning Joe once to talk about her charity work.
Susan also wrote a blog called SouthXNortheast, in which she wrote about living in two different parts of the country. The blog hasn’t been updated since November 2014. She still has an active Twitter account, which Scarboroguh follows.
4. Scarborough Was Described as ‘Faithful, Devoted & Committed’ in His Divorce From Susan
Back in October 2013, TMZ reported that Scarborough filed for divorce from Susan, months after it happened. The two were divorced in January, but the media didn’t learn about it until much later. Scarborough filed for divorce in September 2012.
TMZ later obtained the divorce documents, which showed that Scarborough agreed to pay alimony of $30,000 a month for five years. At the time, Scarborough was making $99,000 a week as an MSNBC host.
Scarborough also agreed to pay a $150,000 lump sum, the mortgage on their Connecticut home and their children’s education. They also share joint legal custody of the two kids.
A source told the Huffington Post that the settlement refers to Scarborough as a “faithful, devoted and committed father and husband,” despite rumors that he was already having an affair with Brzezinski.
“We ask for privacy at this time for the sake of our young children,” Scarborough and Susan said in a joint statement in 2013. “Joe has always been a devoted and committed husband and father and Susan has been a wonderful mother and trusted wife. We are still close friends and will always be family as our focus remains on our young children. This was a difficult decision but after much prayer and counseling, we concluded it was the right one for our family.”
5. Scarborough Denied Rumors of a Romance With Brzezinski for Years, But Admitted to ‘Off-Air Chemistry’ Before Their Engagement
Almost from the moment Scarborough and Brzezinski began hosting Morning Joe, there were rumors that they were romantically involved even though they were married to other people. Even as far back as 2009, they denied that there was “sexual tension” between them. When Brzezinski got her divorce, sources told Page Six that their romance is the “worst kept secret in TV.”
Finally, in an April 2017 Hollywood Reporter interview, Scarborough admitted that they have off-air chemistry.
“We have a crackling on-air chemistry, and a crackling off-air chemistry, too,” Scarborough told THR. When Brzezinski paused and said “That’s good,” Scarborough added, “I think that pretty much says it, doesn’t it?”
