Airyn Bell, a young woman from the Philippines who met radio host Art Bell after one of his wives died tragically, is the last wife of the famed conspiracy theorist, who died at the age of 72 on April 13, 2018 at the couple’s home in Pahrump, Nevada. She is also the mother of Bell’s two youngest children, a daughter named Asia and a son named Alexander.
The couple endured their share of controversies – including a lawsuit against the radio host Michael Savage and a marriage that came just weeks after his wife Ramona’s sudden death from an asthma attack – but they filled their Facebook pages with photos of their family life together. Art Bell was well known for his conspiracy theories and interest in paranormal activity and UFOs, and he hosted a controversial radio show for years. He was married four times and had four children.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Art Bell Died at Home But the Cause of Death Was Unknown
News that Art Bell had died came from the Nye County Sheriff’s Department in Nevada, where he lived with his wife. “Community Announcement — Long time resident, and radio show host, Art Bell died today at 72 years old in his home in Pahrump Nevada,” the Sheriff’s Department has announced on Facebook.
Few other details were provided. Sharon Wehrly, Nye County Sheriff, said that Bell passed away on April 13, 2018, adding that he was “best known for his conspiracy theories.” How did Bell die? That’s unknown, at least for now. He is scheduled for an autopsy later this week to determine the cause of death and was 72-years-old, the sheriff said in a videotaped press announcement. You can watch that video press conference above.
The Nye County sheriff also shared the news of Art Bell’s death on Twitter:
Community Announcement — Long time resident, and radio show host, Art Bell died today at 72 years old in his home in Pahrump Nevada. t.co/eNOYD97i4b
However, Bell had suffered from a chronic lung disease that he attributed to smoking cigarettes and that landed him in the hospital in recent years. “I am not in good shape, so weak I cannot dress myself. I want to publicly thank my wife Airyn who never left my side and helped every moment day and night and still is. I went through every test known to man. Had a hole punched in my lung, MRI, PET scans, X-Rays, more blood tests then could be counted, was on Morphine the whole time,” he wrote on his website in 2016.
On Twitter, Bell’s last tweet was a retweet about UFOs. On Facebook, where he frequently posted photos of his family, Bell posted on April 12: “Download the free TuneIn app to listen LIVE FREE starting at 9 PM Pacific time!” On April 9, 2018, Bell seemed in typical form on his Facebook page, writing, “The FBI has just Raided the office of the President’s Lawyer. This is pretty serious stuff and I want to say again if the hate of Trump continues to be manifested by investigating everything Trump has ever done they will get him on something eventually. If you tear anybody’s life apart and look at every little thing they have ever done, you can get them.”
2. Airyn Bell Is From the Philippines & Sued Michael Savage With Her Husband
Art and Airyn Bell with their family.
Art Bell said on Facebook that his wife was Airyn Bell. Her Facebook page is filled with photos of the couple. Bell’s wife is from the Philippines, and she and Art Bell had sued radio host Michael Savage for defamation in recent years, a case that ended in settlement.
Airyn Bell
Savage was accused of making disparaging and false statements about the background of Airyn Bell, including her age when she married Art Bell. The lawsuit stated that Airyn Bell was 22-years-old at the time she married Art Bell. According to Insider Radio, Art Bell married “his wife Airyn Ruiz Bell in the Philippines.”
3. The Couple Married in 2006 & Airyn Filled Her Facebook Page With Family Photos
Airyn Bell
Airyn Bell’s Facebook page contains many photos of herself with Art Bell and a small girl, their daughter. “Thank you all, they are my everything and my life! Enjoy every moment you spend with them while you can!” she wrote on Facebook in 2016. Art Bell also filled his social media page with photos of their toddler son, Alexander, who was born in July 2017.
A friend wrote under one photo of Airyn, “You are SO pretty Airyn, Art is a lucky man, but then again you’re both lucky to have one another, we all love you both..!” Airyn responded, “Thanks…We are just even.”
Art and Airyn Bell
According to The Washington Times, “In 2006 he married a much younger Philippines national, Airyn Ruiz Bell, and announced his retirement the following year.”
4. Airyn & Art Bell Briefly Returned to Manila Together & He Left Radio to Spend More Time With His Family
Airyn Bell
According to the book Conspiracies and Secret Societies: The Complete Dossier, Art Bell and his wife had a daughter together named Asia.
Bell’s daughter was born in 2007, and he told radio listeners that he wanted to spend more time with his family, the book reports, adding that Airyn allegedly had some trouble getting a green card. As a result, says the book, the couple briefly returned to the Philippines, and Art Bell hosted a radio show in Manila. However, the family had returned to Nevada at the time of his death, as he died in the couple’s home there, per the Sheriff’s Department.
Bell had three other children with other spouses over the years.
5. Bell’s First Wife, Ramona, Died of an Asthma Attack & Airyn Reportedly Met Him After Expressing Condolences
The Conspiracies and Secret Societies book, which is authored by Brad and Sherry Steiger, states that Bell’s first wife, Ramona Bell, 47, who was married to him for 15 years, died of an asthma attack in 2006. They were on a vacation when this occurred, but only weeks after Ramona’s death, Bell had revealed to his listeners that there was a mystery in his life. (Bell was also married to Vickie L. Baker – for 10 years – and to Sachiko Toguchi Bell Pontius.)
According to the book, that mystery was his marriage to Airyn, who was described as a “recent college graduate” who contacted Bell to express condolences when his wife died. They “dated” on the Internet for “hundreds of hours,” according to the book, before he went to her home country and married her.
Ramona’s Find a Grave page contains photos of her.
Coast to Coast radio wrote, “Art Bell’s beloved wife of fifteen years, Ramona, died unexpectedly last night after an asthma attack. …It apparently took place during her sleep. Until her death, Art and Ramona Bell had not been apart a day since they were married. Mrs. Bell had suffered from asthma for years, and took her normal steps to control the attack, which occurred sometime last night in Laughlin, Nevada where the Bells were taking a brief vacation. Ramona Bell was 47 years old.”
Bell was a controversial radio personality. According to KTNV-TV, “Bell was the original owner of the Pahrump-based radio station KNYE 95.1FM and was known across the U.S. and in Canada for his paranormal radio program, ‘Coast to Coast.'” According to The Review Journal, Bell’s show “was syndicated on about 500 North American stations in the 1990s before he left the nightly show in 2002.” He was born in North Carolina, the newspaper reported.
According to Coast to Coast AM, “Art Bell is no ordinary talk show host, not just because ‘Coast to Coast AM’ is the dominant live all-night show in America today, but because Art’s a true radio fanatic, the ultimate ‘new media’ personality.” The site continued, “Art Bell’s grasp of the electronic revolution–and how to make it personal–is unique; he’s a talk show host primed to influence 21st century America in more ways than one.”
In 2015, KNPR reported that “Radio host Art Bell suddenly ended his long-running program this weekend, citing alleged threats made against him and his family.” The site continued at that time, “Bell says shots have been fired outside his residency, and that he has spotted trespassers near his home late at night.” However, authorities gave no indication that Bell died of unnatural causes.