Gayle King’s ex-husband, William Bumpus, praises her ‘fantastic’ Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover: ‘My teenage fantasy’
Gayle King’s ex-husband, William Bumpus, can’t get enough of her “fantastic” Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover.
“Well, I can mark off one more item on my highly unlikely to ever happen bucket list! My teenage fantasy of hooking up with a Sports Illustrated Model has finally come true,” the lawyer wrote in a statement to Page Six Sunday.
“WOW! Bravo to you Gayle … You Look Fantastic! Bravo to Sports Illustrated for selecting YOU!”
Bumpus — who was married to King from 1982 to 1993 — added that his ex has always “been Beautiful Inside and Out (sic).”
“I appreciate you more and more as time goes on, as a trailblazer, and also when I see our phenomenal kids and grandkids!” he continued. “I am proud of you and continue to wish you nothing but happiness. Enjoy!”
William and the “CBS Mornings” host, 69, share two children: daughter Kirby Bumpus, 38, and son William Bumpus Jr., 37.
The former couple allegedly faced infidelity in their marriage, with King claiming to have found her ex-husband “naked” in bed with another woman in 1990.
She recalled the incident during a 2016 Vanity Fair Q&A when she was asked, “Which living person do you most despise?”
“Despise is a strong word. I’m not a huge fan of the woman who I caught naked with my now ex-husband on June 24, 1990, at 9:16 p.m. — but I don’t remember the details,” the TV personality said at the time.
Days later, William opened up about the alleged infidelity to Page Six, telling us, “I have been haunted with this life altering choice. Though I have dealt with this privately … I publicly apologize for the major transgression that dramatically changed all of our lives.”
However, the two appear to now have an amicable relationship since King quipped she was going to send her ex a copy of her SI Swimsuit cover.
“I wonder what my ex-husband is saying,” she told “Entertainment Tonight” Thursday. “I’m gonna send him a copy!”
Last week, King made her glamorous debut in the magazine for the special 60th-anniversary issue alongside Kate Upton and Hunter McGrady.
While the media mogul was told she would only be featured on the inside of the magazine, she was shocked to learn she had made the cover.
“This is going to be on the newsstand? Oh my God!” she said while holding the issue on “CBS Mornings.”
King candidly opened up about her insecurities, recalling when her grandma told her, “Mother nature was not as kind to you as she was to other little girls. Maybe you need to start wearing makeup like your friend [Oprah].”
“But when I look at that, I look damn good,” she added.
The television host is also joined in the issue by Tyra Banks, Martha Stewart, Paulina Porizkova, Nina Agdal, Brooklyn Decker and other icons.
