﻿When Mark Consuelos walked onto a television set for an audition, he never thought he would land
the role… and meet the love of his life! Mark and Kelly Ripa have been married for 26 years.
They have three children, successful careers, and a business together. How do they do it? Well, the
couple has never shied away from discussing the secrets of their marriage… and their sex life!
In 1995, Mark Consuelos walked into the set of "All My Children" to audition for a role. What
he didn't know is that actress Kelly Ripa had put her eye on him even before that moment. The
actress revealed on the SiriusXM radio show that they had been looking for the character for some
time and had auditioned A TON of Latino actors! According to Kelly, the casting director saw
Mark's photograph and said, "I found him!" Ripa gazed at Consuelos' photograph and
felt what she later described as love at first sight. "I never thought about getting married,
it never occurred to me that I would grow old with someone," the actress confessed.
But when she saw the photograph, "I saw my entire future with him."
When Mark came to do his audition, Kelly was so nervous she even went to touch up her hair and
makeup! However, the actor was focused on other things. "I wasn't thinking about getting lucky. I
was worried about getting the job," he told People Magazine. However, he did think Ripa was "cute."
Consuelos later told the Huffington Post he found the actress to be adorable and hot. However,
he did not think he stood a chance. Well, Mark was wrong! He got the role and fell in love with Kelly
soon after they started working together. In 2020, the actress has reflected on the
moment they met by saying, "It really was a happy accident. It changed my entire life."
"Happy" is certainly the word to describe it! The lovebirds were worried their cast mates
wouldn't take their romance well, so they decided to hide their love!
Consuelos has explained that people tend to think dating your co-star will lead to problems.
However, as time went by, the pair decided not to hide any more. The stars made their official
debut at the 1996 Soap Opera Digest Awards red carpet! To make matters even more special,
the ceremony took place on Valentine's Day! Could this story be more romantic?
The couple did break up for a brief period less than a year after they began dating. However,
they soon got back together and decided to take their relationship further.
A day after reuniting, the lovebirds eloped in Las Vegas!
On her show, "Live with Kelly and Ryan," Ripa described the wedding as very normal
and regular. "We were like, Now, this is gambling! Woohoo!'" The ceremony was also
very cheap and cost them 179 dollars, including airfare! The stars apparently redeemed some
airline miles. Talk about efficiency! The pair tried to keep the elopement a
secret but were not in luck. According to Ripa, someone recognized the actors
in Vegas and called the show! That must have been an interesting day at work!
Although some may view the couple's low-key wedding as underwhelming, Kelly is certain it was
the right choice for her and Mark. She confessed that she does not think they would have made it to
the ceremony had they organized a big wedding. The Daytime Emmy winner believes there would have
been a lot of hard feelings and blame. "We do not feel less married," she continued. "As
a matter of fact, we feel more married than those people, because we're still married."
After tying the knot, the lovebirds went to Italy for their honeymoon. Consuelos told Soap Opera
Digest, "She deserved a beautiful place to go, and I couldn't think of a more beautiful place."
A few months later, Ripa announced her pregnancy. Since her character in "All
My Children" wasn't going to have a baby, the show had to come up with creative ways to hide
her belly. The actress revealed that she used to carry luggage, guitar cases, and even trees!
Kelly and Mark chose one of their co-stars in the soap opera, Eva LaRue,
to be their baby's godmother. The actors now have three children, who are grown up
and beginning to walk their own paths. As well as successful parents, they are
also compatible as business partners! They have worked together on several projects, and Consuelos
makes regular appearances on "Live with Kelly and Ryan," a program where his wife is the co-host.
The pair enjoyed working together so much that they decided to create a joint production company,
Milojo Productions. They made the name by adding the first two letters of their children's names,
Michael, Lola, and Joaquin. Aww, how sweet is that?
The company has been involved in projects such as the show "Cheer”, "Let's Get Physical", and
"The Disappearance of Cari Farver". The couple's eldest son, Michael, is currently listed as an
associate producer on the company’s website. He has also followed his parent's footsteps
when it comes to acting and even played a younger version of his dad's character on "Riverdale!"
As well as working together, they also support each other in their separate career moves. When
Kelly released "Live Wire," a book containing real life stories, Mark made sure to join her
on several stops of the book tour. Meanwhile, Ripa joined Consuelos on
"Riverdale"! Kelly played her husband's mistress. The actress uploaded a photo
from the set on Instagram and wrote, "23 years of auditioning for a role I was born to play."
Recently, Kelly and Mark made another bold business choice: buying a football team.
The couple now co-owns Campobasso 1919, an Italian team.
In 2022, Campobasso wasn't admitted into the Italian league because of "administrative
failures." In a statement, Mark explained that he and his wife were moved by the fans, who were at
risk of losing a sport they loved. They plan to turn things around for the team by increasing its
social media presence and commercial activities. How does the couple manage to succeed both in
love and business? According to Kelly, it's because they push through rough patches. On
"Live with Kelly and Ryan," the presenter explained that relationships are marathons,
not sprints, and you have to accept that there will sometimes be fighting and disagreements.
"If you take a breath, you usually can't remember what you're fighting about."
The pair is not only open about their relationship dynamics, they also aren't
shy when it comes to discussing more… intimate issues. In an interview, Ripa explained that
meeting at a young age helped her and Consuelo's love life. "We were pliable to each other."
On Kelly's show, the couple also opened up about an embarrassing moment:
their daughter Lola walking in while they were having sex. The incident happened on
Lola's 18th birthday, so she shouted, "You just ruined my birthday! And my life!"
The presenter already revealed that the children don't take ANY sign of PDA well.
"If Mark gives me a kiss, they're like, 'Ugh, ugh!'," she said. Hopefully, the
family managed to turn Lola's birthday around! In her book, Kelly talks about her sex life even
further. She revealed that she once fainted after being physically intimate with Mark.
When she woke up, she was in the hospital. However, the actual reason had nothing to do with
sex. The star was suffering from ovarian cysts. Consuelos has also confessed that he sometimes
settles issues with what he calls "sexy time". The actor even told the audience
of Ripa's talk show that he once thought a "live-changing" conversation they were
having would turn into "sexy time". "You think that about everything," Kelly joked. Mark then
answered, "That's how I deal with stress". Although all these confessions are certainly
surprising, perhaps one of the most funny ones came when the actress appeared on "Watch What
Happens Live with Andy Cohen". During a game, the host asked Kelly about the
different places she and Mark have had sex. The actress confessed she and her husband had
“relations” in a public bathroom, on a boat, and even on the set of "All My Children"! Cohen then
asked if the couple had ever been intimate in any of his houses since he is friends with them.
Kelly revealed that they did have sex in Andy's house in Fire Island, New York. She explained
that the house was a rental, so they didn't feel like they were desecrating Cohen's property.
Ripa then explained that she and Consuelos have never had sex in department store dressing rooms
or on the set of "Live with Kelly and Ryan". Later, the Daytime Emmy winner
told Cohen she doesn't get tired of sex with her husband. Well, good for them!
Kelly explained that the woman comes first whenever they are intimate. She then added that
she and Mark have sex "like bunnies" and confirmed that he pleases her "over and over again."
Well, these two seem to know how to make each other happy in all aspects of life. Here at
Rumour Juice, we wish them and their children many more years of happiness!