Assuming he doesn’t win Joan Vassos’ heart on The Golden Bachelorette season 1, which is currently airing on ABC, Mark Anderson should replace Gerry Turner as The Golden Bachelor. The first season of the Bachelor spin-off was a huge hit. It was historic because it was the first unscripted dating show about elderly singles, and audiences ate it up. The show turned 72-year-old Gerry into a household name overnight, and women came from all over the country for a chance to meet the retired widower. Some of them were also widowers, while many were divorcees. After dating 22 impressive bachelorettes in their 60s and 70s, Gerry gave his final rose to Theresa Nist, a 70-year-old day trader and fellow widower.
The women weren’t the only ones falling in love with Gerry during The Golden Bachelor season 1, as audiences fell head over heels for the tall, attractive septuagenarian too. Gerry had style, he had charisma, and he was a good communicator. The tide turned against Gerry when it was revealed that he hadn’t been completely honest about his career, and, even worse, that he had been dishonest about his relationship status since the death of his late wife. Despite all the flapping red flags waving all over the place, Theresa married Gerry anyway. When their ill-advised marriage ended after only three months, the damage was done to Gerry’s reputation… and the Golden Bachelor brand. Mark would be the perfect Golden Bachelor to save the brand.
10 Mark Is Bachelor Nation Royalty
He’s A Fan Favorite
While Gerry was an unknown, Mark had practically reached the status of Bachelor Nation royalty. Mark was living a life of relative obscurity when his daughter, 26-year-old Kelsey Anderson, brought her boyfriend, 28-year-old Joey Graziadei, home to meet her father during The Bachelor season 28. Mark’s brief television debut catapulted him to fan favorite status among the show’s devoted fans.
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These days, Mark is busy competing for Joan’s roses on The Golden Bachelorette season 1, which is currently airing on ABC. If Joan hands Mark her final rose, all bets are off, and producers will have to find another telegenic senior citizen to be the next Golden Bachelor. However, if Joan makes the terrible mistake of choosing someone other than Mark, the father of five would make the perfect lead for the second season of the hit show.
9 Mark Has More Masculine Energy Than Gerry
He’s Less Emotional Than Gerry
Maybe it’s because he’s a military man, but Mark has more masculine energy than Gerry, which might make for a more attractive lead. The Golden Bachelorette season 1 contestant is a retired Army veteran, and he presents himself as more of a man’s man than Gerry was. Gerry was an extremely sensitive and emotional lead. That really worked for the show’s first season, but the show needed a major shakeup. On more than one occasion, Gerry was moved to tears during his season of the show, and it would be hard to imagine Mark breaking down in such a manner. Gerry was an extremely entertaining lead, and the show owes a lot of its success to his star power, but it’s time to try a different kind of lead, and Mark is the perfect guy.
8 Mark’s Got A Great Backstory
He Served His Country
Before becoming Bachelor Nation royalty, Mark was a retired Army veteran living in Leesville, Louisiana. That’s where he raised his five children. During a date with Joey on The Bachelor season 28, Kelsey talked about how she and her father weren’t very close while she was growing up because he worked so much.
Mark loved his children very much, and they knew how much he loved them, but he was busy serving his country.
A man like Mark could have chosen to do anything in his life, but the fact that he wanted to serve his country says a lot about his sense of honor and duty. After Kelsey’s mother passed away, Mark became a single father of four, and he and Kelsey grew much closer. These days, Kelsey relies on her father’s judgment throughout her life.
7 Mark Deserves To Find Love Again
Second Chances
One of The Golden Bachelor‘s most compelling themes is the notion of second chances. Mark is no stranger to true love, as he had been married to Kelsey’s mother, Denise Anderson, for 18 years before she passed away in 2018. Like Mark, Denise was also an Army officer, and the couple met overseas while they were both serving their country. Denise was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer and, according to Kelsey, her mother died only two months after finding out she was sick.
The whole Anderson family was devastated by the unexpected loss, and it was difficult for Mark to move on.
Mark was broken by the loss of his wife, but had to be strong for his four children, who needed him more than ever after losing their beloved mother. Mark has been single ever since and is now giving love another shot on The Golden Bachelorette season 1. Kelsey recently posted an Instagram photo of her parents taken way back in the day, when her parents were a lot younger.
6 Mark’s Bilingual
Sort Of
During an early episode of The Golden Bachelorette season 1, Mark took Joan aside for some one-on-one time, away from the other men in the Bachelor mansion. He told her that he had lived in Germany while serving in the Army, and that he had learned to speak German. He then taught her how to ask for a kiss in German. After that, he gave her a kiss. That smooch must have gone well because Joan followed up by leaning in for another kiss. It was an adorable exchange, though his bilingual skills would have been more impressive if he wasn’t reading from note cards. It’s unclear how much German Mark actually speaks, but the cute moment was a great example of the kind of fun Bachelor lead Mark would be.
5 Mark Has A High Emotional IQ
A Man Of Quiet Strength
Kelsey talked about her father a lot during her time on The Bachelor season 28, so expectations were high, and Mark didn’t disappoint fans. During Kelsey’s hometown date, Mark memorably showed Kelsey and Joey a photo album of photos of Mark and his late wife, offering a glimpse into his own love story. It was a touching moment that brought all three of them closer together, and made it clear that Kelsey leans on her father for his quiet strength and guidance.
”
I want all of you to feel that feeling I had with your mother,
” Mark later told his daughter.
Despite being telegenic and charming, Gerry didn’t always have the best judgment. One example of Gerry’s questionable judgment took place during The Golden Bachelor season 1, when he told 65-year-old Leslie Fhima that she was “the one”, but then gave his final rose to Theresa instead. It’s hard to understand why Gerry would tell someone that she was his soulmate if he wasn’t planning on choosing her. His bad judgment continued when he rushed into an ill-advised marriage with Theresa.
4 Mark’s More Honest Than Gerry
More Authentic
Gerry’s terrible judgment was on display long before The Golden Bachelor season 1 aired, when Gerry lied to producers about his career and relationship status. Though Gerry billed himself as a retired restaurateur, he had actually sold his local diner decades ago. He’d been doing odd jobs as a maintenance man ever since.
Even worse, Gerry lied about having been single since his late wife, Toni Turner, died in 2017.
It was revealed that not only had Gerry started dating immediately after his wife died, but he had also been in a long-term relationship with a live-in girlfriend. Making matters worse, the relationship ended badly with Gerry unceremoniously throwing the woman out of his house. It’s hard to imagine Mark engaging in blatant dishonesty, which already sets him head and shoulders above Gerry.
3 Mark Isn’t In It For The Fame
Gerry Enjoyed His Celebrity
Mark was minding his own business when Kelsey decided to apply to be on Joey’s season of The Bachelor.He never expected to be on television, and he certainly didn’t pursue reality television fame. He was just a widowed father of four living in Louisiana, and trying to live his best, most authentic life when television fame came to find him.
For his part, Gerry enjoyed his celebrity status and reveled in his fame.
At one point, Gerry was so famous that he was invited to the home of reality television celebrity Kris Jenner for a Bachelor viewing party. He was invited because Kris’s daughter, Kendall Jenner, was a big fan of Gerry’s and wanted to meet him. According to Kendall, Gerry flirted with Kris during the night, which ws awkward because he was engaged to Theresa at the time.
2 Kelsey & Joey Would Be Around More Often
Crossover Appeal
Since The Bachelor season 28 came to an end, Kelsey and Joey have become prominent social media influencers, and Mark often appears in Kelsey’s TikToks. If Mark is cast as The Golden Bachelor, there’s no doubt that Kelsey and Joey would make more than a few appearances on the show. The crossover appeal is off the charts.
Mark has 20.3K Instagram followers, and his account is growing quickly.
In addition to being a recurring guest star on Kelsey’s massive TikTok account, Mark posts to Instagram, where he has 20.3K followers and is growing. He started his account in 2014, and, these days, he mostly posts about The Golden Bachelorette season 1. In one of his most recent Instagram posts, Mark shared a photo of Joan offering him a rose during the first rose ceremony. Mark’s post has 5.4K likes, and his caption reads, in part, “My first rose ceremony….“
1 Mark Is A Nice Guy
Nice Guys Don’t Always Finish Last
Though Gerry was a nice enough guy, he was revealed to be a more complicated person than initially perceived. Mark is the type of person who fans expected Gerry to be; kind, authentic, and open to love. While Gerry made bad choices and ended up damaging The Golden Bachelor brand, Mark is the kind of person who can save the franchise with his authentic kindness and his sense of duty.
Though Mark would make the perfect lead, he may not be on the market for much longer.
Bachelor Nation On ABC recently released a trailer for The Golden Bachelorette season 1 on YouTube. The clip begins with Kelsey stepping out of the limousine on night one and telling Joan that there’s someone she’d like to introduce her to. When Mark stepped out of the limousine, Joan beamed, expressing real excitement over meeting the tall, handsome fellow widower. Though Joan seemed excited about meeting Mark, if she was foolish enough to send him home, he should be cast as The Golden Bachelor.
Mark Anderson | 57 years old |
Job | Retired Army Veteran |
Hometown | Leesville, Louisiana |
Marital Status | Widowed (18 year marriage) |
Children | 4 |
The Golden Bachelor season 1 can be streamed on Hulu.
Sources: Kelsey Anderson/Instagram, Mark Anderson/Instagram, Mark Anderson/Instagram, Bachelor Nation On ABC/YouTube
