Just a couple of short days ago, the news broke that Rosie O’Donnell and her girlfriend, Michelle Rounds, had gone ahead and tied the knot a few months ago. Prior to that announcement, we learned that not only did Rosie recently suffer from a severe heart attack (the type that she says her doctors described as “the Widow maker“) but also that Michelle has been diagnosed with desmoid tumors. In light of Michelle’s condition, she and Rosie decided that they would get married before Michelle had to undergo surgery. Sounds very committed and romantic, right? Well, Rosie didn’t let her feelings get in the way of springing a prenuptual agreement on Michelle in the days leading up to the wedding. The essence of the agreement — if Michelle ever cheats on Rosie, she’ll get nothing in the event of a divorce:
Before their secret rush wedding in June, Rosie O’Donnell subjected her new bride Michelle Rounds to eight months of grueling prenuptial negotiations – and she’ll get nothing if she cheats, Page Six can exclusively reveal.
Sources say O’Donnell, 50, was so tough in the talks that they didn’t get the prenup signed until hours before the intimate June 9 wedding, which was held in front of just a few people at O’Donnell’s home in Nyack.
While comedienne and talk-show host O’Donnell has been “extremely generous to Michelle in the prenup,” sources say, her 40-year-old bride “gets nothing if she cheats.” Lawyers for the pair had been in talks over the agreement since they were engaged last December.
The couple, who had planned to marry in August, brought the wedding forward after Rounds was diagnosed with rare desmoid tumors, also known as aggressive fibromatosis, in June. She had surgery June 14. Meanwhile O’Donnell has also had health issues. She revealed Aug. 20 that she recently suffered a heart attack.
Our source added, “Both women have health issues, but the prenup negotiations were pretty fraught in the days before the wedding. Rosie just wanted to get it signed under her terms. She wasn’t in the mood to make any compromises. Despite this, Rosie and Michelle truly love each other, and they wanted to marry before Michelle underwent surgery,” the source said.
Rounds has gone through several gastrointestinal operations to remove the tumors and is now recovering at home with O’Donnell. They are expected to have the wedding celebration later this year, when they are both feeling better.
“We married in private before her surgery, just the two of us,” O’Donnell wrote this week on her blog. “When we’re both well enough [we] will have the wedding of our dreams.”
[From Page Six]
I can’t really blame Rosie for including a cheating clause in the prenuptual agreement (which is already necessary due to Rosie’s vast fortune), but it sounds like Michelle may have had an issue with Rosie’s lack of trust on that issue if the agreement wasn’t even signed until right before the wedding. Generally speaking, I would agree that cheating is one of the the worst things (other than abuse) that can happen in a marriage, and in most situations, it should be grounds to gain absolutely no monetary benefit in a divorce. However, I can also see how it would be difficult to put up with grumpy, abrasive Rosie for the entirety of one’s life. All I have to say is this — Michelle must really love Rosie, and I hope they do last forever.
Photos courtesy of WENN
What I’ve noticed is that these older women are no different to men with their trophy wives and girlfriends: younger women.
yes and women with power are no different when it comes to cheating (there just arent many powerful women). the genders have difference but when it comes to bad behaviour we are the same.
I would not agree that women with power cheat and sleep with as many partners as powerful men. That is ridiculous.
Rosie is a mean, crazy, bipolar bitch.
How many men have prenups like this? Rosie is no different so she shouldn’t be judged for it , she has a lot to lose and I would do the same. Prenups are super complicated , some are like Rosie’s while others will state if someone in the relationship cheats they also pay monetarily for it . ( which I agree highly with ) I know it seems harsh to walk into a marriage with a prenup but with today’s nature of relationships you have to hope for the best and prepare for the worse, plain and simple. I feel like Rosie gets judged harder than others a lot of the time. I get she’s abrasive but we don’t know how she is behind closed doors
word.
totally fair.
they should each sign off on that.
it should be a law somehow in all marriages, pre-nup or not.
Call me crazy, but I remember a time when not cheating was just something you did as a function of being married.
agreed. But from my experience, the real world isnt like hollywood where people are over it and just excuse the cheating so quickly. Friendships and alliances are destroyed in the fall out of cheating and it sucks.
word.
Oh yeah because there is no cheating outside of Hollywood GMAB .There is probably cheating in 30% of marriages in the real world.So Page 6 knows about prenup but didnt know they were married for 2 months? Yeah right
@Kim I didn’t say there isn’t cheating outside of Hollywood, just that its not as easily accepted or easy in general and a lot of people (not just the couple/children) get hurt in the process.
Have you ever been close with a couple in your circle of friends then see that entire circle forced to choose sides or get subpoenas in a divorce case that went to trial out of spite? its ugly. So the person who cheated (who “started everything”) ends up with a lot more dislike than Hollywood would lead you to believe in these kind of situations.
Cheating is stupid and selfish and shows a remarkable low class of character and weakness. You can never justify it and I lose respect for people who do it.
Any GOOD lawyer will tell you every prenup must be signed at least 1 month before ceremony… That is to make sure both parties have plenty of time to think over the agreement before the stress of the wedding.. and so that no one feels that they are signing due to a rush …. That prenup * if true* will be thrown out … that is a fact… it has happened many times… That is how Halle Berry wound up paying her second husband alimony to the tune of 20k a month… because she had him sign the prenup the same day as the wedding…so not smart on Rosie’s part… Of course she will cheat … Rosie is mean and aggressive and not pretty …. Cheating clauses are always a good idea though… Oh what state did they marry in…? not many have same sex marriage as legal
Rosie has four kids and is hugely dedicated to children’s charities, so it would make sense (especially in a second marriage) to safeguard her money if the marriage tanked because of adultery. Michelle was obviously ok with this clause or she wouldn’t have signed it–she doesn’t want the world to think she’s a gold digger either.
As a divorce lawyer, I am finding that cohabitation agreements and marriage contracts actually help a relationship more than not–the parties know exactly what should happen in the event of a divorce and that usually takes a lot of the fear and jealousy out of a relationship. Not always, but in a lot of cases.
Sure, that’s fair. Truly fair though should be that Michelle gets compensation if Rosie is the one who cheats.
Abso-freaking-lutely. If you marry me and then cheat on me be glad that the only thing you’re leaving with is empty pockets and not a bloody nose.
Seriously though I think with the size of Rosie’s fortune it would be naive for her to not have a pre-nup in place and I think the no cheating clause is a very smart idea.
Rosie may be “grumpy and abrasive” but if you’re marrying her, you should already know this and be okay with “putting up with it for eternity.” If at some point she gets tired of Rosie, she should divorce her BEFORE she finds someone else– not cheat on her and then use her personality as the excuse.
Ugh. She’s repulsive.
i can totally understand it. abuse and cheating would be my big no goes where i wouldnt even try to rescue the marriage.
but how do you proof it? if your partner doesnt bone a director in a minicooper in broad daylight how would you prove that the partner cheated? thats impossible. i can accuse you of cheating, how could you prove that you didnt cheat?
must suck so hard to be cheated on and then have to give the cheater your money…
@lem, 100% yes!
Rosie still has a lot of money, so I don’t blame her for having a pre-nup. I would imagine many of them have a fidelity clause, so I don’t think that’s anything unusual either.
She does not seem like a pleasant person, but obviously Michelle is OK with it all and agreed to the terms. Good luck to both of them, especially with their health problems, that must be very stressful to BOTH be dealing with serious issues.
It would be much more fair if the prenup also stated that Michelle gets some sort of mega-compensation if Rosie cheats. It shouldn’t be so one sided.
I think it’s fair but can only think, “How would you like to wake up next to her every morning? Especially before she has her coffee?
Sure, that’s fair. She probably does get money if they split up for other reasons, such as if they wind up growing apart.
I’ve always liked Rosie and I hope she finds lasting love with this gal.
It sounds like she is finally getting smart with her money. Good for you, Rosie!
I think it’s totally fair.
On another note, I hope Rosie finally takes her health seriously and stops killing herself with food. Her kids almost lost a mother. She needs to wake up and take some action to be healthier for them!
I forgot she even had kids — where are they now?
I do hope they keep the happiness but I don’t know why this person gets married over and over. Seems to defeat the purpose. Like marriage is a joke.