Behind the Scenes at ‘The Golden Bachelorette: The Men Tell All’ Episode Taping

Pascal, Jonathan, Joan and other favorites went off-camera with AARP to dish about the show

Maria Speidel,

AARP

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Published November 06, 2024

a scene from an episode of the golden bachelorette

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Fans of ABC’s The Bachelor/Bachelorette reality dating show franchise know we are rolling towards the big reveal for this first season of The Golden Bachelorette, the network’s version of the show for older singles (airing Wednesday nights on ABC, 8-10 p.m. ET; streaming on Hulu the next night). We’ve watched as Joan Vassos, 61, a widow, mother and grandmother from Rockville, Maryland, has winnowed down a field of 24 men to two.

She’s now left with Chock, 60, the amorous insurance executive from Wichita, Kansas, and Guy, 66, the earnest and also-smitten doctor from Reno, Nevada. Her pick (or decision not to pick either one) will be revealed during the November 13 finale.

On November 6, though, the show took a break from the drama and tears to air a special “Men Tell All” episode, where 15 of Joan’s former suitors dished about their experience in front of a studio audience. AARP went to the episode’s taping, held on a late-October afternoon at a soundstage in Burbank, California.

We watched as the men sang songs, revisited some favorite moments, and talked about how their lives have changed since they’ve appeared on show. Most poignantly, Michael, 65, a retired banker from Charlotte, N.C., revealed that he’d hid a cancer diagnosis during filming this past summer. The guys also continued their debate about whether or not barbecue sauce belongs on hamburgers, and discussed how much they loved their late-night bonding sessions around the pool, when the cameras were gone.

Joan showed up at the Burbank studio in a smashing gown with the same kind of plunging neckline she rocked throughout the season — but looked much tinier in person.

Following the taping, five of the mansion men (and the Golden Bachelorette herself) spent some time with AARP spilling even more tea.

Here’s what we learned.

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Joan

The show’s star said she hopes she can inspire all the older singles to take a chance on love. “I think it’s hard because society tells us...we’re done. People might think, ‘Oh, do I look silly, wanting to date?’ We need to get rid of all those ideas. You don’t have to be relegated to a support role. Your kids will be fine without you. You don’t need to be their babysitter, and you deserve to have a life. You shouldn’t give up if you really want to have love in your life.”

Of course, Joan would never reveal whether she actually did find love on the show, although she admitted that she’s not great at keeping secrets (“I suck at it”). Plus, it wouldn’t be fun for viewers, she added: “I really love watching Bachelor seasons when the ending isn’t spoiled. I want this season to be a surprise.”

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Pascal

From Episode 1, when the sexy Paris-born Chicago salon owner, 70, declared, “I sleep naked,” in that rich French accent and started paying fellow bachelor Greg to do his laundry ($100 a load!), Pascal was an easy mark for ridicule. But Joan (and we) warmed to the divorced dad’s continental-sized heart.

He was among the final three men in Episode 7, filmed in Tahiti, where they each would have the chance to spend a night alone with Joan, without cameras, in a Fantasy Suite (Joan made clear that the fantasy wouldn't include sex). But before their date reached that crucial point, Pascal told the devastated Joan that he wasn’t in love with her, and split.

He revealed to AARP that he’d wanted to stay in the Fantasy Suite with Joan, so he could explain his feelings in private, but, “my producer said, ‘Absolutely not. Because if you go to the Fantasy Suite and you break up after, people [are] going to have a bad opinion that you took advantage of her — sex isn’t good, whatever.’” (Pascal apparently thought his French charms would have changed her mind about no hanky-panky during the overnight dates.)

a man and woman sitting next to each other on a bench

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Charles L.

Endearing Charles, 66, a retired data analyst from Pennsylvania, had changed a bit since the summertime taping: His formerly salt-and-pepper hair was newly dyed black, and he sported a custom-made suit fitted on a recent trip to China, where he was born. He told AARP that bonding with other men on the show was a revelation, and helped him heal as a widower. “For example, I was very concerned, what if I moved on, what my kids would think about it, right?” he said. The other guys helped him process those feelings, assuring him that, “The kids want to see a happy dad.”

Later, the guys joked with us about who was the most fit among them. Gary, 65, voted for Gil, 60: “He would get in the pool and swim like 40 or 50 laps." But the ever-confident Charles nominated himself, pointing to the group’s rather aggressive kickball game in Episode 3, where he scored the winning point, and “I was the only one who did not get hurt at all.”

a man and woman walking toward a helicopter

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Keith

The girl-dad and guy’s guy from San Jose, California, 62, said the show has motivated him to get out there and start looking for love. “It’s easy just to hang out with your friends, your guys, and not go out. What I learned from the show is that I want a partner. And in order to get a partner, you can’t just call up your buddies, you actually have to go out on dates.”

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Jonathan

The handsome shipping consultant from small-town Iowa, 61, wasted no time getting back in the dating game after leaving the Bachelor Mansion; he revealed during the taping that he had met someone new. “I found her on a dating app,” Jonathan later explained to AARP. “It’s so new, but it’s exciting, happy. She’s happy. You know, we are about the same age. We both have youthful spirits. So yeah, at this point we’re just both happy you know we’re in each other’s lives.”

But, yes, he added, it is strange to have your new girlfriend watch you dating someone else on national television. “She saw me wooing Joan, saw me kissing Joan,” Jonathan says. “So there were some uncomfortable moments. I just tried to give her some reassurances, like, you know, this is where we are right now. This is who I am right now. This is something that happened.”

Most importantly, does the new woman appreciate his brief turn as a Chippendale’s dancer on Episode 4, where he tore off his shirt and trousers revealing tiny, shiny golden underpants? “Oh, she did,” Jonathan said. “Absolutely.”

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Gary

Californian Gary, 65, the emotional, upbeat retired finance executive, said that he nicknamed Joan “Sunshine,” because, “She was a ray of sunshine in my life, with her blonde hair, and always just so fabulous with how she was carrying herself.” (She called him Goldy to celebrate his preference for yellow clothing.)

But he told us he’s being extremely cautious while seeking a new romantic partner: “I have someone potentially right around the corner. Let’s see how everything plays out. I don’t want to move too fast, but I'm building up enough confidence to say it’s closer than I think. I just have to be patient and let it happen.”

See you next week for the big reveal!

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