The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer has provided some insight into why ABC chose Mel Owens to star on The Golden Bachelor's second season.

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ABC announced on Tuesday, April 22 that Mel will be handing out roses when The Golden Bachelor returns, and so none of the men from Joan Vassos' The Golden Bachelorette season were selected to be the lead.

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"Mel is obviously super handsome. He's very charming, he's very intelligent, he's very successful," Jesse boasted of the 66-year-old lawyer and former NFL football player in an interview with Us Weekly.

"He had this incredible pro football career and transitioned into becoming a successful warrior."

Jesse added, "I think while he's had a lot of success professionally, there have been some hills and valleys in his personal life."

Mel, who was born and raised in Detroit, MI, graduated from the University of Michigan and was drafted by the LA Rams in 1981. He went on to play nine seasons of professional football before retiring from the NFL and transitioning into a law career.

Mel, who now lives Orange County, CA, was married for 25 years to his "first love," with whom he welcomed two sons, before they divorced.

ABC shared that when Mel got divorced and had to grieve the death of his father, he channeled his energy into being the best father he could be and coaching their extracurricular sports teams.

"The tragic passing of his father, he went through a divorce -- I think oftentimes you find out about somebody's character when they go through tough, difficult times and it shifted all his focus and attention to raising his two boys," Jesse explained.

"He really became this devoted father, he put so much energy into them."

Jesse, a former NFL quarterback-turned-Bachelor himself, apparently got to spend some quality time with Mel and his kids earlier this week.

"I had a chance to visit with him and his kids yesterday, and it's really a unique and special bond to watch," Jesse gushed.

"I think he's in this unique time now where he can finally focus a little bit more on it himself. His kids are getting ready to go off to college, and I think he really wants to find a special person."

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Jesse said he believes that Mel is looking for genuine and lasting love, but not necessarily a fairy-tale story.

"I don't think he's necessarily looking for anything heavily extravagant," Jesse noted.

"When you talk with him, what he misses most about being married and being in a relationship, it's just having and enjoying those simple everyday moments."

The Bachelor host insisted Mel is "just looking for companionship" in its purest state.

"And just listening to him talk about it is really moving," Jesse shared.

"So I think he's going to be a great lead. I think he's a great choice to be our next Golden Bachelor."

Mel will be following in the footsteps of Season 1 The Golden Bachelor star Gerry Turner.

Gerry proposed marriage to his The Golden Bachelor winner, Theresa Nist, on the show's Season 1 finale in late 2023.

Gerry and Theresa, proudly showing off their love, rushed to the altar and got married in January 2024 for a televised wedding special on ABC.
 
Three months later, however, Gerry announced his split from Theresa and claimed distance was the problem.

Gerry filed for divorce from Theresa in April 2024, and then the pair's divorce was finalized in June 2024.

Since then, Theresa has said there's more to her breakup with Gerry than just the miles between them, and Gerry has claimed his early 2024 diagnosis with an incurable cancer had major influence over the pair's decision to part ways.

But Joan, the first star of The Golden Bachelorette, did, in fact, find her happily ever after.

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Joan picked Chock Chapple as her The Golden Bachelorette winner on the show's finale in November 2024, and the pair is still happily engaged and making a long-distance relationship work.

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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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