Pamela Anderson and Jon Peters made headlines in January when they married after a whirlwind reunion — they'd first dated 30 years earlier — then made news again in early February when they split days after exchanging vows.
Early reports detailing their sudden breakup after less than two weeks of marriage pointed at Jon as the one who'd pressed for the sudden union. But now the Hollywood producer behind films including two versions of "A Star is Born" is speaking out to shoot down those claims and explain what he says really happened.
On Feb. 10, Jon, 74, told Page Six he was a "fool" for falling for Pam again and was hurt that things imploded with the "Baywatch" beauty, 52, after he paid off her sizable debts. According to Jon, "Everything they told you was a lie."
The "everything" he's referring to includes the version of events as described to Page Six in a report published on Feb. 8. "Pamela had just spent a month in India on an Ayurvedic cleanse, to start the new decade off fresh. She was doing constant meditation and yoga. She came back very open," a source close to the former couple told the New York Post's gossip column. "Jon has pursued her for 30 years. They were texting while she was in India and agreed they'd have lunch. The day she returned, Jon invited family and friends [over for lunch] and proposed to her. He had a friend 'officiate.' Essentially, it was a sweet ceremony, but ultimately, [no marriage license] was filed."
The "Batman" producer, however, tells Page Six that contrary to reports, he didn't propose to Pam — the marriage was her idea. "Needless to say that when she texted me that she wanted to get married, it was kind of a dream come true even though I was engaged to someone else and the lady was moving in," he explained. "I dropped everything for Pam. She had almost $200,000 in bills and no way to pay it so I paid it and this is the thanks I get. There's no fool like an old fool."
Jon also took issue with Page Six's source's claim that Pam found him "controlling." He said, "I welcomed her into my life with open arms and love since I have looked after her for many years. If she meant controlling- I've paid … [her] bills since she was broke. I bought her a completely new wardrobe. I didn't want to say anything just wanted it to be that we were going our own separate ways but when I read your article I felt the need to tell the true story."
Jon confirmed Page Six's earlier report that he ended their brief union via text. "There's a lot more to the story but I think the text … is self explanatory," he said. He shared a copy of the text with Page Six.
The text read, "these past 9 days have been a beautiful amazing love fest [but ] this whole marriage thing with lawyers, debt, and jazmin [sic] has scared me. it made me realize that at 74 i need a simple quiet life and not an international love affair." ("Jazmin" refers to Jasmin, a racy "sex-positive" lifestyle website that Pamela has been involved with for a year, Page Six explains.)
Jon continued, referring to Pam's relationship with the website, "Since I have worked my whole life to try to make something for myself, that was very concerning to me." He also told her, "i thought building an empire together would be fun but i was wrong. i am a simple guy who loves my kids. i don't want to fly back and forth to canada. as beautiful as that place is i don't like traveling. i'm sorry." (Pamela has a ranch in Canada where she spends a lot of her time.)
He also told Pam he still wanted to work with her in his upcoming film "Private Dancer," writing in his text, "i still want you to be in my movie. … this will be an amazing breakthrough for you. I can love you by giving you a new career. we need a couple weeks to detune then we can talk. i love you. jp." He then added, "ps-i have built a financial empire over the last 50 years that i've left all to my kids. it's something that is very private and personal to me. the thought of lawyers going through my business makes me want to throw up. i need a break. some time to think. i do love you. but i don't know how people get together when there's so much energy around the couple."
Pamela's rep hit back at Jon's side of the story, telling the New York Post, "These claims are not only entirely fabricated, they are ludicrous. Despite Mr. Peters' efforts to elicit a response from Ms. Anderson, she has no comment to provide and wishes him well."
Pam previously told People magazine in a statement following the end of their brief romance, "Jon and I have been friends for a very long time. He has been nothing but nice to me and, for that, I love him. Jon opened up his heart and home to me, has helped me through sad times, and I only have kind words to say about him. We remain friends."