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'Never Thought That I Would Get Married': Don Lemon Ties The Knot With Longtime Partner Tim Malone
Don Lemon and Tim Malone made it down the altar five years after getting engaged. They tied the knot in a New York City ceremony at the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in midtown Manhattan on Saturday.
CNN anchor Don Lemon, who hosts his own streaming program, The Don Lemon Show, has officially tied the knot with his longtime partner Tim Malone, a distinguished real estate broker.
The couple exchanged vows on Saturday, April 6, in a beautiful ceremony held in New York City. In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, just days before their wedding, Lemon and Malone shared their excitement for the upcoming event.
Don Lemon ties the knot with Tim Malone
Don Lemon married his longtime partner Tim Malone, a real estate broker, on April 6 in New York City. Speaking exclusively to PEOPLE, a few days before the wedding, the grooms revealed they weren't stressed about the big day.
Lemon said, “I'm a last-minute person, and most things I just don't worry about.” However, his wedding is proving to be an exception to the rule.
“But this one I'm secretly worried about, but I'm letting Tim take the reins because he's a good planner," he continued. Lemon added, "I'll be writing questions for like the U.N. ambassador and he'll be saying, ‘Oh, when are they going to put the buttons on our jackets?’ It's an important question, but I'm just like, 'Huh? What?’ So he has a million questions, but usually he gets it done without me even answering.”
The ceremony at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in midtown Manhattan was officiated by the United States ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield in front of roughly 140 guests.
"She's a friend, and it means that much to us," Lemon said of having Thomas-Greenfield as their officiant.
For the service, the grooms wore custom suits by Suit Supply and exchanged rings designed by Mark Lash, and incorporated marriage traditions inspired by each of their families into their unique ceremony.
“Tim is from a big Irish family, so we planned a big Irish blessing in there in his ceremony," Lemon said. He also noted the blessing was led by Malone’s two sisters.
Lemon further added that “at the end we jump over a broom.” This, Lemon and Malone said paid respect to the once symbolic way for enslaved people in the American South to recognize their marriages, noting that today this tradition is a way to honor those who did it before them.
Lemon and Malone, who have been engaged for five years, said it was important for them that they have a big, traditional wedding day.
“We wanted to make a public statement,” Malone said, “and we wanted to involve our loved ones. We obviously could have easily gone to city hall." He added, "We could have used Covid as a perfect excuse to do something really quiet. But I think this is also a message. For I don't know what percent of our guests, on both sides, but for a lot of them it's going to be their first gay wedding.”
Both Don Lemon and Tim Malone wanted a traditional wedding
Tradition was important to both Don Lemon and Tim Malone right from the start. Malone was raised in a Catholic family and Lemon’s family is Baptist, so the news anchor knew he "wanted to have a religious service.”
“I wanted to get married in the church. So Tim made that happen," Lemon said. However, when it came time to prepare their vows, the couple opted for a mixture of traditional and new elements.
“I have not been nervous about anything except writing the vows," Lemon revealed. He added, "We are saying our own personal vows and then we're doing the traditional wedding ceremony vows.”
The wedding of Lemon and Malone was a ceremony filled with music, with the couple entering the church to What a Wonderful World and exiting to Signed, Sealed, Delivered. The couple lit a unity candle with their mothers at the end.
The event was attended by a star-studded guest list, including Clive Davis, Joy Behar, Sara Haines, Ana Navarro-Cárdenas, Sunny Hostin from The View, Matt Lauer, Luann de Lesseps, Darren Star, Tamron Hall, and Alec and Hilaria Baldwin. CNN's Kate Bolduan, Erin Burnett, and Dana Bash also attended the wedding.
Following the ceremony, guests formed a New Orleans-style "second line" and marched to Ralph Lauren's Polo Bar, where they enjoyed a special menu featuring chicken-under-a-brick and petit fours, decorated with photos from their time together, providing a full-circle moment for the newlyweds.
“We had our first date at the Polo Bar,” Malone said, adding, “It was election night in 2016. We had gone to a viewing party downtown.”
“Isn’t that where you tipped a table over?” Lemon asked, to which Malone replied with a laugh, "Yes!"
“So, that night we went to this party at Cipriani,” Lemon continued, "and all these fancy people were there, stars, Martha Stewart. They put these plywood pieces on the table to make them bigger. And when Tim sat down, he hit the edge, and flipped the entire table. All the glassware, all the candles, everything went flying. And I was like, ‘Alright, well that’s our first date right there.'"
At the reception, guests dined on the restaurant’s famous bone-in ribeye which they ate on their first date, plus Dover sole, salmon, and cauliflower steak. The grooms changed into Nike Dunks and celebrated, with music provided by DJ Tokyo Rose, also known as Erica Hamilton.
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