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- Julie Chen is a television personality and news anchor
- She is married to Les Moonves
- She previously dated news anchor Gary Donahue
- The season 25 premiere of ‘Big Brother,’ which Julie hosts, debuts on Aug. 2, 2023
Julie Chen is ready to kick off another round of Big Brother! The 53-year-old television personality has been hosting the CBS reality competition since its debut in 2000, and season 25, which will also stream on Paramount+, premieres on Aug, 2. During the off-season, she was a co-anchor on The Early News from 2002 to 2010 and the moderator on The Talk from 2010 to 2018. Her Big Brother gig, however, has brought her a legion of fans unlike any other.
Right before Big Brother‘s season 25 premiere was set to air, Julie took to Instagram to share multiple gorgeous smiling photos of herself. She wore a black dress with only one sleeveless section and a multi-colored floral print as she hinted at her excitement in the caption. “It’s TIME #BB25 🎉🎉,” it read.
Four years into presenting the iconic series, which originated as a Dutch show, Julie wed then CBS CEO Les Moonves. The couple are still going from strength to strength. Find out all about Les, below.
Les hails from Brooklyn
Born on October 6, 1949, Les grew up in Brooklyn, New York in a Jewish family with three siblings. He graduated from Bucknell University, where he took courses in pre-med and Spanish. In 1971, he decided to change lanes and dive into acting.
He tried acting at first, appearing in small television roles
After college, Les set his sights on drama and eventually graduated from the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre. He first landed a small role in Barbary Coast and followed up with parts in Cannon and The Six Million Dollar Man. When he wasn’t satisfied with being in front of the camera, he turned his efforts to working behind the scenes.
Les got his start producing made-for-TV movies
In 1985, Les found a home at Lorimar Television, where he was in charge of the company’s movies and miniseries. In 1990, he was made the president of Lorimar, serving the post for three years. After Warner Bros. acquired Lorimar, Le became the President and CEO of Warner Bros. Television in 1993.
He brought ‘Friends’ and ‘ER’ to your living room
While he was President and CEO of Warner Bros. Television, Les gave the green light to Friends and ER, among other highly successful programs during that era. He left Warner Bros. to accept the position of president of CBS Entertainment in 1995. When he took over for CBS, he was featured on the cover of New York magazine, being called “Mr. TV” in a group hug with Jennifer Aniston, Teri Hatcher and George Clooney.
Les began dating Julie while his divorce was still pending
Les married Nancy Wiesenfeld in 1978 and they welcomed three children together. In 2003, they filed for divorce, although they were already living apart. Around that time, Les and Julie began a romance. 13 days after the divorce was finalized on December 10, 2004, Les and Julie got married in Acapulco. He and Julie gave birth to their only child together, a son named Charlie, in 2009.
He stepped down from CBS amid sexual harassment allegations
In July 2018, The New Yorker published an article by Ronan Farrow where six women accused him of harassment and intimidation. The following September, six more women came out to accuse him of sexual misconduct. While he denied all the allegations, Les stepped down as CBS CEO on September 9, 2018.
In a recent interview, Julie said she still stands by her man, and even went into detail about why she used her married name to sign off from Big Brother during a live episode in 2018, shortly after he resigned. “When his name was getting dragged through the mud, I thought this is the time to make my stand and to let the world know who I am,” she told Deadline. “And it was a sign of support for my husband. I know him. And he is a good man.”
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