Kelly Ripa Shouts Out ‘All My Children’ Casting Director For Finding Her A Husband: “The Reason That Mark Consuelos And I Are Married”

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By Alex Vena

Published Jan. 15, 2025, 11:03 a.m. ET

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos have someone special to thank for their relationship.

On Wednesday morning’s Live with Kelly and Mark, Ripa shared that she had attended an event on Tuesday (Jan. 14) honoring the 55th anniversary of All My Children, which Live fans very well know is how the two married co-hosts met.

“What a gang was assembled,” she gushed.

Held at the 92nd Street Y and hosted by Andy Cohen and Susan Lucci, the event was attended by several cast members, as well as the soap opera’s head writer Lorraine Broderick and casting director Judy Blye Wilson. Ripa praised Wilson as “the reason that Mark Consuelos and I are married.”

“Not only was she the casting director at All My Children, but unbeknownst to her, found me a husband in the process,” she quipped.

Consuelos, who played Mateo alongside Ripa’s Haley on the ABC soap, said he “got to stop by backstage,” noting that he “wanted to see [Wilson] because she found me.”

“She plucked me out of obscurity, Gelman,” he explained. “She found me in Tampa. Not only did she find me and they set me up for an audition, but once I got there, she really, really fought for me.”

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos on 'Live with Kelly and Mark'Photo: ABC

Consuelos explained that he “had to re-audition” for the role “a couple times” while he was working.

“And if it wasn’t for her, like you said, I wouldn’t be here,” he mused. “I really wouldn’t be here.”

As for Ripa, she recalled exactly where she was when Wilson informed her that Consuelos had been cast.

“I was in her office, and she’s like, ‘I found him, I think I found Mateo,'” she shared. “‘He’s never done anything, he’s green, he’s fresh out of college. I just found him, this guy.’ And she showed me your headshot, and I was like, ‘That’s the guy.'”

While Ripa admitted she “didn’t know what [they] were looking for,” she claimed she “conjured up a vision” in her “mind’s eye” of their ideal candidate, and Consuelos was a match.

“I was like, ‘You found this guy in Florida? What?'” she exclaimed.

Live with Kelly and Mark airs on weekdays. Check out their website for your local listings.

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