Chris Appleton gets candid on short-lived Lukas Gage marriage, coming out to his children
The celebrity hairstylist, best known for his work with reality-TV star and media mogul Kim Kardashian, opened up about his high-profile marriage to "White Lotus" star Lukas Gage during an Aug. 6 interview on the "Jay Shetty Podcast."
Appleton, 42, and Gage, 30, married in April 2023 in a star-studded ceremony that saw Kardashian as the couple's officiant and country music icon Shania Twain perform.
However, just six-and-a-half months later, Appleton filed for divorce in Los Angeles court in November 2023, according to court documents reviewed by USA TODAY. The beauty mogul cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the couple's split.
Appleton reflected on the intense media scrutiny of his divorce in his conversation with host Jay Shetty: "It was definitely the first time that I'd experienced that magnitude of people being so invested in my private life."
Chris Appleton romantic history: Ex Lukas Gage describes 6-month marriage as a 'manic episode'
Why Chris Appleton doesn't regret Lukas Gage divorce
A few months after Appleton and Gage's divorce, Gage described their marital relationship as "a manic episode for six months" in a March 2024 interview on "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen."
"What happened to me?" Gage told host Andy Cohen. "I don't know literally what went through my head, but we live and we learn."
Despite his short-lived marriage to Gage, Appleton told Shetty that there were no hard feelings looking back on the abrupt breakup.
"Moving fast doesn't always mean you're reckless," Appleton said. "I think sometimes it means you're hopeful. I think any relationship I've ever been in, I've gone into with an open heart, and I have no regrets about that. I think we shame people too much for leading with an open heart."
Chris Appleton honored: Kim Kardashian gushes over celebrity hairstylist
Chris Appleton talks emotional toll of coming out to children
Appleton, who came out as gay after starting a family with former partner Katie Katon, got candid on the emotional toll that coming out had on him and his children.
The hairstylist and Katon share son Billy, 22, and daughter Kitty-blu, 20, who were 8 and 6, respectively, at the time of Appleton's revelation.
"They were upset 'cause they knew I was upset, and they were confused and all of a sudden, I just felt like I just messed their life up," Appleton reflected. "I felt like I'd failed as a dad because my job was to protect them. And if anyone ever hurt them, I would protect them. But I was the one hurting them."
Appleton, who came out when he was 26, added that his declining mental health at the time led to a suicide attempt.
"I felt like it would be better for them to have a dad that was dead than a dad that was gay," Appleton said. "I don't think I ever wanted to die. I wanted to kill the thing that I felt that was destructing my life and the thing that made me feel different as a kid. The thing that made me not blend in with all the other boys and girls."
Despite the harrowing experience, Appleton said the ordeal was a "turning point" that inspired him to embrace his queer identity.
"I realized I couldn't hate myself any more than I had," Appleton said. "I spent my whole life creating a different world that I thought everyone wanted me to be and tick all the boxes, but I knew I had to reveal the truth."
If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chris Appleton talks Lukas Gage marriage, coming out to his children
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Reba McEntire pens sweet remembrance of 'oldest son' Brandon Blackstock
Reba McEntire is remembering her stepson, Brandon Blackstock, who died at 48 following a cancer battle. "Last week, my stepson/oldest son Brandon Blackstock went home to be with God. His struggle is over and he is in eternal peace in God's presence," McEntire shared in an Aug. 12 Instagram post. "There is no one else like him, and I'm thankful for the time we had together," she continued. "His legacy and laughter will be carried on through his family. Rest in peace cowboy. Happy trails to you til we meet again." Blackstock, Kelly Clarkson's onetime manager and husband from 2013 to 2020, died Aug. 7 after a three-year cancer battle. His cause of death was determined to be melanoma. A post shared by Reba McEntire (@reba) "It is with great sadness that we share the news that Brandon Blackstock has passed away," a statement from Blackstock's family, shared with USA TODAY Aug. 7, read. "Brandon bravely battled cancer for more than three years. He passed away peacefully and was surrounded by family," the statement continued. "We thank you for your thoughts and prayers and ask everyone to respect the family's privacy during this very difficult time." Brandon Blackstock's cause of death: What to know about Kelly Clarkson's ex, melanoma How are Reba McEntire and Brandon Blackstock related? McEntire married Blackstock's father, music manager Narvel Blackstock, in 1989; they had one son, racecar driver Shelby Blackstock. The two divorced in 2015. After Clarkson and Blackstock announced their split in 2020, McEntire told Entertainment Tonight that though she considered Blackstock to be a son, she wasn't taking sides during the divorce. "Brandon's been my son forever it seems. Although he's my stepson, I still love him like he's my total (son) – my blood, so I'm praying for 'em both 'cause I love 'em both," McEntire said. Blackstock and Clarkson have two children: River Rose Blackstock, 11, and Remington "Remy" Alexander Blackstock, 9. He also has two children from his previous marriage to Melissa Ashworth: Savannah and Seth Blackstock. Speaking with People magazine in 2018, McEntire counted Blackstock and Clarkson's son and daughter among her seven grandchildren at the time. Contributing: Jay Stahl, USA TODAY
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Why all-Black rodeo events are 'so hot right now'
The nation's longest running Black rodeo is among a handful of events some say have seen a boost due to Beyonce's groundbreaking 2024 country album. USA TODAY This story has been updated. Call it the Beyoncé effect: One of America's biggest music superstars unleashed a stampede of excitement for Black rodeos across the country with her 2024 album "Cowboy Carter." Nowhere is that more obvious than in tiny Okmulgee, Oklahoma, home to the nation's oldest continuously operated Black rodeo. 'When Beyoncé released that country album, she told Black people it's okay to wear cowboy boots and cowboy hats,' said Danell Tipton, who now serves as arena director for multiple state rodeos, including what is now the Okmulgee Roy LeBlanc Invitational Rodeo. 'Black rodeoing is so hot right now, every event we go to," said Tipton, a former bull riding champ. "I haven't seen so many Black girls in cowboy hats and boots, ever. We've had our rodeos, but city slickers were never in tune with it. Now, it's like the floodgates opened.' On the weekend of August 9, the Okmulgee Roy LeBlanc Invitational Rodeo marked its 70 th year, the legacy of two dozen Black businessmen, farmers and ranchers frustrated with the second-class treatment accorded to Black rodeo competitors and their fans in the 1950s. Tipton has been going to the Okmulgee rodeo ever since he was a kid riding along with his family's roundup club, the Oklahoma City Paraders. The equestrian-minded community organization held weekend parades to precede Black rodeo competitions in rural outposts around the state, in places like Tatums, Clearview and Drumright. 'Okmulgee was always the last rodeo of the year,' he said. 'It was like our Super Bowl.' Situated 40 miles south of Tulsa, the Okmulgee Roy LeBlanc Invitational Rodeo is among the country's largest Black sporting events, according to event producer Kenneth LeBlanc. In 1956, LeBlanc's father Roy and grandfather Charles were among the founders of what was then called the Okmulgee County Roundup Club. 'Black people couldn't get into White rodeos,' said Marcous Friday, who has been the Okmulgee event's announcer for two decades. 'That's why they started the rodeo. Who would have thought that 70 years later, it's still going?' An old-school tradition Okmulgee was among a patchwork of Black rodeo circuit events that thrived in the 1950s and 1960s throughout the Texas Gulf Coast region and the area around Tulsa, according to Keith Ryan Cartwright, author of 'Black Cowboys of Rodeo: Unsung Heroes from Harlem to Hollywood and the American West.' 'A lot of Black rodeo cowboys got their start in one of those two areas,' said Cartwright, who now serves as assistant general manager of the Nashville Stampede, a pro bull riding team. 'Maybe they weren't from there, but they would migrate there in order to compete regularly.' Nearly an hour to the west, the Boley (Oklahoma) Rodeo is the oldest of all Black rodeos, dating back to 1903 – but with several interruptions along the way. Okmulgee has clung to its annual tradition like a bull rider refusing to be bucked off. 'This is the 70 th year, and there's no asterisk,' Cartwright said. 'They even found a way to have it in 2020." The 2025 event features more than 200 competitors, including dozens of calf ropers, team ropers, steer wrestlers and barrel racers. The atmosphere bears little resemblance to the big-money, corporate-sponsored spectacles broadcast on television. 'It's not some multimillion-dollar production,' Cartwright said. 'It's old-school.' 'When they come back to Black rodeo, there's a home for them' The rodeo's inaugural run was held north of town on leased land owned by the local White roundup club, Tipton said. When the club saw the event's success and significantly raised its rates the next year, the organizers of the budding Black rodeo decided it was time to find their own venue and bought 40 acres south of town, he said. That's where the Okmulgee Invitational rodeo was held until 1991, he said, when the all-Black event moved to the Bob Arrington Rodeo Arena, owned by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. By that time Tipton was starting to compete himself, riding bulls and wrestling steers. In 1998, he was named the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association's bull riding and overall rookie of the year. Coming up in the pro ranks, Tipton said, fellow Black cowboys were a rare sight. Even now, he said, when he goes to events on the East or West coasts, 'they're like, 'Wow. Black cowboys.' They see White cowboys competing on TV every day.' Among the barriers, Tipton said, are finances and unfamiliarity with the logistical strategies necessary to qualify for the national finals, which are based on prize money won throughout the year. Competitors must navigate a network of seasonal events held across the country to finish among the top 15 qualifiers in their respective categories. 'There's so many Black cowboys who should be making tons of money,' Tipton said. 'A lot don't know the business side. So when they come back to Black rodeo, there's a home for them.' When he found success as a rookie and hit the pro circuit, Tipton said, he didn't return to the Black rodeo circuit for several years. But he always made sure to return for Okmulgee. 'The Jackie Robinson of rodeo' He wasn't the only one. Many of the Black rodeo greats throughout the years have frequented Okmulgee, among them Myrtis Dightman, often referred to as 'the Jackie Robinson of rodeo.' Dightman was among those featured during Beyoncé's Christmas Day halftime show during the Houston Texans' game against the Baltimore Ravens in December. 'He was the first African American to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo,' said Friday, the event announcer. 'He never won a world title, but he's the one who actually opened the doors for African American cowboys in rodeo today.' Dightman grew up on a ranch in Crockett, Texas, two hours north of Houston, where his father was a ranch hand and his mother helped work the fields, Cartwright said. He went to school when ranch work allowed, never learning to read. As a young man, Dightman found work as a rodeo clown and bullfighter but knew he had the skills to be an accomplished bull rider, Cartwright said. Like other Black rodeo hopefuls, he often wouldn't be allowed to ride until events were over. 'He quickly established himself not as a great Black bull rider but as a great bull rider,' Cartwright said. Eventually, the humble and well-liked Dightman would earn his way onto the circuit with other cowboys eager to compete against him. In the 1960s, Cartwright said, standards called for only two event judges, and all it took was one to poison a competitor's chances for success. 'It wasn't so egregious as to make them finish last,' he said. 'All they had to do was rob them of a point here or there.' But spread over the course of a season, Cartwright said, these sprinklings of bias had their effect, depriving certain competitors of prize money and dropping them several places in the standings. He believes that happened to Dightman and others. Dightman realized that despite whatever slights he might face, he could still claw his way to the finals if he competed in enough events to earn sufficient prize money. He avoided Southern rodeos and instead hit events in Texas, Oklahoma, on the West Coast and throughout the Midwest and Rust Belt. 'He thought, there's always going to be a judge that isn't going to let me win an event, but if over the course of a season I go to more events than anyone else, all my 2 nd places and 4 th places will get me there,' Cartwright said. 'He hustled and was very methodical.' In 1967 and 1968, Dightman finished among the three or four top-ranked bull riders in the world. While he never won the sport's gold buckle, Dightman knew he had accomplished something special, Cartwright said. 'I can't stress enough how good he had to be to finish third at a time when our country was facing the racial animus it did,' he said. 'He said to me, 'I wanted to be a world champion but I never were a world champion, but I was a world champion as a man.' He wasn't bragging on himself. What he was saying was that he saw something that hadn't been done and he wanted to do it and did everything he could to do it. I just find him to be heroic.' Legends of the sport In February, Tipton and Friday teamed up to produce their second annual National Black Cowboy Rodeo Awards and Gala in Oklahoma City. 'We've honored all the old cowboys the last two years,' Tipton said. Dightman, now 90, was among them; so was Charles Sampson, the former kid from Watts, California, who with Dightman's mentorship became the first Black bull rider to win a rodeo world title, in 1982. Both have been among the luminaries who polished their craft at Okmulgee. 'Myrtis and Charlie are legends,' Cartwright said. 'Not just among Black cowboys. They're legendary rodeo cowboys, period.' Before a bull rider's bucking chute opens, there is someone there to tighten the rope he'll use to hold on to for the duration of the ride, and riders are notoriously picky about who gets to do it, Cartwright said. 'When Charlie won the world title in the 10 th round, Myrtis was there and Charlie had him pull his bull rope for him,' he said. 'For him to wave off the guy who would normally pull his rope and let Myrtis do it goes to show that Charlie understood the significance of his moment and that the road to that moment was paved by Myrtis.' It's on that foundation that today's young Black cowboys will build on when they compete this weekend in Okmulgee. 'Okmulgee originated at a time when it was needed,' Cartwright said. 'There was nowhere else for them to go. It's a historic event.'
USA Today
3 hours ago
- USA Today
'McDonaldland' debuted in 1971, now its back. What to know about the new meal.
The new menu offering, which includes a colorful shake and limited-edition 'souvenir,' will only be available for a limited time. A new themed meal is taking customers back. Back to "McDonaldland," that is. The "McDonaldland" meal, an homage to the fast-food chain's whimsical and fictional world, made its debut at participating restaurants nationwide on Tuesday, Aug. 12. The new menu offering, which includes a colorful shake and limited-edition "souvenir," will only be available for a limited time. According to an Aug. 5 news release, McDonaldland is a promotional fantasy world that debuted in 1971 and was featured in commercials and other media. In the imaginary world of McDonaldland, hamburgers grow on patches and apple pies grow on trees, which they say makes it the perfect place for Ronald McDonald and his friends to grab a quick bite. "Now the gang is back together, and fans can rediscover the epic world and its characters or experience it for the first time – all through the meal," the McDonald's statement says. Here's what to know about McDonald's "McDonaldland" meal, including what is in it. Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. 'McDonaldland' meal, merch Customers can choose between two versions of the "McDonaldland" meal, which includes a side of fries, a Mt. McDonaldland shake and a choice of a Quarter Pounder with Cheese or a 10-piece Chicken McNuggets. The Mt. McDonaldland shake was inspired by the "vibrant blue lava' and pink clouds of Mt. McDonaldland, a volcano from McDonaldland, the release says. According to McDonald's, every "McDonaldland" meal comes with one of six exclusive collectible tins, featuring postcards, stickers and more. Each is inspired by a different character. McDonald's also announced the launch of limited-edition merch inspired by McDonaldland through collaborations with trendy clothing brand Pacsun and travel retailer Away. The PacSun collaboration will feature sweat sets and graphic tees available Tuesday, Aug. 12, while the Away collaboration will include luggage tags and bag charms available starting Monday, Aug. 18, while supplies last, McDonald's said. New Happy Meal features Hello Kitty, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles McDonald's "McDonaldland" meal might be inspired by characters of the past, but a new Happy Meal is paying tribute to characters of the present. A new Happy Meal featuring Hello Kitty and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles also made its debut at McDonald's on Aug. 12. It, like the "McDonaldland" meal, will only be available for a limited time. The themed meal for children will include special figurines, consisting of "a wild fusion of your favorite TMNT heroes and the Hello Kitty crew." According to McDonald's, each Happy Meal will include one of 12 figurine options and a character card describing "their unique skills and story." The signature Happy Meal boxes will feature graphics of both the fighting reptiles and the feline-like girl, which can be seen on the promotional materials obtained by USA TODAY. It can be purchased in person or through the McDonald's app at participating restaurants. Contributing: Melina Khan, USA TODAY
