Millionaire Brings 'Annulment Tour' Home
Comedian Uses Failed Marriage To Fuel His Routine
PITTSBURGH, Updated 11:15 a.m. EDT May 16, 2000 -- Rick Rockwell of "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire?" fame -- or infamy -- brought his annulment tour to his hometown this week.
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| WTAE-TV's Michelle Wright interviews comedian/jilted groom Rick Rockwell |
Rockwell, the stand-up comic who married a stranger on Fox's show that aired Feb. 15, chose Darva Conger from 50 contestants. They got married on the show, but barely saw each other on a subsequent Caribbean honeymoon cruise and had the marriage annulled on April 5.
"I gave her a $35,000 ring and she gave me the finger," he told the audience as part of his routine.
He also targeted Darva in a rendition of the Marshall Tucker Band's "Can't You See."
Rockwell graduated from Fox Chapel High School in suburban Pittsburgh.
He said Monday that he still can't really explain what went awry with his nuptials.
"I'd much rather have gotten famous for an HBO special or because I rescued some kid from a burning building," he said.
Fox canceled a rebroadcast of the show when it was disclosed that a former fiancee of Rockwell's obtained a restraining order against him in 1991, saying he hit and threatened her. He denies those allegations, though he has admitted to letting the air out of her car's tires.
Rockwell said he is negotiating to be a television show host. He also is plugging his upcoming book, "What Was I Thinking?" and working with a Web site for bachelors. He said he has yet to pique a publisher's interest in his book.
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