The reason why Patrick Dempsey stayed quiet about his marriage to a wife 26 years older than him has been revealed.
The now-60-year-old actor, beloved for his iconic role as Dr. Derek Shepherd on Grey's Anatomy, married Rochelle "Rocky" Parker, a woman 26 years his senior, in 1991.
The couple’s wedding shocked many fans, especially given the age gap between them - Dempsey was just 21, while Parker was 47.
A Secret Relationship
Dempsey first met Parker in 1984 when they were both cast in the play Brighton Beach Memoirs, per Hello! Magazine. At just 18 years old, he was much younger than Parker, who was 44 and a mother of three.
Her first son was born in 1956, making him seven years older than the actor. Her second child was just one year younger than the actor, and Parker also had a daughter.
Despite the age gap, the two quickly formed a connection, and Parker went on to become Dempsey's acting coach and manager.
By 1991, they had tied the knot, but their romance remained largely private in the early years. The couple intentionally kept a low profile, likely to avoid the public scrutiny and potential controversy surrounding their significant age gap.
It wasn’t until toward the end of their marriage, in 1994, that the couple began making public appearances together.
The Breakdown of Their Marriage
The marriage, which lasted just three years, ended with Parker filing for divorce, citing "irreconcilable differences," per 7News.
During the divorce proceedings, the mom-of-three made allegations of assault against the actor, claiming that he had attacked her on the set of Can't Buy Me Love in 1987.
However, Parker later retracted the claim, stating that her legal team had advised her to make the accusation. This incident was one of the few public revelations about their marriage.
Dempsey reflected on his relationship years later in a 2006 interview with Barbara Walters, and described his first marriage as a "Freudian nightmare".
He admitted that he felt he "needed a mother" in the relationship, referencing the maternal dynamic in their marriage. "There were a lot of negative things that I'm still undoing from it. She had a son one year older than me," he added.
The Influence of Family Life
The Enchanted star's remarks about his first marriage also shed light on deeper emotional struggles stemming from his family life.
His mother, Angela, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the late 90s, just as Dempsey’s relationship with Parker was gaining intensity.
Angela's cancer battle lasted for 17 years before she passed away in 2014.
Three years after his divorce from Parker, Dempsey married makeup artist Jillian Fink in 1999, and the pair welcomed three children together.
Meanwhile, Parker’s final years were sadly spent battling cancer, and she passed away in 2014.