How Melissa and Joe Gorga's Love Story Survived Cheating Rumors
The Real Housewives of New Jersey couple has let their relationship highs and lows play out on camera.
After 20 years of marriage, Melissa Gorga and Joe Gorga are still going strong. The couple has three kids, pets, and a number of businesses between them, and yet they always manage to prioritize their relationship — even when his sister, Teresa Giudice, tried to stir up trouble by repeating rumors that Melissa was cheating.
Melissa, though, always has good advice for how to keep a marriage going.
"I always say it's probably one of the most important things [to have date nights]. I don't know how couples can survive without being able to spend some time alone and take it back to it being about the two of them, instead of the bills, the kids, the mortgage, the work, the jobs," The Real Housewives of New Jersey cast member told The Daily Dish of her marriage secrets in 2015. "There's got to be a time that you guys just hang out and remember why you like each other so much."
Joe offered some insight into his marriage philosophy in early 2020. "A king must take care of his queen and a queen must take care of her king. No one is before the other. It's all about being a unit," he said. "She is my queen, and I am her king. We are equal, we are one."
When did Melissa and Joe Gorga first meet?
Melissa and Joe first met in 2002 when they were guests at the same hotel in Cancun, Mexico, according to In Touch.
However, they didn’t officially start dating until they ran into each other for a second time at a beach bar at the Jersey shore.
When did Melissa and Joe Gorga get married?
Two years after their first encounter, the couple got married on August 20, 2004.
“We walked down the aisle, and I can still remember the smile on our faces," Melissa wrote on Instagram in 2016 of their wedding day.
The following year, she wrote: “I'm so grateful for the life you have given me. We made some strong, amazing kids together & I couldn't be happier.”
Did Melissa Gorga cheat on her husband Joe?
During Season 5 of RHONJ, Joe's sister Teresa brought up rumors about Melissa allegedly cheating.
The Envy Boutique owner responded to those allegations in 2013. “I’ve never cheated on Joe,” she told Us Weekly at the time. “This is all disappointing.”
In RHONJ Season 11, which aired in 2021, Teresa again accused Melissa of cheating on Joe. “Last night, the owner of the restaurant asked Melissa for her number,” Teresa said. “They’ve been texting all day.”
Joe later told Melissa: “Be careful what you say, because I’ll never talk to you again.”
Following the accusations, Melissa told Us Weekly that the pair were “struggling” in their marriage. “He likes things to stay the same. I’ve been with him since I was 24 years old. So, I’ve changed,” she said. “And I feel like this is a scary part of marriage. Either you’re going to grow together or you’re going to grow apart. And I think we’re fighting really hard to grow together.”
“Whoever said marriage is easy is a liar,” she explained. “Joe and I have a beautiful thing because we both always wanted the same things in life: a successful, healthy family and [to make] sure everyone around us is happy. Our kids are our life and they are the reason we work so hard, try so hard, and fight so hard for our marriage.”
According to Melissa, her work life was also making things “strenuous” between her and Joe.
“I know we’ve been married for 16 years, but we are still learning [about] each other. There’s different turning points, I would say, in marriages,” she said.
Following their struggles, Melissa told Us Weekly in 2022 that the couple were “doing great” again. “The pandemic was a little rough,” she added. “I think it brought out a lot of our real feelings... It was probably good for us to talk it through... I didn’t know how he was feeling, and I don’t think he was getting where I was coming from.”
Melissa and Joe Gorga's Children
The couple's daughter Antonia was born in 2005, and sons Gino and Joey were born in 2007 and 2010, respectively.
"I can honestly say becoming a father for the first time is one of the best feelings any man can experience," Joe told The Daily Dish in 2020. "The best dad advice I received was from my father. He said you can be super successful and have all the money in the world but the greatest gift in life is being a husband and a father. Family must always come first... I always try to be the best version of myself so my kids have someone respectable to look up to."
Melissa Gorga's Relationship Advice
In 2013, Melissa published a relationship book, Love Italian Style: The Secrets of My Hot and Happy Marriage.
According to Us Weekly, she wrote: “Even when I’m exhausted and not really in the mood, if it means a lot to Joe that we connect physically, I’ll say, ‘I’m not so into it tonight, but let’s go.' If it’s a hard ‘no,’ I try to be nice about it. Don’t swat him away, or say with a tone, ‘Leave me alone!’ Eventually, he will leave you alone at more than you wish he would.”
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