When the TLC reality show Sister Wives was introducing us to Kody Brown’s fourth wife, a 30 year-old single mother named Robyn, the fact that she was divorced was seen as somewhat scandalous in the untraditional family. Kody’s first wife, Meri, (who introduced him to Robyn) explained that “he’s kind of always had an aversion to marrying someone who had already been married before.” The show gave us no indication that any of Kody’s other wives had ever been married before, and in their official account of events they made it seem like Janelle was just a friend of Meri’s and that Meri introduced her to Kody. Star Magazine has unearthed a little more scandal in the Brown past. They report that Janelle used to be married to Meri’s brother back in 1988. Janelle was divorced from Meri’s brother for three years before she married Kody so it doesn’t sound like there’s much more than a failed marriage and a plural re-marriage there, but it’s still interesting:
Keeping up with the polygamist Brown family just got more complicated! It turns out the stars of TLC’s hit show Sister Wives have been hiding a secret about how wives Janelle and Meri first met.
In this week’s issue of Star, we reveal the shocking news that Kody Brown’s second wife Janelle was married to the brother of wife No. 1, Meri, before she joined their family. According to their marriage certificate, Janelle legally wed Adam Barber in Salt Lake City in December 1988. They divorced in 1990, three years before Janelle and Kody tied the knot in a nontraditional commitment ceremony.
As for Meri, “I know she was originally very upset over Janelle dumping her brother. I think there has been a lot of unspoken tension between her, Janelle and Kody all these years,” a family insider tells Star exclusively.
[From Star’s Website]
Two weeks ago Star had an exclusive interview with a woman who used to be one Kody’s brother many wives. (She left and was cut off from her kids for years. It was a heartbreaking story.) So I think they have a good source and that this information about Janelle’s first marriage is solid. However I think Star is so off the mark by claiming that there’s still tension between Janelle and Meri over the fact that Janelle was married to Meri’s brother over 20 years ago. Meri introduced Janelle to Kody so if she had an issue with her ex sister-in-law she never would have made her a “sister wife”. You wonder, though, why this little fact was kept secret from producers and the public. Janelle is my favorite on that show and I love her take on life and how logical and well spoken she is. She seems too good for this kind of situation, but if anything she makes polygamy look like a positive life choice rather than the oppressive trap it so often is for women.
I’m sick of these people already.
These people are sick. I’m sure, there is a special place done below, for people like them
It seems that Mary is the one supplying wives to her husband. Maybe her husband or/and marriage was not enough for her and she needed to try something different.
it just never stops does it??
LOL
please let this be the last season of these dysfunctional, publicity-seeking freaks and return them to the obscurity they deserve.
I didn’t think their story could be more disturbing. I was wrong.
Logically speaking, if you have a limited population who believe in polygamy and are going to take so many wives you are going to end up with people who have these kinds of connections, it’s pretty twisted. But I still say as long as they are only hurting themselves live and let live.
ok
I don’t believe a word that come out of reality star’s mouths. Anyone who can let a camera come into their home and even make their kids follow a script is capable of anything.
Either I am opposed to something, or I am not. Plain and simple.
This “always kind of” sounds strange, especially after what has come out now.
I’ve never watched the show but I have to wonder what happens when Kody accidentally calls a wife by the wrong name. Supposedly they don’t get very jealous. I know I’d be ever so pissed if my husband called me someone else’s name.
What do they see in him? He’s creepy looking.
I wish some “Journalist” would ask them why “in their Faith” only the men are allowed to have plural marriages. I want to know exactly why they think only the men should get this privilege. What is it about men that make them superior to women?
Aren’t marriage records public?
Hell yeah dee!
kody really is such a freak…
I think Kody is fantastic. He seems to love – he is always quite affectionate – with his fat wife.
I’m reading Under The Banner of Heaven right now. The Browns, for all appearances, are an exception to the Plural Marriage family. But the roots of Polygamy in the FLDS are mysoginistic and horrible. The whole religion is strange and fanatical, and has been compared, especially in its early years, to radical Islam. Nothing about this is okay, IMHO.
too close for comfort
#2 was at the wedding to #1 per the series. She married Kody 3 years after that. At the time she was already divorced for 3 years. Seems suspicious.
what an unattractive bunch of people.
This doofus makes my skin crawl.
In the way of FLDS, if she had a problem with Janelle, that would be one of the most overriding reasons to ask her into her family. As by sharing her most precious thing, her husband, by which a woman is judged, she is becoming closer to the Life of Sarah and is more highly regarded in the church. I don’t watch the show, but she may have had a problem with all of his other wives, and introduced them to Kody to further her journey toward enlightenment and to raise his standing in the church. That’s just the way it works!
wow…i always sensed something was a bit off with wife #2. Thats way too close…almost seems incestuous.
I would like to know exactly how he approached wife #1 (the legal wife) about adding another woman to the family. “Um, honey, I love you very much, but I have too much love in my heart, I think its time to add another woman to the family.”
I would have bashed my husband over the head with a frying pan, grabbed the kids & run like hell!
Incest is very common in polygamy, as are other pseudo-incestuous relationships. It is not uncommon for first cousins to marry, or for an uncle to marry a niece. This isn’t just limited to polygamous people though, it’s called the founder effect in evolutionary biology; “The founder effect is the loss of genetic variation that occurs when a new population is established by a very small number of individuals from a larger population.”
Basically what it means is, if you have a new population that is cut off from the mainstream population, there’s going to be inbreeding if there aren’t enough unrelated people who can marry each other. Because these families have so many children and are otherwise cut off from mainstream society, it’s hard NOT to be related to someone you’re marrying. This is part of the reason fundamentalist Mormons (and mainstream Mormons to some degree) are so obsessed with genealogy (the other reason is that they want to see how closely related they are to prophets and famous church elders, because it gives them higher social status).
Unfortunately another consequence of this is a high incidence of birth defects, as you might imagine.
Obviously Janelle isn’t related to any of this family by blood, so she doesn’t have to worry about that. It’s still weird though. She basically married her sister and brother in law. That’ll be interesting to have to explain to the kids. “Oh by the way honey I’m also your ex-aunt”.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he is a wife beater. Meri always looks frightened in these pics. I haven’t watched the show so I’m only talking about what I’m seeing in the pictures but it seems like she’s supplying the wives out of fear or something. I don’t know, this isn’t kosher.
Never watched the show, never will. But my take on this is that Meri had some fertility problems. I say this because she only has the one daughter while the other “wives” have, what? six kids each. She probably felt guilty about this “failing” and Kody used that to get more wives. What an @ss he is!
q
It amazes me how much name calling and judgement is passed on these polygamists, probably from people who consider themselves so tolorant and accepting of gays. What is the difference? Equal rights for consenting adults, no? It’s not like these particular people were forced into marraige and had babies as teenagers.
omg ewwwwwwww gross… are these people out of their minds? So this bitch was having sex with your brother and now she’s having sex with your husband and that doesn’t bother you? ewwww grosss……
I can’t hate on these people. They are all adults that have chosen this lifestyle. This world is so full of judgemental people who should really clean their own closets out before they try to pass judgement on others.
I’m sorry. That’s disgusting. She married her sister-in-law’ husband. That would be horrible if the sister-in-law had divorced him first, but this is just beyond the pale. Were there any children from the first relationship? This just gets more and more twisted?
I think TLC should press the envelope an have a polygamous black or middle eastern family. These guys are all about portraying how “traditional LDS” they are , but a lot of mainstream LDS don’t divorce.
I don’t believe in polygamous relationships, but I believe CONSENTING adults should have the right to do as they please. If this way of life works for them, so much the better.
Polygamous sects that abuse young girls and kick out young boys to avoid the competition… that’s an entirely different situation.
While I’m not nearly open enough for such a relationship, it absolutely sickens me how judgmental people are who aren’t involved. The only problem I have is the lack of protection for the wives under law. In the case of a divorce, the non-legally married wives have no real claim to marital assets.
Regardless, I can see it. I just wouldn’t choose to live it.
I know they protest it vehemently, but as a lesbian, my gaydar goes off for Meri — there is something very telling about her involvement in “procuring” new wives for Kody, and just her general personality and demeanor. Very subtle, but there. Now, it may still be totally repressed and maybe not acted upon since all Mormons are very anti-gay, but there is something going on that is more than she’s probably even admitted to herself.
This show justifies that whole male-dominated society who marry multiple weak women who think this is their lot in life to live this way, all in the name of their lord, of course. I find it sad.
anonymous wife #5, that is one of the classic diversionary tactics that Mormons are taught so they can perpetuate their martyr complex. this ‘family’ is very unusual in the scope of FLDS or LDS. Immense pressure is applied from early on for everyone to marry young. It may not be straight up extortion but it is mental manipulation, and at times abusive. I can’t tell you how many times I had to watch some poor, distraught girl in Relief Society burst in heart wrenching sobs as she discussed how guilty she felt for putting college before temple marriage. Marriage is not seen in the same context for them at it is for the average American – you cannot gain access to the Celestial Kingdom until your husband draws you ‘through the veil’.
here are some choice quotes for you from LDS ‘apostles’:
“As a positive example of self-characterization, I cite our daughter, Jenny Oaks Baker. As a nationally recognized violinist, she could easily identify and think of herself as a great violinist who is also the mother of three little girls. I am pleased that she does not do this. She thinks of herself as a mother who happens to be a violinist, and she orders her priorities in that way.”
“Sisters, don’t fall for the worldly urging that women should emulate men in various masculine characteristics. That is not what the Lord created you to do. Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not saying that women should not be doctors or lawyers or any particular occupation that fits their circumstances. To use lawyering as an example, what I am saying is that women should not attempt to be manly lawyers. Nor should women emulate the worldly ways of womanhood. Your destiny is to be a wife and a mother in Zion, not a model and a streetwalker in Babylon. You should dress and act accordingly.” both of these are from a BYU -I devotional from 2006. Not 1806. 2006.
Those are LDS passages, not FLDS. I can’t imagine what being FLDS is like.
Not that the LDS isn’t without its spiritual polygamy….
“When I was 66, my wife June died of cancer. Two years later I married Kristen McMain, the eternal companion who now stands at my side.” ~ Dallin Oaks, January 2002 BYU Devotional. Eternal companion refers to someone to whom you have been sealed in the temple. I’m sure when confronted he’d refute that since his first wife was dead. However, there is a big difference to Mormons when it comes to the corporeal world and the spiritual one. I’m sure he anticipates meeting his two wives on his little planet some day. Oh, Kristen had never been married before being sealed to Oaks.
oh, and did you know – a living woman may only be sealed to one man at a time. a living man may be sealed to more than one woman (provided she is not currently sealed to another man). It’s in the church handbook. I say living because the handbook also mentions that after both she and her husbands are dead, she may choose to be sealed to her former living husbands.
And as for mormons and homosexuals – it’s allowed….as long as you remain celibate. What kind of bizarre autocratic rule is that?
I think this is gross and wrong. Having a society where cousins marry cousins and uncles marry neices is un-natural no matter how you try to sell it. Call me judgemental call me whatever you want. But the fact remains that you are not supposed to marry and breed with your family members and thats exactly what this lifestyle sets its participants up for.
I dont agree with the brown’s lifestyle at all. I think its disgusting as a matter of fact and there is NO WAY I would ever consent to a plural marriage. I think the fact that Robin did it just to get help with her kids is very telling. Hopefully she will realize there are other ways of getting assistance with your needs besides being 4th in line for your “husbands” attention. Ick.
Out of all the wives, Meri is the most emotionally unstable one. I feel very sorry for her. There are moments on the show where she looks like she’s going to explode from all her emotions. Someone mentioned that she might be agreeing to all this beacuse of fertility problems. I think it makes a lot of sense. She has mentioned that “there’s always jelousy, and it’s hard” so all these women are in reality less cheerful about their situations than what they want to portray. I find polygamy creepy as well. Especially beacuse of incest(although not in this particualr case). That’s completely unacceptable. I don’t understand : why would you want to share someone that is intimate with you? I would get jealous if my children would get attached to someone else, nevermind my husband! That being sad Janelle seems the smartest one. I actually like her. The third one is the one that has more life in her. The fourth is the hot piece of ass I guess!
“Under the Banner of Heaven” is a great book.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/03/books/thou-shalt-kill.html
Religious polygamy is all about wives as chattel – objects owned outright – and should be rejected by democratic society.
By the by, when Mormons cut you off from family it’s called disfellowshipping or excommunication. Scientology’s version of this is “disconnection.” Truly ugly stuff.
@ # 30 It’s not about being judgemental, it’s about the kids. What are you teaching these young girls in this type of relationships? The choices the adults make will affect these kids forever or possibly put them in therapy. I usually have a do what you want as long as no one else gets hurt attitude but I have trouble seeing that ideal with this.
isn’t it illegal for uncles & nieces, etc. to marry? or does utah have different laws? that seems just…icky.
I don’t think this life is for everyone. I do think that because there are polygamist sects that abuse young girls and force them into marriage, it makes it difficult for people to see this as a legitimate choice. That is unfortunate.
I will be a working mom. It would be nice if there was some woman (or man) who loved them like their own could be home loving on my baby all day. Something about the community of it appeals to me.
I was raised Catholic all my life, so when I married into a Mormon family it was a complete 360. I have never heard such crazy teachings in my life. My mother in law was actually pushing my husband to make me get married in the church or sealed as they call it. According to her and the church teachings we are not properly married until we are sealed by them. But first I would have to become a member and then when we finally get sealed, none of my family members will be allowed there because they are not Mormons. How crazy is that, the “Happiest” day in my life will not be shared with my family. My answer was HELL NO!! To this day we fight over that and his mom still tries to get me to go to church.
I also met some church members who were actually divorced and then remarried. They said they were sealed to the new spouse and the old seal was annulled.
Also another reason they are so interested in their geneology, is because they believe in spiritual baptisim. For instance, say you are a member of the church and your ancestors weren’t. You can find your ancestors and actually get baptisied in their name so they can convert to LDS. Apperently it’s up to them to accept the baptism and salvation or not. Of course if they don’t accept they are sent to hell. But they don’t believe in hell like we do it’s like some kind of spiritual plain.
they probably have full on orgies.
My God, I CAN’T STAND these idiots…and I can’t stay away from reading how these idiot wives all hate each other, though! Wife #1 never had much of a problem with wives 2 and 3 because they are FAT, fat, fat, FAT, but when look-at-me-I’m-so-tiny-and-cuter-than-the-others Robyn came along, Wife #1 looking mighty needy, sad, depressed, not to mention her dimpled (not in a good way) face full of tear. This idiot Kody, I HATE HIM and his thinning hair that he makes move with his girly head turns. I can’t stand THESE PEOPLE! They are dangerous, stupid, and STUPID. God, I have to get a life.
You guys ever had an orgy?
Leave them alone. Just bc they don’t live the life you do doesn’t make you better they have beautiful respectful children they are happy & they all have a husband & father that care for them! Half of you are single parents & cant raise a respectful child I give them & their children props!!!!!!