Kaiser and I were discussing this story in terms of residual goodwill for Debra Messing in “Will & Grace.” While that show was on the air, I recall the critical buzz of Messing described in terms of a Lucille Ball-esque comedienne. Indeed, she’s a pretty talented lady, and while we haven’t seen much of her lately, Debra has a new show coming out next February called “Smash.” At least her professional life is looking up, but it comes with a certain sadness to report that Messing and her husband, Daniel Zelman, have decided to divorce after ten years of marriage:
It’s bound to be a bittersweet holiday season for Debra Messing. After a decade together, the Will and Grace star, 43, and husband Daniel Zelman have called it quits, they tell Us Weekly in an exclusive statement.
“Debra Messing and Daniel Zelman privately separated earlier this year after a 10 year marriage,” Messing’s rep tells Us. Messing and actor/TV producer Zelman, 44, met years ago as students at New York University, married in 2000, and share a 7-year-old son, Roman.
Explains the rep of the separation: “The decision was mutual, and they remain supportive of one another and committed to raising their son as a family.”
Messing (who next stars in buzzed-about NBC series Smash, out in February), Zelman and their little boy recently relocated to NYC — and remain living under one roof, according to a source close to the pair.
“They have been separated the better part of the year but continue to live together in New York for Roman,” explains the source. “It’s very amicable.”
Just last month, Messing told LilSugar about her holiday plans in the Big Apple. “We just moved back to New York but have always had family here,” the Emmy winner said. “We love to go skating at Wolman rink, and go see plays — musicals specifically. Waiting for the snow to come. Looking forward to putting on the snowsuit and stomping through Central Park.”
To put it bluntly, this really sucks. These two have been together forever; and back in 1996, Zelman even appeared alongside Debra in a few episodes of “Will & Grace.” These days, he’s better known as a television producer and writer of “Damages.” He also wrote the screenplay for Fool’s Gold, a.k.a., “Just Another Shirtless McConaughey Movie.”. Hey, no one’s perfect.
Just once though, I’d like to see a celebrity divorce announcement that doesn’t mention how the split in question is utterly “amicable.” Divorce is never a fun thing, but I guess that I hope Debra and Daniel are different. After all, they are still allegedly living under the same roof, right?
Photos courtesy of WENN
What a shame. Seemed like a nice, low-key couple, and together so long.
aka Coke Mom?
I wonder if it’s amicable because they plan to share the coke.
Uhm according to the BI the hubby is not into coke just and an enabler
Isn’t she the answer to Crazy Days and Nights (CDAN) blind item, “coke mom”??? She is the top guess.
I think I have seen every single episode of Will and Grace. Who did the husband play?
It’s rumored that he wanted another child and that Messing is so worried about gaining weight again (her only pregnancy caused a lot of difficulties to shed the weight off, she used a lap band to regain her slim physique) that she refuses to have another baby. Rumours of course but she was seriously skinny during Will and Grace (one of my fav shows, Jack and Karen are the craziest!). You never know with these HW people.
The episode with her husband:
In the episode where Grace is going to meet an old high school crush, he says he’s part of a group of artists showing their art at the Zelman Gallery. Debra Messing’s (Grace) real-life husband is Daniel Zelman.
I can’t seem to remember that one.
Isn’t that the one where Karen talks her into a water filled bra and she springs a leak? I remember that happening in an art gallery and her catching the leak in a champagne flute.
YES! Now I remember. Thanks :).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjgnyYDLE30
Another 15min. wasted on YT 😀
Break-ups are always sad, hope they are truly amicable towards each other.
.
a lap band to lose baby weight? good lord!
“amicable”…Until someone files and negotiations get underway. Living under the same roof?? This is so SOMEONE can keep an eye on the other. Financially they could afford to live side by side or across the street, but ‘under the same roof’ is someones way of manipulating and delaying things.
Wow. That’s really surprising.
Debra and Daniel met in college have been together for 18 years (dated for 8, married for 10). That’s a really long term successful relationship, especially for hollywood.
10 years of marriage is a lot in Hollywood terms.
I’m bummed. I liked that they met in college when they were both “nobodys” and stayed together anyway.
He looks just like Matt Perry to me.
@Labyrinth & @Michelle, I thought the same thing: Poor Coke Mom!
Will and Grace was such a great show! (except for when they had Grace marry Harry Connick Jr.- he was so boring) Has anyone else noticed how much the young actress on “Suburgatory” looks like a young Debra Messing? She could play Lucille Ball too-
Relatedly, the only real comparison one can make between Lucy and DM is appearance — they look vaguely simliar. DM seems like a nice person, but as an actor and comedian…meh.
He looks like Gerrard Butler’s ugly, little brother. Are there Scottish Jews?
well, we MOT do have a tartan: http://www.jewishtartan.com/
I thought of Coke Mom too. I just hope that one isn’t really about her or isn’t true she’s sooooo talented.
I feel bad because Enty from CNAD writes these blind items that are very likely made up (he seems to have the most unreliable BIs), and one very famous reocurring one is “coke mom,” about this awful actress w a child who EVERYONE thinks is DM and since I think he’s totally full of it, I hate that she’s become kwown as that.
Enty doesn’t write a lot of the BIs; many of them are cited to other outlets.
He is an entertainment lawyer, so he knows to not make something up if he is the original author. Has he said coke Mom is Messing, or is it the commenters who perpetuate that guess?
There is NO WAY the author of that blog is a male, fat, entertainment lawyer. Anyone who reads it can tell. First of all, some of the things he says would definitely get him in trouble; I doubt he’d have any clients left.
Yes, the author has strongly hinted it was DM. ‘He’ reads the guesses, sometimes ruling out many of them. There are the pictures of the day, too, which sometimes to feature the guilty parties. There is no doubt he is quite aware that she is considered “coke mom,” and not only does he not do a thing to dispel it, he even adds fuel to the fire.
Besides running blinds from other outlets, he certainly writes his own as well.
Also, long time readers can tell the author definitely changed at some point. I highly doubt the author is actually male.
What Becky said. I don’t believe for 1 second that enty is 1. Male 2. An entertainment lawyer.
ITA about Enty. Out of all of them he’s the most reliable IMO
That’s insane. Lainey ftw.
Actually I think the LEAST reliable blinds are those written by BG him/herself. It’s like s/he gets tips from the National Inquirer about future stories and paints them as blinds.
Lainey’s are the most reliable by a mile.
People are really weird when it comes to Blind Items. They either tend to think they are absolutely false or absolutely fact. They are just rumors and unreliable. They are like a supplement to gossip and should be kept in mind but taken with a grain of salt. People are so likely to believe the worst in the celebs but they never consider the source these gossip hounds are many times shadier and more dishonest than the celebs they cover.
I don’t think it’s ridiculous that Messing cares obsessively about her weight. Hollywood puts a lot of pressure on women so I could believe that particular blind. And Lainey’s are pretty believable whereas Ted C and Enty are sometimes so over the top you can’t help but doubt if it’s true.
Also, that blind about Chubster Hunkster (Ted C) that was rumored to be Jerry O’Connell was actually Liev Schreiber. When Ted C and BlindGossip posted one about his latest cheating ways, just days after that it was gone. Also gone on Dlisted was the story of Liev cheating. Why would a celeb go through so much trouble to get his name cleared if it was just a silly BI? He could’ve just issued a statement but that would mean he would have to admit that the blind held some truth and that celebs do follow blogs etcetera…
I wasn’t the only one who noticed the dissappearance of those blinds and reports. Then we see Liev the doting dad on photo-ops. It seems once in a while, BI do hold truth and that celebs will go out of their way to make sure they have a squeeky clean image.
Oh and Quinto’s blind came out so yeah, sometimes it’s bullcrap and sometimes not. That’s the fun about it, you never truly know…
ITA about Ted C I don’t believe most of his BI’s because he seems to have an agenda and the stories are so convoluted. I tend to believe Enty a bit more because the stories aren’t necessarily about really famous ‘targets’ but just anybody whether or not they are actually popular. I think I believe Lainey the most because hers seem real. But Lainey very obviously has an agenda and favs and her judgement seems to be blinded by whoever it is she worships at the moment.
ITA re: Ted C and his agenda. His blinds always seem to paint everyone in HW is either gay, a beard, or into drugs (or all three). He also flip flops a lot, sometimes hinting at one person then immediately changing the tune in the next BI.
I think it’s a mixed bag. IMO, blinds generally fall in one of the following categories:
1. Blinds that are 100% true (but maybe not the most salacious).
2. Blinds that are mostly true (in general about lesser known celebs) but exaggerated and made out to sound like a bigger celeb.
3. Blinds semi-true with sketchy details based on rumour. (often 2 blinds on the same subject with different deets).
4. Really vague blinds based on rumour that could be true about a number of people (most of the drug stuff).
5. Blinds 100% false based on rumour made to sound like certain celebs (these are the worst).
Once again, it’s a buffet, and with blinds it’s all you can eat!
This is sad news.
However, had to LOL when yall say he looks like Matt Perry and Gerard Butler – so true!
They’re proof that you can fly under the radar in HW and not get pap’d on a daily basis. I had no idea what they’ve been up to. Sad to hear about the split, they seemed cute together.
Well it’s easy to fly under the radar when there is no radar aimed at you. She nor he are of interest to the public. if they were then they would be papped and looked for. This will be end to this story. Because for the most part there is no interest past this announcement. Go look up the other couples that broke up this year. Bet for most there have been no other stories about them.
That is how come they don’t have “radar to fly under:
Really unfortunate. I hope that they will reconsider.
That’s really sad. Maybe they’ve just grown apart and want different things? Who knows.
I’ve always liked her for some reason. I’m looking forward to her new show.
The blind item that was revealed to be Debra by Lainey (in her normally subtle way in a post she put up months after this one) was this – http://www.laineygossip.com/Articles/Details/11216/Body-or-Baby
And here’s the link to the “reveal” – http://laineygossip.com/Articles/Details/11617/It%60s-all-about-healthy-eating
Wow. So he’s hung for quite some time. The date on that article was 3 years ago.
I need to get together with Karen for a liquid lunch and hear all about it.
“There is NO SUCH THING as an amicable divorce.” My Mum, when I was going through mine.
I kinda miss The Starter Wife. I watched faithfully and was bummed when it was cancelled.
I enjoyed Starter Wife so much, I was totally bummed out too when it ended 🙁
Juicy, great detectiveing.
Funny I think she’s so gorgeous but would look even better with that 10 pounds or more. I can see it being an unnatural starvation mode.
She looks very Sarah Michelle Gellar-ish in the 2nd photo.
I always laugh when some celebrities break up. The first thing said is..Awww a low key couple ends. Well the media is not putting their nose in their lives. YET they have problems big enough that they divorce. And on top of that they are luck that they don’t get hounded by the paps and their pictures are not plastered on the front pages of tabloids. YET they break up. LOW key has nothing to do with anything. People all over the world break up.
but they are lucky because the paps and rags are not going to be focusing on them.
Sad when anyone breaks up. But at least they don’t have it being predicted or wished for.
if these celebrities wanted to be all on the tabloids all they would need to do is make up a bunch a lies about themselves, the interest will start, that’s how some celebs do, or go where paps are, pay for it, etc.
New show for DM, therefore, must create fake break up in order to create publicity.
she used to be so pretty… *sigh*