Star Jones facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Star Jones
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Jones in 2011
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| Born |
Starlet Marie Jones
March 24, 1962 Badin, North Carolina, U.S.
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| Other names | Star Jones Reynolds |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
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Notable credit(s)
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Al Reynolds
(m. 2004; div. 2008)Ricardo Lugo
(m. 2018) |
Starlet Marie Jones Lugo (born March 24, 1962), known as Star Jones, is an American lawyer, journalist, and television host. She is also a writer, fashion designer, and an advocate for women and diversity. She is famous for being one of the first hosts on the ABC morning talk show The View. She was on the show for nine seasons, from 1997 to 2006. She also competed on The Celebrity Apprentice in 2011. Today, she hosts the TV show Divorce Court.
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Early Life and Education
Star Jones was born in Badin, North Carolina. She grew up in Trenton, New Jersey, with her mother and stepfather. Her mother worked in human services, and her stepfather was a security chief for the city.
Jones went to Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. She earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Administration of Justice from American University. Later, she earned a law degree (called a J.D.) from the University of Houston Law Center in 1986. She became a licensed lawyer in New York in 1987.
Television Career Highlights
From 1986 to 1991, Star Jones worked as a prosecutor in Brooklyn, New York. This meant she worked for the government to bring legal cases against people accused of crimes. In 1992, she became a senior assistant district attorney.
In 1991, she started working for Court TV as a commentator. She also spent several years as a legal reporter for NBC's Today and NBC Nightly News.
Becoming a TV Judge
In 1994, Star Jones got her own court show called Jones & Jury. This show was similar to The People's Court. Even though the show only lasted one season, it made Jones the first Black person to be a judge on a court show. She was also the first woman to lead a reality-based court show.
After Jones & Jury, Jones became the main legal expert on Inside Edition. She led the coverage of the O. J. Simpson murder case. She was also the only reporter to interview Simpson during his civil trial.
Time on The View
In 1997, Star Jones became one of the first four co-hosts of The View. She was on the show for nine seasons.
During her time on The View, Jones decided to make big changes to her health. She had gastric bypass surgery in 2003. This surgery helped her lose a lot of weight, about 160 pounds over three years.
In 2004, Jones married Al Reynolds. She talked a lot about her wedding plans on The View. She also mentioned the companies that provided things for her wedding, like invitations and clothes. It was later found out that she received these products and services for free in exchange for mentioning them on the show.
In April 2006, ABC, the network that aired The View, decided not to renew her contract. This meant she would not be on the show for the next season. Jones announced her departure on air, surprising some of her co-hosts. She later told People magazine that she felt she had been "fired."
Star Jones returned to The View as a guest in 2012 and has made other guest appearances since then.
Other TV Appearances
After The View, Jones returned to truTV (formerly Court TV) in 2007. She became an executive editor and hosted her own live talk show called Star Jones. The show covered pop culture, entertainment, crime, and justice. However, the show was canceled after six months.
Star Jones has also hosted or guest-hosted many other TV programs. She hosted House Hunters in New York City for HGTV. She has also been a guest host on Larry King Live.
She has acted in TV shows like Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Drop Dead Diva. She has also been a legal expert on The Insider and Dr. Phil.
In 2009, Jones appeared on a celebrity version of Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?. She won $25,000 for a school that helps underserved students.
In 2011, she was a contestant on The Celebrity Apprentice. She finished in fifth place.
Since September 2022, Star Jones has been the judge on Divorce Court.
Books Written by Star Jones
Star Jones is also an author. Her first book, You Have to Stand for Something, or You'll Fall for Anything, was published in 1998. It is a collection of essays about her life.
Her second book, Shine: A Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Journey to Finding Love (2006), talked about the changes she made in her life, including her marriage and weight loss.
In 2011, she released a third book called ... Sisters. This book was a fictional story about a TV talk show with five women who had very different personalities. A TV series based on this book, called Daytime Divas, aired in 2017. Jones was an executive producer for the series and appeared in one episode.
Other Important Roles
Star Jones is the President of the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW). She created the NAPW Foundation, which helps charities like the American Heart Association, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Dress For Success, and Girls, Inc.. She also visits NAPW chapters and hosts their yearly conference.
Jones is also the president of Professional Diversity Network (NASDAQ: IPDN). She is on its board of directors, making her one of the youngest African-American women to lead a public company in the U.S.
In 2022, President Joe Biden appointed Jones to be the chair of the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad.
Personal Life
Star Jones had gastric bypass surgery in 2003, which helped her lose 160 pounds.
She married investment banker Al Reynolds on November 13, 2004. Their wedding was a big event in New York City with many guests. Over thirty companies provided wedding items in exchange for being mentioned in the media. After her wedding, she used the name "Star Jones Reynolds" professionally, but she went back to "Star Jones" in 2007. Jones and Reynolds announced their divorce in March 2008.
In March 2010, Jones had heart surgery related to a surgery she had many years earlier for a tumor.
On March 25, 2018, Star Jones married Ricardo Lugo on a cruise ship in the Bahamas.
