Who Is Gayle King’s Ex-Husband, William Bumpus?
CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King has been open about one of the most painful chapters for her: the end of her marriage to ex-husband William Bumpus after he cheated on her. King revisited that period in her life during an appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast.
The news anchor, who was married to William Bumpus from 1982 to 1993 and shares two children with him, told host Alex Cooper that Bumpus had an extramarital affair with one of her good friends. And not only that, but she caught them together.
King said that happened when she came home early from a trip one day. She remembered when she returned home from the airport, Bumpus was wearing nothing but a towel and trying to block her from going into their house. Once she made her way inside, she found her friend, also wrapped in just a towel, hiding from her.
Her story sparked renewed public interest from fans about her divorce and in Bumpus himself. Here’s what we know about King’s former husband.
Who is King’s ex-husband?
According to his bio, Bumpus is a lawyer who specializes in family law and serves as a Guardian ad Litem/Attorney for the Minor Child in Child Protection Cases and Family Law Cases. He previously served as an Assistant Attorney General in the Child Protection Unit of the State of Connecticut Attorney General’s Office. Bumpus has a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School and has been an attorney for over 35 years. He is a partner at his current firm, Wolf & Shore Law Group.
In addition to his two children with King, Bumpus also has another child as well as two grandkids.
In 2016, Bumpus broke his silence about his past actions. He apologized to King, calling what he did a “life-changing mistake.”
Bumpus’ latest apology to King
Following King’s appearance on the popular podcast, Bumpus decided to offer another public apology for the hurt he caused all those years ago.
He shared his renewed apology with TMZ in a lengthy statement on May 28, which read, “My deepest apologies to Gayle, to our daughter Kirby and her husband, Virgil, to our son William and his wife, Elise, and to our three grandchildren, for the pain I caused decades ago. Those actions were mine. I have long owned them — including publicly in my own words in 2016, which still stand. Gayle has every right to share what was a painful chapter that changed the trajectory of our marriage and our family nearly 40 years ago. I respect her right to tell her story, and that’s where I’ll leave it.”
Bumpus added, “What I will say is this: I remain endlessly grateful to Gayle. She gave me two of the greatest gifts of my life — our daughter, Kirby, and our son, William. It was Gayle who encouraged and supported me through getting my Yale Law degree. And it was Gayle who chose, with me, to co-parent successfully from the very beginning — a testament to our shared commitment to our children above all else, and now our grandchildren. The love and camaraderie we forged in that work have carried us all these years.
“Nearly four decades later, that commitment has only deepened, and Gayle and I remain in a good place. She recently sent warm wishes to Poet, my teenage daughter, on her 16th birthday, which meant a great deal to us both. As a private person by nature, I will admit that during our marriage, I did not fully appreciate Gayle’s public life — I wanted ours to be more private, and that was something I wrestled with, and no reflection on her true talent and abilities. I am proud to have had a front-row seat to Gayle’s remarkable success, and I remain a genuine admirer and fan.”
King’s ex concluded, “I continue to work at being the best version of myself, grounded by the friendship, encouragement, and support of Gayle over the years, by the love of our grown children and our grandchildren, and by the daily privilege of raising Poet as a single dad. That is where my focus remains — on my family, on my clients, and on the work ahead.”
