Who here remembers Bo Derek? I’ve always liked her, and when I heard about what she’s been doing in recent years, I was even more impressed by her.
I remember the first time I saw Bo Derek in a movie. It was 1979, and the movie ’10’ was her big break. She was a beautiful young blonde woman with clear blue eyes.
But what happened after her time in Hollywood when she became famous?
Mary Cathleen Collins, who is now known as Bo Derek, was born and grew up in California. Her mother worked for the Swedish-American actor Ann-Margaret, which gave her an early start in Hollywood.
Bo got an agent at age 16 with the help of her mother’s connections. This led to her first movie part in Once Upon a Love.
The movie was shot on the Greek island of Mykonos, which is known for its beauty. Bo met her future husband, John Derek, on the set of the movie. Soon, they fell in love and started going out together. At the time, Bo was only 17 and John Derek was 47.
The gap in their ages could have caused a scandal on its own, but there was another reason why they shouldn’t have been together: John Derek was happily married to actress Linda Evans.
John could have been arrested in the U.S. because Bo was a minor at the time, so he and Bo spent some time in Europe and Mexico to avoid age of consent rules in California. In 1976, they tied the knot in Las Vegas. They were both in their 20s.
After they got married, Bo’s work life took off. John put her in his low-budget movies, often in tricky poses and situations, to make people talk about them. Bo made a name for herself as one of Hollywood’s most beautiful actors in the movie “10.” In that movie, her famous blonde braids in a cornrow style were also first seen.
Even though he wasn’t in charge of making the movie, her husband suggested that Bo have curls in it.
“It was the end of the 1970s, and everything was fluffy. I was blonde at the time, and… What will you do to change how you look? John had always thought that would be a good look for me—he’s a great photographer—just for pictures. We tried it, too. And he said, “Why don’t you take these pictures to Blake and see if he’ll go for it?” She told Interview Magazine, “It would be great for the part, so you don’t look normal.”
After ’10’ did well, Bo Derek was in several of her husband’s bad movies, including Tarzan, The Ape Man (1981), Bolero (1984), and Ghosts Can’t Do It (1990). After that, Bo was in a number of TV shows, such as 7th Heaven, Lucky, and Queen of Swords.
Since the start of the 21st century, Bo has been involved in politics. In the 2000 and 2004 election campaigns, she backed George W. Bush and the Republican Party. She says she doesn’t belong to any party, but she voted for Barack Obama.
Lusitanos, a Portuguese horse breed, are one of her biggest passions. She has also written a book called Riding Lessons: Everything That Matters in Life I Learned from Horses.
She also used to breed horses on her land for a while. Bo has always fought for the safety of animals and wants horse killing to stop.
As the honored chair of VA’s National Rehabilitation Special Events, she also helps support and rehabilitate war veterans.
Derek told the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs that the VA’s National Rehabilitation Special Events help heal both the body and the spirit. This helps soldiers become more independent and enjoy a better quality of life.
“I am deeply honoured and moved to serve once again as the honorary chair of a truly noble cause on behalf of America’s veterans.”
Her dad, Paul Collins, was a radio operator in the Korean War. Both Bo’s stepfather and her late husband, John, also served in the military. Bo, who is 63 years old and hasn’t been married since 1998, is now dating John Corbett, who was in “S@x and the City” and is 59 years old.
“We like being with each other and making each other laugh. We still hold hands after 15 years and have parties with friends a few times a week,” says Bo.
Back in 2002, they met each other. Norby Walters, a Hollywood agent, set up a date for Bo and Corbett at his annual Oscars party.
“I told him, ‘I’m not dating anyone,’ and he said, ‘Corbett, I’ll find you a date!'” Corbett told TODAY in 2015, “He set me up with Bo.
In August 2021, the happy pair finally shared the news. Bo and Corbett got married in a small wedding after being together for almost 20 years.
“We tend to keep to ourselves. We didn’t tell anyone about it. All of our friends and family knew, but this is the first time either of us has talked about it in public because we haven’t really had a chance. So, you’re my friend, and now I guess I’m going to tell all of America, or the whole world,” Corbett told CBS in a virtual chat.
Bo Derek is still living a happy life with her husband, sister, brother-in-law, and their two children in California.
And even though she doesn’t star in big movies and isn’t as well-known as she used to be, she will always be an icon.
Watch the beach scene below to see what I mean. You know it, right?