According to a new report, Erika Girardi and her husband, Tom Girardi, were on two different paths long before calling off their 21-year marriage.
“Erika and Tom had an unconventional marriage, spending a lot of time apart. Several months,” a source told Us Weekly. “They would travel separately. Tom gave Erika a very lavish lifestyle, and she enjoyed it.”
After joining the cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2015, Erika “gained independence and confidence,” the source added. “The exposure it has given for her singing career has given Erika a much larger fan base.”
The Pretty Mess singer filed for divorce from her 81-year-old husband on Tuesday, November 3. She later confirmed the news via a statement. “After much consideration, I have decided to end my marriage to Tom Girardi,” she said. “This is not a step taken lightly or easily. I have great love and respect for Tom and for our years and the lives we built together. It is my absolute wish to proceed through this process with respect and with the privacy that both Tom and I deserved I request others give us that privacy as well.”
Erika and Tom, who is 32 years her senior, met in 1999 while she was working at Chasen’s restaurant in Los Angeles. The two got engaged six months later and got married the same year.
“After a year of working in the restaurant, one night I decided to slip Tom my telephone number,” the Pretty Mess singer recalled in her 2018 memoir, Pretty Mess.
Tom subsequently reached out to Erika through his secretary. “I told her, ’Tell Mr. Girardi if he wants to take me out on a date, he needs to call me himself and ask me and give me enough time to prepare,’” she wrote. “You know how men are, especially if they are successful. They expect you to drop everything right away. That’s not how I work, I don’t care who you are.”
Bravo fans will likely see Erika’s divorce play out on the upcoming eleventh of RHOBH, which is currently filming.
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