WHO IS ANN LESLEY SMITH? MEET BILLIONAIRE RUPERT MURDOCH’S BRIDE TO BE

Tue 21 March 2023:

Rupert Murdoch, the owner of Sky, is getting married a fifth time. The 92-year-old confirmed his engagement to Ann Lesley Smith and their impending nuptials to the New York Post, one of the media conglomerate’s publications. The 92-year-old claimed to have met Ann in September while paying a visit to his vineyard in Bel Air, California, in an interview with gossip columnist Cindy Adams.

Murdoch said that he “dreaded falling in love” again since his previous four marriages went through very public divorces. However, this marriage, he admits, will be his “last”.

Once it was revealed that Murdoch was engaged, everyone was curious to learn more about the woman who had persuaded him to tie the knot once more.

Former police chaplain Ann Lesley Smith was wed to the late country music icon Chester Smith. She used to work as a dental hygienist, model, and singer in addition to being a journalist. The 66-year-old woman lost her husband in 2008; he passed away at age 78 after suffering a heart attack. However, Ann had a turbulent love life prior to her union with Smith, including an abusive marriage.

Rupert Murdoch engaged to Ann Lesley Smith https://t.co/qGLE1Om9q9 pic.twitter.com/9qwIJpkche

— New York Post (@nypost) March 20, 2023

Her first marriage

John B. Huntington, an attorney and descendant of one of California’s most illustrious families that helped build the nation’s first railroads, was once married to Ann Lesley Smith. She went from working as a dental hygienist to residing with a family that was regarded as “royalty,” and her life was forever altered. Ann Lesley married John, who was 47, when she was only 28 years old.

An Idaho State University graduate, she admitted to spending $65,000 a month on just clothes as Huntington’s wife. “During the day my life was just so fun. John was into cars, and we had a stable full of every kind – exotic Ferraris and everything,” Ann Lesley told The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN).

In addition to modeling for renowned designers, she was also out horseback riding and doing charitable work. However, she once claimed that while things were fine during the day, John “became a different person” at night after drinking.

Ann once revealed to CBN about her relationship with John that he frequently became physically abusive toward her. Ann talked openly about his drinking issues and how they caused him to become angry.

“He physically abused me, mentally abused me, emotionally,” Ann said.

The marriage ended up in a divorce, leaving Ann Lesley with new problems due to the prenup. She was homeless, living on welfare and even had thought of committing suicide. “I really wanted to commit suicide ’cause my life was just so bad,” she said.

Ann’s later life

Ann continued to work as a model while also taking on odd jobs. Then, when an event coordinator saw how she was struggling, she was told that Jesus could help her. She began reading “The Four Spiritual Laws” and acted as it advised throughout.

She later began serving as a volunteer police chaplain and eventually met Chester Smith, a Christian who would later become her husband. In 1963, he established the first country music radio station in the Modesto, California, region. After that, Ann Lesley went on to become a radio host and supposedly had a happy marriage to Smith. Together, the two also put out an album called “Captured By Love”.

After his death, Ann stayed in Modesto and currently lives on her ranch in northern California. Chester’s obituary described Ann Lesley as his “loving wife”. She had a career as a radio host and journalist in the San Francisco Bay Area. She even paid for her own airtime on iHeartRadio station Power Talk 1360

Rupert Murdoch with his fifth wife to be Ann Lesley Smith CREDIT: Jenna Bascom Photography.

Murdoch and Ann Lesley

Murdoch and Ann Lesley first spoke in September 2017 at his Bel Air, California Moraga vineyard. She refers to the connection as “a gift from God”.

“I’m a widow 14 years. Like Rupert, my husband was a businessman. Worked for local papers, developed radio and TV stations and helped promote Univision. So I speak Rupert’s language. We share the same beliefs,” she shared.

Murdoch hopes that this will be his final wedding; the two intend to get hitched this summer. On St. Patrick’s Day in New York, Murdoch, who is “one-fourth Irish,” popped the question to Ann Lesley with an Asscher-cut diamond solitaire.

“In perspective, it’s not my first rodeo. Getting near 70 means being in the last half. I waited for the right time. Friends are happy for me.”

Despite the fact that the two have only recently made their relationship public, there have long been rumors that they are dating. In January, Murdoch was spotted in Barbados with Ann Lesley.

Patricia Booker, a flight attendant, and Murdoch were married for the first time in 1956; they divorced in 1967. The following year, he wed journalist Anna Maria Torv, with whom he remained for more than 30 years before divorcing her in 1999. He wed Wendi Deng, an American businesswoman of Chinese descent, in the same year. It was a 14-year union.