Lauren Sánchez Wiki, Age, Boyfriend, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Lauren Sánchez is a Mexican-American news journalist, entrepreneur, actor, and media personality who is known for hosting several American TV shows including Barbara Walters’ The View, FOX 11’s Good Day LA and Ten O’clock News, CNN’s Larry King Live, Joy Behar: Say Anything!, and HLN’s Showbiz Tonight. She hit the headlines in May 2023 after she got engaged to Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.

Wiki/Biography

Lauren Wendy Sánchez was born on Friday, 19 December 1969 (age 53 years; as of 2022) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the United States of America. Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius. Lauren completed her schooling at the Del Norte High School in San Diego, California, and Le Lycée Français de Los Angeles after which she enrolled at the El Camino College in Torrance, California, where she earned a degree in communication. There, she used to write news articles for the college magazine. Thereafter, she enrolled at the University of Southern California, where she pursued a degree in journalism on scholarship. While studying at the University of Southern California, she learnt how to fly a helicopter and received her pilot’s license in 2016.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 6″

Weight (approx.): 60 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Dark Brown

Body Measurements (approx.): 34-28-34

Family

Lauren Sánchez belongs to a Mexican-American Christian family.

Parents & Siblings

Her father’s name is Ray Sánchez. Her mother’s name is Eleanor Sánchez. She has two siblings, a brother named Michael Sánchez, who is a singer, and a sister named Elena Sánchez Blair, who is a photographer.

Husband & Children

Her first ex-husband, Tony Gonzalez, was an NFL player with whom she has a son named Nikko Gonzalez, who is a professional rugby player. Some sources, however, claim that Lauren and Tony were not married and were only in a relationship.

Her second ex-husband, Patrick Whitesell, is a businessman and executive chairman of Endeavor. Lauren got married to him in 2005. The couple parted ways in 2019 after Lauren’s extra-marital affair with Jeff Bezos came into the limelight. With Patrick, she has two kids, a son named Evan Whitesell, and a daughter named Ella Whitesell.

Relationships/Affairs

Lauren Sánchez’s name has been linked with several famous people including Anthony Miller (NFL player), Derek Fisher (NBA player), and Henry Simmons (Hollywood actor).

In 2018, she started an extra-marital affair with the founder of Amazon Jeff Bezos.

Fiancé

Lauren Sánchez was rumoured to be engaged to Rory Markas, a sports broadcaster, who passed away in 2010. In May 2023, she got engaged to Jeff Bezos.

Career

Journalism and Anchoring

After completing her formal education, Lauren started working as a desk assistant at KCOP-TV in Los Angeles. Thereafter, she worked at KTVK-TV in Phoenix as an anchor and a news reporter.

From 1997 to 2000, Lauren worked as a weekend anchor/correspondent at Extra, a syndicated news broadcasting newsmagazine. Thereafter, she quit her job at Extra and joined Fox Sports Network, where she began working as a news correspondent for FSN’s sports magazine Going Deep. She later started working as an entertainment reporter for FSN’s The Best Damn Sports Show Period.

During her stint at FSN, Lauren was nominated for an Emmy Award. In 1999, she re-joined KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, where she started working as an anchor for which she received an Emmy Award. In February 2000, Lauren came second in the nationwide hosting competition in the second season of The View. In 2005, Lauren was chosen to host a dance competition named So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD), which was aired on the Fox network; however, she quit the show and did not host its second season as she was expecting her second child. She rejoined Extra in 2009 and worked as a weekend anchor and special correspondent.

Acting

Films

Lauren Sánchez has played the role of reporter/news broadcaster in several Hollywood films including Fight Club (1999), Hollywood Homicide (2003), Fantastic Four (2005), The Longest Yard (2005), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), White House Down (2013), and Ted 2 (2015).

TV Shows

She has appeared as a journalist in several American TV shows including Babylon 5 (1997), Girlfriends (2001), The Agency (2005), and Rake (2014).

Entrepreneur

In 2017, Lauren Sánchez established an aerial film and production company named Black Ops Aviation in the US. The company is USA’s first female-owned aerial production company. The company has a wide variety of aircrafts in its inventory including a BELL 429 w/Shotover, AS350 w/Shotover, and Cirrus SR22. Black Ops Aviation has worked with numerous networks and entertainment companies such as ABC, Discovery Canada, Sony, Netflix, and Discovery.

Net Worth

In 2023, Lauren Sánchez’s net worth was estimated to be $30 million.

Facts/Trivia

• She also goes by the name W. Lauren Sánchez.

• In the late 1980s, Lauren Sánchez contested in the Miss Hawaiian Tropic International Beauty pageant.

  Lauren’s photo taken during the Miss Hawaiian Tropic International Beauty pageant

• In 2010, Lauren Sánchez’s name was featured in the “50 Most Beautiful” issue of the People magazine.

• She serves as the Vice Chairperson of the Bezos Earth Fund. Through Bezos Earth Fund, she has often raised her voice against climate change and its impact on Earth to educate the masses about it.

• Jeff announced his relationship with Lauren Sánchez to the public in February 2019 when American Media, Inc., a fervent supporter of Donald Trump, threatened Jeff and Lauren with releasing their comprising photos to the public. According to Jeff, the media company, while blackmailing the duo, demanded that Jeff should order the Washington Post, owned by Jeff, to stop publishing content against Donald Trump.

• In March 2019, Lauren severed all the ties between her and Michael Sanchez after it was revealed that he reportedly took $200,000 from American Media, Inc., for leaking Lauren and Jeff’s intimate photos and texts. Michael, however, denied having played any role in the leak of the information. Talking about it, in an interview, Michael said,
  

  I’m not saying I didn’t do something. Until I go under oath, what I can tell you now is that ever since April 20, when I met Jeff, my only goal has been to protect Jeff and Lauren.”

  Expressing her displeasure over the issue, Lauren, in a media interaction, said that she saved Michael from going bankrupt by giving him $165,000 as well as a job.

Lauren Sanchez reportedly “cuts all ties” with her brother Michael after it’s revealed she saved him from bankruptcy by giving him a job and $165K – and he thanked her by allegedly leaking news of her husband Jeff Bezos’ affair.

How would you handle a family betrayal like this? pic.twitter.com/YItSSIBsuY

— The Talk (@TheTalkCBS) February 27, 2019

• Lauren Sánchez is expected to join an all-women crew and fly to outer space onboard the rocket New Shepard in 2024.

• In an interview, Lauren Sánchez revealed that she is dyslexic. Talking about it, she said,
  

  I am dyslexic and I literally had to put myself in a room and just cram to figure it out. They call them learning differences now, which is really sweet, but growing up I just thought that I was stupid. My co-anchors knew I was dyslexic but not many more [did]. I felt like I had to hide it because it just wasn’t something that people talked about.”

• While giving an interview, Lauren said that during childhood, she witnessed poverty. Talking about it, she said,
  

  We came from nothing. I used to sleep in the back of my grandmother’s car when she would go clean houses, and I’ve been fortunate enough to have a career.”

• Lauren Sánchez is a hodophile (one who likes to travel a lot) and has visited and explored many places.

• Lauren Sánchez is an avid dog lover and owns an Old English Sheepdog named Luna. She also owns an Alaskan Malamute named Blu.

  A photo of Luna, Lauren’s pet dog

  Lauren with Blu in a helicopter