Vanna White Ex Husband George Santo Pietro and Their Marriage Story Explained
If you’re searching vanna white ex husband, you’re looking for the clear story behind the long-time Wheel of Fortune star’s past marriage—who she was married to, how long it lasted, and what their life looked like together. Vanna White’s ex-husband is George Santo Pietro, a restaurateur and real estate developer. They were married in the early 1990s, had two children together, and later divorced. Even though Vanna White has spent decades in the spotlight, she has kept much of her personal life relatively private, which is why people still search for details about her ex-husband today.
Below is the full, easy-to-follow breakdown of who George Santo Pietro is, what he does, how the marriage began, why it ended, and what happened in Vanna’s life after the divorce.
Who is Vanna White?
You know Vanna White as one of the most recognizable faces in American television. For decades, she has been the co-host of Wheel of Fortune, famous for turning letters, smiling through every puzzle, and becoming a comforting part of nightly TV for millions of households.
But behind that polished TV image, Vanna’s personal life has had real ups and downs—relationships, motherhood, and changes that happened away from the stage lights. Because she doesn’t overshare, curiosity naturally builds around big life chapters, including her marriage and divorce.
And that’s why the keyword vanna white ex husband continues to get searched.
Vanna White ex husband: who is George Santo Pietro?
Vanna White’s ex-husband is George Santo Pietro.
He is known primarily for his work as a restaurateur and real estate developer. He has also been associated with hospitality ventures and property development in California, which is where his name is most often connected.
Unlike Vanna, George was never a “TV personality,” so you won’t see him doing interviews about their relationship or appearing regularly in entertainment coverage. Most information about him comes from his career profile and his connection to Vanna during the years they were married.
In short, he’s a businessman with a private public footprint—someone you’d likely never search for unless you were looking up Vanna’s marriage history.
When did Vanna White and George Santo Pietro get married?
Vanna White and George Santo Pietro married in 1990.
At that point, Vanna was already famous. Wheel of Fortune had made her a household name, and she had one of the most consistent careers in television. Their marriage began while she was at the height of her public visibility, but they still managed to keep their home life relatively quiet compared to many celebrity couples.
That matters because people often assume that when someone is famous, their marriage is automatically public in every detail. For Vanna, it wasn’t. She didn’t build her public image around being a celebrity wife. She built it around being a consistent, professional TV host.
How long were they married?
Vanna White and George Santo Pietro were married for about 12 years.
They separated and later divorced in 2002. Even though Vanna has been in the public eye for decades, the divorce itself was not turned into a loud media spectacle. It became known, it was reported, but it wasn’t treated like a tabloid circus in the way some celebrity splits are.
This is a pattern with Vanna: major life events happen, but she doesn’t feed them to the public for entertainment.
Do Vanna White and her ex-husband have children?
Yes. Vanna White and George Santo Pietro have two children together:
- Nicholas Santo Pietro (son)
- Giovanna “Gigi” Santo Pietro (daughter)
Vanna has spoken warmly about motherhood over the years, and her children have occasionally been mentioned in interviews or public moments. But overall, she has tried to keep them relatively protected compared to how celebrity children are treated today.
You’ll sometimes see Nicholas and Gigi appear in public contexts as adults, but their childhood wasn’t consistently exposed to media in the way many celebrity families are now.
What was their family life like during the marriage?
During her marriage to George Santo Pietro, Vanna’s public life continued at full speed. She was still filming Wheel of Fortune, still maintaining a professional image, and still appearing in public events tied to the show.
At the same time, their home life was largely based in California, where George’s business world was rooted. Their family life was often described as stable and low-drama from a public perspective, especially compared to the usual Hollywood relationship cycles.
If you picture what their household likely looked like at the time, it’s probably something like this:
- Vanna’s schedule shaped by TV production routines
- George’s schedule shaped by business and property work
- a shared focus on raising two children outside the chaos of constant headlines
That kind of setup can work well—until it doesn’t. And since neither of them has publicly shared deeply personal details, the public doesn’t have a full private explanation of why the marriage ended.
Why did Vanna White and George Santo Pietro divorce?
This is where you’ll find a lot of internet speculation, but the honest answer is: they didn’t publicly detail a single dramatic reason, and the split was generally framed as a marriage ending after years together.
Many celebrity divorces aren’t caused by one “big event.” They’re caused by gradual changes—different paths, different needs, different priorities, or the quiet strain of living in two demanding careers.
And Vanna has always been the type to keep her personal life dignified in public. So instead of turning the divorce into headlines, she moved forward privately and continued raising her children.
If you’re looking for the most respectful and accurate summary: they divorced after a long marriage and remained connected through co-parenting their two children.
Who did Vanna White date after her divorce?
After her divorce from George Santo Pietro, Vanna White was linked to other relationships, including a long-term relationship with businessman Michael Kaye.
That relationship lasted for years and was frequently referenced in entertainment coverage, but it did not lead to marriage. Vanna has been engaged before, but she has also been open about being comfortable without rushing into another marriage.
This is another reason the “ex-husband” keyword stays popular: people often want to compare “who she married” vs. “who she dated,” and George Santo Pietro remains the central marriage chapter of her adult life.
What happened to George Santo Pietro after the divorce?
George Santo Pietro continued his work in business and real estate. He has also been connected to other relationships after his marriage to Vanna, but he has stayed largely out of celebrity culture.
His name still appears occasionally in lifestyle and entertainment profiles, mainly because of his connection to Vanna White and because people remain curious about her past life.
But he hasn’t built a public identity around being “Vanna White’s ex.” He remains primarily known as a businessman.
Why people still search “Vanna White ex husband” today
Even though their marriage ended years ago, this topic stays popular because Vanna White has stayed relevant for decades.
When someone remains on television for that long, new audiences constantly discover them. And new audiences always do the same thing:
- search the personal background
- look for the marriage timeline
- ask who she had children with
- compare her relationships across decades
So even though the divorce happened long ago, the curiosity renews itself every time Vanna appears in news coverage or major show updates.
What you should remember about Vanna White’s ex-husband
If you want the clean summary that answers your keyword vanna white ex husband without confusion, here it is:
- Vanna White’s ex-husband is George Santo Pietro.
- They married in 1990 and divorced in 2002.
- They have two children, Nicholas and Giovanna (Gigi).
- He is a restaurateur and real estate developer.
- Their divorce was handled relatively privately, and Vanna continued focusing on motherhood and her long TV career.
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