Deborah Norville Call Husband Karl Wellner Her ‘Best Friend’ – More about Their Family

Emmy-winning television journalist Deborah Norville met her husband, Karl Wellner, on a blind date, and after 35 years of marriage, she calls him her “best friend.”

She is a famous TV journalist with an instantly recognizable face and a brilliant career. Still, few of her millions of fans know anything about Deborah Norville’s husband, Karl Wellner, and their sweet love story.

The story of how the former beauty queen met and married a Swedish businessman over thirty-five years ago and their enduring bond of love and trust is an inspiration.

Deborah Norville at the 49th Daytime Emmy Awards in 2022, in Pasadena, California. | Source: Getty Images

Deborah Norville is an iconic journalist whose work has shaped events in recent history, such as her interview with Paula Jones, which broke open the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Born in Dalton, Georgia, on August 8, 1958, Norville’s beauty became an asset early in her life, and she won several beauty pageants.

She became fascinated by TV journalism, attended the University of Georgia, and earned a B.A. in journalism and mass communication. Her career took her to WAGA-TV as a reporter and NBC News. After a sojourn in radio, Norville joined CBS News and has been the host of Inside Edition since 1995.

Norville has done it all while being a hands-on mom to three children and a devoted wife to her husband, Karl Wellner, whom she married in 1987. Let’s look at the man who stood by Norville’s side through thick and thin and whom she calls her “best friend.”

They Met on a Blind Date

Norville met the Swedish-born New York-based businessman on a blind date set by her Swedish relatives. The two went out for the first time in 1985, and Norville was delighted when Wellner asked to see her again.

After thirty-five years together, the couple is as in love as ever, and Norville has referred to her husband as her best friend on several Instagram posts.

Four months later, he proposed to her twice. The first time was in a New York sandwich shop, and the second was on a mountaintop in Brazil. Norville said “yes” both times, and the couple set a date for December 12, 1987.

They Had A Christmas Wedding

The choice of a winter wedding had to do with their Swedish roots. Norville wanted to celebrate their marriage as close as possible to St Lucia’s Day, celebrated in Sweden on December 13. On St Lucia’s Day, Swedish girls in white dresses make their families a hot breakfast and sing traditional songs.

Norville and Wellner organized every detail of the wedding themselves, and because she couldn’t find bridesmaids’ dresses that she liked, the journalist decided to make them herself. She stayed up late night after night cutting and making full-length strapless gowns and matching boleros in gorgeous jewel tones: ruby, emerald, and gold. She explained:

”I couldn`t find anything I liked at the bridal stores. So many of them were made of polyester, and I didn`t like the idea of my bridesmaids being walking fire hazards.”

Since Wellner, now the President and CEO of Papamarkou, a wealth management firm that deals only with millionaire clients was New York-based, Norville also found a job in New York.

Wellner is as successful in his work as Norville is in hers and holds a degree from the Stockholm School of Economics. He also speaks seven languages: English, Swedish, German, French, Estonian, Russian, and Italian, which come in handy since he has to travel all over the world.

Deborah Often Calls Her Husband “Best Friend”

After thirty-five years together, the couple is as in love as ever, and Norville has referred to her husband as her best friend on several Instagram posts. In one, she shared a snap of herself and Wellner on a beach, wearing dark glasses and smiling happily. She captioned it:

“Beach walk 🌴with my best friend!”

On another post, she shared a photo of Wellner tenderly holding her hand in a hospital. At that time, in 2019, Norville had undergone surgery to remove a thyroid tumor. She commented:

“Out of surgery. Everything went great. Here with my best friend. ❤️”

The couple shares three children: Nick, Kyle, Kyle, and daughter Mikaela. Nick, born in 1991, graduated from Duke University in 2013, while his brother Kyle, born in 1995, attended the same college and played football for the Blue Devils.

The baby of the family, Mikaela, was born in 1998, attends Duke, and is often spotted at NCAA basketball games with her famous mom. In an anniversary post. Norville gave a shoutout to her husband:

“35 years went WAY too fast! Happy Anniversary my love – we created amazing memories and three amazing children!”

This message is an incredible tribute and a testimony of the enviable bond between Deborah Norville and her best friend and husband, Karl Wellner.