Howie Mandel & His Wife's Backyard Chaos with a Live Elephant Cost Them $45,000
The America's Got Talent Judge has been married to his wife Terry Mandel for over four decades. So when time comes for birthdays, you have to up the ante.
Long before Howie Mandel became one of the most recognizable faces on Deal or No Deal and America’s Got Talent, the comedian’s love story with his wife of over four decades was well underway.
The AGT Judge and his wife, Terry, met when they were just teenagers and certainly love to laugh together, whether they’re playfully turning Howie’s head into a bird’s nest or renovating their kitchen. In fact, it was his wife’s sense of humor that initially made him fall for her. "She made me laugh. It was wonderful to meet a witty woman," Howie once said, per People. "Spending your life with someone who doesn't have that wouldn't be palatable."
So how exactly did Howie Mandel meet his wife? Read on to learn all about how the Deal or No Deal Island Banker proposed, the family they’ve built together, and more.
Who is Howie Mandel’s wife, Terry Mandel?
Howie Mandel has been married to his wife, Terry Mandel, for over four decades. The couple tied the knot on March 16, 1980 in their hometown of Toronto, Canada.
Terry also works in the entertainment business as a talent agent and producer. Some of her projects include the game show Tattletales and the anthology series Cinemax Comedy Experiment.
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How did Howie Mandel and his wife Terry meet?
Howie and his wife Terry are high school sweethearts, having first met when they were just teenagers in line at a McDonald’s.
"I actually borrowed money from her," Howie told Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager during a 2022 appearance on TODAY. "I didn't know her, and I was short a couple of bucks for french fries … and she lent me money. She was, like, 14 at the time and she lent me money. And I've been paying her back ever since."
Howie Mandel proposed to his wife with a "loose" diamond
In an interview with Streets of Toronto, Howie revealed that he popped the big question in a pretty casual way while he and Terry were at a deli.
“I was sitting in a deli, and I’d bought a loose diamond, and I put it on the table and said, ‘I got to go to the bathroom, but if you want to make a ring go ahead,’” he shared. “I’m not a romantic; neither of us is romantic. One time in 43 years, I brought flowers home, and she said, ‘Where did you get these?’ The truth is, I did take them from the set that I was working on.”
After the proposal, the couple traveled to Toronto for their wedding and celebrated their honeymoon the following day at a comedy club called Yuk Yuk’s. Short on cash at the time, Howie told Streets of Toronto that he squeezed a little business into the trip.
“I was already living in Los Angeles, and we had to fly up for the wedding. We barely had enough money to buy the plane tickets for the wedding, so I timed it as a business trip (although I didn’t have big business then),” he recalled. “Mark Breslin of Yuk Yuk’s gave me a feature, and the day after our wedding, she was sitting on a stool beside me on the stage at Yuk Yuk’s, and I explained to the audience that this was my honeymoon show.”
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Howie Mandel and his wife Terry have three children together
After they got married in 1980, Howie and his wife welcomed three children together. Their first child, daughter Jackie, was born in 1984, followed by their son, Alex, in 1989, and their youngest, daughter Riley, in 1992.
In a 2008 interview with People, the longtime comedian shared that his sense of humor kept him “sane" during the early days of parenting and gushed that his children were “excellent students,” a trait he attributed to Terry. “They certainly didn’t get the buckle-down-and-get-good-grades ethic from me,” he told the magazine at the time.
Today, Howie and his wife are also grandparents of three: Abbey, Axel, and Riley. Their grandkids adorably call them Nona and Papa.
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Howie Mandel rented an elephant for his wife’s birthday
Howie has previously shared that his wife Terry loves any and all animals, especially those in need. “She calls it ‘rescuing’. I call it ‘taking,’ She takes any animal in her path,” Howie joked in an interview with Pet Lifestyles Magazine, adding that she once saved a crow she found on the side of the road. “I can’t tell you the number of animals that have been through our household. Name a species, it has been here.”
So one year for her birthday, Howie decided to make an extravagant gesture: He rented an elephant for Terry's birthday, as he opened up about on The Kelly Clarkson Show.
"I didn't invite anybody. I didn't cater. I didn't bring even a staff," Mandel told Clarkson.
"So just, like, an elephant showed up?" Clarkson asked Mandel, as the audience laughed.
Watch the video, below, to learn more, including the chaotic scene the elephant left in Mandel's backyard.
"There was $45,000 in damage," Mandel revealed. "The sprinklers, the trees, and elephant poo removal is not a service that is nearby."
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Howie Mandel jokes his busy schedule is their secret to a successful marriage
With over four decades of marriage in the books, Howie has been asked multiple times what their secret is. For the Mandels, it seems, as the old adage goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder.
“People say to me, ‘In 40 years, how do you make it work? I’m very busy. I do 300 live dates a year as a standup comedian, I’m doing AGT, I’m producing… We’re never together,” Howie previously shared on STEVE on Watch. “The fact that I’m not there, she says, is what she loves about me.”
Howie has also shared that he believes his wife is the secret behind his successful career. “The secret for me is my wife,” he told Streets of Toronto. “If there are any awards to be given out, please give them to my wife. She deserves it. I appreciate her and feel like the luckiest guy in the world.”
