Al Roker First Wife Alice Bell: Marriage Timeline, Daughter Courtney, and What Happened Later

If you searched for Al Roker’s first wife, the name you’re looking for is Alice Bell. She was a television producer who worked in the same New York media world as Roker, and their marriage was his first and earliest long-term public relationship before he later married journalist Deborah Roberts. While Al Roker has spent decades in front of the camera, Alice stayed largely behind the scenes—which is one reason her story can feel harder to pin down in quick internet summaries.

Who Is Al Roker?

Al Roker is one of the most recognizable faces in American morning television, best known as the longtime weather anchor on NBC’s Today show. His public image is warm, upbeat, and reassuring—someone who can deliver serious weather news one moment and laugh with the hosts the next. Because he’s been on TV for so long, people naturally get curious about his personal timeline too: who he married, when, and what his family life looks like off-camera.

Al Roker’s First Wife: Alice Bell

Al Roker’s first wife was Alice Bell, a television producer who worked at WNBC in New York. She was not a celebrity in the tabloid sense, and she didn’t build a public persona around her marriage. In most public accounts, she is described as a behind-the-scenes professional—someone working in broadcast production while Roker’s career was rising in front of viewers.

That behind-the-scenes identity is part of why the public knows the outline of her life rather than the details. Alice wasn’t doing interviews. She wasn’t building a brand. She was working, raising a family, and living largely outside the spotlight.

When Did Al Roker and Alice Bell Get Married?

Al Roker and Alice Bell married in 1984. Their marriage is commonly placed on December 22, 1984, in public biography summaries. This was years before Roker became the long-term, nationally familiar figure he is now. He was already working in television, but the “institution” version of Al Roker—the one people associate with decades of Today—was still being built.

The timing matters because it places Alice in his early career chapter, when life is often more hectic than people imagine: building credibility, taking opportunities, working long hours, and figuring out how to balance ambition with home life.

Did Al Roker and Alice Bell Have Children?

Yes. Al Roker and Alice Bell adopted a daughter named Courtney in 1987. Courtney Roker has appeared in public life occasionally over the years—especially around family milestones—though she is not a full-time public figure in the way her father is.

What’s important is the basic family structure: Alice and Al built a household together and became parents through adoption. That remains one of the clearest and most consistently reported facts about their marriage.

When Did Al Roker and Alice Bell Divorce?

Al Roker and Alice Bell divorced in 1994, after being married for about a decade. Some summaries describe the couple separating earlier and finalizing later, but the year most commonly cited for the finalized divorce is 1994.

Because older bios sometimes get sloppy with relationship timelines—especially for celebrities who have been famous for decades—you’ll occasionally see confusing phrasing online. The clean way to keep it straight is simple: married in 1984, divorced in 1994.

Why Alice Bell Stayed Out of the Spotlight

One reason people keep searching for Alice Bell is that she didn’t become part of a public celebrity narrative. Many spouses of television personalities either lean into visibility or end up being pulled into it. Alice didn’t. She is generally portrayed as private, and even during the years she was married to a rising media figure, she did not become a public personality.

That privacy creates a familiar pattern online: the fewer real details a person shares publicly, the more low-quality websites fill the gaps with assumptions. If you’ve ever read wildly different descriptions of her life, that’s why. The reliable details are the ones tied to documented milestones: marriage, adoption, divorce, and later life events reported by reputable outlets.

Al Roker’s Life After His First Marriage

After divorcing Alice Bell, Al Roker eventually married journalist Deborah Roberts in 1995. They have two children together and have been one of the more stable long-term couples in broadcast news.

That second marriage is often what people associate with Roker today because it overlaps with his longest era of national visibility. But Alice Bell remains an important part of his life story because she was there during his earlier career chapter and because they share a child together.

What Happened to Alice Bell Later?

Alice Bell died in 2025 at the age of 77, according to widely reported updates shared publicly by family. Her death brought her name back into headlines, mostly because it was a reminder that she remains connected to Al Roker through their daughter, Courtney.

Public reporting has also described her 2001 death ruling details in connection with Al Roker’s first marriage history, but it’s best to state this carefully: when it comes to sensitive personal matters, the most respectful approach is to keep the focus on confirmed, broadly reported facts and not turn tragedy into spectacle.

Alice Bell’s Place in Al Roker’s Family Story

Even though Alice Bell stayed private, her role in Roker’s life is not a footnote. She was his first spouse and the mother of his eldest child through adoption. In families shaped by divorce, the public often wants a clean, simple narrative—before/after, then/now. Real family life doesn’t move like that. It’s layered. It’s shared history. It’s co-parenting and milestone moments that keep people connected long after a marriage ends.

That’s why people still ask about Alice Bell. Not because she chased fame, but because she is part of the real, human timeline behind a figure who has been in America’s living rooms for decades.