Love Song: Harry Connick Jr. And Jill Goodacre

Harry Connick Jr. and Jill Goodacre give us a glimpse of their made-in-heaven marriage.

Harry Connick Jr and Jill Goodacre
Advertisement

A stunning woman falls out of the pages of a lingerie catalog and into your arms. The velvet voice coming from the radio late at night really is crooning in your ear. But in the limelight, relationships tend to spontaneously combust—which is one reason why the 12-year marriage of three-time Grammy Award winner Harry Connick, Jr., and former Victoria’s Secret model Jill Goodacre is—well, dreamy. Connick, fresh off his Broadway debut in the Tony Award winning revival of The Pajama Game, stars in William Friedkin’s psychological thriller Bug, out in December. In February, he returns to his New Orleans big-band roots with the release of his 22nd album, Oh, My Nola. Meanwhile, Goodacre has her hands full with their three daughters, Georgia Tatom, 10, Sara Kate, 9, and Charlotte Jane, 4. Tango grabbed a chance to quiz the couple—individually—about what makes their love sing.

Advertisement

FIRST SERIOUS EYE CONTACT?
JG: We were both out in California staying at the same hotel. I was checking out and he was swimming in the pool. Thankfully, he came up for air and saw me walk by! He introduced himself, and it was truly love at first sight.
HC: When I introduced myself, I wasn’t trying to ask her on a date or anything. But she is such an amazing beauty that the physical attraction was so strong. I never saw anybody that beautiful in person before.

FIRST DATE?
JG: He asked me to have lunch with him. I was so smitten that I held up filming an Italian TV show for two hours. It was his big blue eyes and his Southern drawl that were the biggest turn-ons.
HC: We went to a place called Barney’s Beanery in L.A. I was trying to be real cool since she was more worldly than I was. Looking back, it didn’t work. I was nervous around her.

Advertisement

DID YOU KISS?
JG: Oh good lord, no! He kissed my hand. He’s a gentleman. But I did give him my number.
HC: Yeah, we kissed somewhere around the first date. I can’t remember exactly.

WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOU WANTED TO MARRY EACH OTHER?
JG: Instantly, within 30 seconds of meeting him. There was something very intense between us. He asked me to marry him after two years together, then we were engaged for two more. It was amazing that we waited for so long, but we wanted to get to know each other.
HC: I thought I wanted to marry her when I first met her. It was just a question of being absolutely sure—we talked about it two years into the relationship, then waited another two years. Growing up, marriage was a serious thing in my house. I didn’t want to get married and then get divorced; that happens a lot in my business.

More Juicy Content From YourTango:

IN ANOTHER LIFE, WHOM WOULD YOU HAVE A MAJOR CRUSH ON?
JG: [Tennis star] Roger Federer. He’s goodlooking, athletic, determined, and successful at what he loves. He’s just hot all around. But not as hot as Harry. Who did Harry say? I know who … Jennifer Connelly. He thinks she’s drop-dead gorgeous.
HC: Jennifer Connelly. She’s beautiful, smart, and talented, but she also reminds me a lot of Jill.

Advertisement

IT MELTS MY HEART WHEN HE/SHE:
JG: Makes me laugh, which is all the time! He’s the funniest person alive. And it melts my heart to see him with our three children.
HC: Tells me she loves me.

IT MAKES ME NUTS WHEN HE/SHE:
JG: When you’ve been with someone for 16 years, you have a list a mile long!
HC: I’m real impatient and she’s very patient. She’ll interview 10 different painters for the house, and it drives me nuts, but only because I think it highlights my problem.

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU’RE APART?
JG: I have amazing friends who keep me company. And I hang with my kids a lot.
HC: A lot of times the guys in the band will go to one of those go-cart tracks, watch horror movies, or play football. Just stuff we do on the road that most bands do. Jill would probably do all that, too.

WHAT’S YOUR IDEAL EVENING TOGETHER?
JG: We love to watch movies. We’re real homebodies. We’re just hang-out people.
HC: I really love just sitting and talking to her. We work really well together because I usually have a lot to say and she doesn’t say as much. Most of the time, we talk about our kids when we’re away from them.

Advertisement

WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST DIFFERENCE OF OPINION?
JG: We really have the same opinions. I think that’s why we get along so well.
HC: We agree on just about everything. Musically, we have some differences.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO START A FIGHT?
JG: Punch him in the ribs! I was a boxer. [Laughs]. OK, I’m kidding!
HC: If something is bothering me, it won’t take me very long to bring it up. It’s very matter of fact. Who wants to spend their time fighting?

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO END A FIGHT?
JG: You end a fight with a kiss, for sure. Never go to sleep mad.
HC: You just say, “I’m sorry and I’m wrong.” And mean it. Hug and kiss and move on.

WHAT’S THE BIGGEST COMPLIMENT HE/SHE wHAS PAID YOU?
JG: Soon after I met him, he said, “I can’t wait to grow old with you.” I’ll never forget when he said that. And also, “Will you marry me?”
HC: When she said “yes” when I asked her to marry me.

Advertisement

WHAT DO YOU THINK HE/SHE LOOKS SEXIEST IN?
JG: Jeans. He is hot in jeans. And he never wore them until he met me, since I’m so casual.
HC: She can rock some jeans. I like the casual vibe the best. Today she had on jeans and these little pony fur loafers and a sweatshirt. That’s the sexiest outfit to me.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BODY PART OF HIS/HERS?
JG: Lips! Well, lips and eyes. They’re both phenomenal.
HC: Aside from the obvious things guys like, I really like her hands. She’s got strong hands. She doesn’t throw a football like a girl. She’s extremely feminine but she’s tough, too.

WHEN I WANT TO LOOK EXTRA SEXY, I WEAR:
JG: I’ll always put on something that he bought me. He has amazing taste in clothes. He’s quite a shopper.
HC: I’ve been trained to know what Jill likes. If she likes me in jeans and a dark blue shirt, then I’ll wear that all the time.

WHAT QUALITY DO YOU ADMIRE MOST IN HIM/HER?
JG: His sensitivity and his sense of humor.
HC: She’s confident, but also very humble.

Advertisement

WHY DO YOU THINK YOUR RELATIONSHIP WORKS?
JG: We’re best friends, besides being madly in love with each other.
HC: We love each other and we’re best friends. We trust each other completely.

WHAT PIECE OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A NEWLYWED COUPLE?
JG: To listen and to stay best friends.
HC: [Laughs] I don’t know anything about this stuff. They probably have advice for me!

WHAT DO YOU WANT MOST FOR EACH OTHER?
JG: Happiness, which I think he has.
HC: Sometimes being in show business is hard on a relationship, but I’ll do whatever it takes. I want her to stay as happy as she is.

A stunning woman falls out of the pages of a lingerie catalog and into your arms. The velvet voice coming from the radio late at night really is crooning in your ear. But in the limelight, relationships tend to spontaneously combust—which is one reason why the 12-year marriage of three-time Grammy Award winner Harry Connick, Jr., and former Victoria’s Secret model Jill Goodacre is—well, dreamy. Connick, fresh off his Broadway debut in the Tony Award winning revival of The Pajama Game, stars in William Friedkin’s psychological thriller Bug, out in December. In February, he returns to his New Orleans big-band roots with the release of his 22nd album, Oh, My Nola. Meanwhile, Goodacre has her hands full with their three daughters, Georgia Tatom, 10, Sara Kate, 9, and Charlotte Jane, 4. Tango grabbed a chance to quiz the couple—individually—about what makes their love sing.

Advertisement

FIRST SERIOUS EYE CONTACT?
JG: We were both out in California staying at the same hotel. I was checking out and he was swimming in the pool. Thankfully, he came up for air and saw me walk by! He introduced himself, and it was truly love at first sight.
HC: When I introduced myself, I wasn’t trying to ask her on a date or anything. But she is such an amazing beauty that the physical attraction was so strong. I never saw anybody that beautiful in person before.

FIRST DATE?
JG: He asked me to have lunch with him. I was so smitten that I held up filming an Italian TV show for two hours. It was his big blue eyes and his Southern drawl that were the biggest turn-ons.
HC: We went to a place called Barney’s Beanery in L.A. I was trying to be real cool since she was more worldly than I was. Looking back, it didn’t work. I was nervous around her.

DID YOU KISS?
JG: Oh good lord, no! He kissed my hand. He’s a gentleman. But I did give him my number.
HC: Yeah, we kissed somewhere around the first date. I can’t remember exactly.

WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOU WANTED TO MARRY EACH OTHER?
JG: Instantly, within 30 seconds of meeting him. There was something very intense between us. He asked me to marry him after two years together, then we were engaged for two more. It was amazing that we waited for so long, but we wanted to get to know each other.
HC: I thought I wanted to marry her when I first met her. It was just a question of being absolutely sure—we talked about it two years into the relationship, then waited another two years. Growing up, marriage was a serious thing in my house. I didn’t want to get married and then get divorced; that happens a lot in my business.

Advertisement

IN ANOTHER LIFE, WHOM WOULD YOU HAVE A MAJOR CRUSH ON?
JG: [Tennis star] Roger Federer. He’s goodlooking, athletic, determined, and successful at what he loves. He’s just hot all around. But not as hot as Harry. Who did Harry say? I know who … Jennifer Connelly. He thinks she’s drop-dead gorgeous.
HC: Jennifer Connelly. She’s beautiful, smart, and talented, but she also reminds me a lot of Jill.

IT MELTS MY HEART WHEN HE/SHE:
JG: Makes me laugh, which is all the time! He’s the funniest person alive. And it melts my heart to see him with our three children.
HC: Tells me she loves me.

IT MAKES ME NUTS WHEN HE/SHE:
JG: When you’ve been with someone for 16 years, you have a list a mile long!
HC: I’m real impatient and she’s very patient. She’ll interview 10 different painters for the house, and it drives me nuts, but only because I think it highlights my problem.

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU’RE APART?
JG: I have amazing friends who keep me company. And I hang with my kids a lot.
HC: A lot of times the guys in the band will go to one of those go-cart tracks, watch horror movies, or play football. Just stuff we do on the road that most bands do. Jill would probably do all that, too.

Advertisement

WHAT’S YOUR IDEAL EVENING TOGETHER?
JG: We love to watch movies. We’re real homebodies. We’re just hang-out people.
HC: I really love just sitting and talking to her. We work really well together because I usually have a lot to say and she doesn’t say as much. Most of the time, we talk about our kids when we’re away from them.

WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST DIFFERENCE OF OPINION?
JG: We really have the same opinions. I think that’s why we get along so well.
HC: We agree on just about everything. Musically, we have some differences.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO START A FIGHT?
JG: Punch him in the ribs! I was a boxer. [Laughs]. OK, I’m kidding!
HC: If something is bothering me, it won’t take me very long to bring it up. It’s very matter of fact. Who wants to spend their time fighting?

Advertisement

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO END A FIGHT?
JG: You end a fight with a kiss, for sure. Never go to sleep mad.
HC: You just say, “I’m sorry and I’m wrong.” And mean it. Hug and kiss and move on.

WHAT’S THE BIGGEST COMPLIMENT HE/SHE wHAS PAID YOU?
JG: Soon after I met him, he said, “I can’t wait to grow old with you.” I’ll never forget when he said that. And also, “Will you marry me?”
HC: When she said “yes” when I asked her to marry me.

WHAT DO YOU THINK HE/SHE LOOKS SEXIEST IN?
JG: Jeans. He is hot in jeans. And he never wore them until he met me, since I’m so casual.
HC: She can rock some jeans. I like the casual vibe the best. Today she had on jeans and these little pony fur loafers and a sweatshirt. That’s the sexiest outfit to me.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BODY PART OF HIS/HERS?
JG: Lips! Well, lips and eyes. They’re both phenomenal.
HC: Aside from the obvious things guys like, I really like her hands. She’s got strong hands. She doesn’t throw a football like a girl. She’s extremely feminine but she’s tough, too.

Advertisement

WHEN I WANT TO LOOK EXTRA SEXY, I WEAR:
JG: I’ll always put on something that he bought me. He has amazing taste in clothes. He’s quite a shopper.
HC: I’ve been trained to know what Jill likes. If she likes me in jeans and a dark blue shirt, then I’ll wear that all the time.

WHAT QUALITY DO YOU ADMIRE MOST IN HIM/HER?
JG: His sensitivity and his sense of humor.
HC: She’s confident, but also very humble.

WHY DO YOU THINK YOUR RELATIONSHIP WORKS?
JG: We’re best friends, besides being madly in love with each other.
HC: We love each other and we’re best friends. We trust each other completely.

WHAT PIECE OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A NEWLYWED COUPLE?
JG: To listen and to stay best friends.
HC: [Laughs] I don’t know anything about this stuff. They probably have advice for me!

Advertisement

WHAT DO YOU WANT MOST FOR EACH OTHER?
JG: Happiness, which I think he has.
HC: Sometimes being in show business is hard on a relationship, but I’ll do whatever it takes. I want her to stay as happy as she is.