Ray Housteau and Deana Shane
Alexis Riffle
Among the brides and grooms this week are The Amazing Race couple Ray Housteau and Deana Shane, who had no trouble agreeing on a theme for their wedding at Trinity United Methodist Church in Youngstown, Ohio. The bridesmaids' dresses and the flowers invoked the reality show's color scheme, yellow and red, and the couple entered the reception to the CBS series’ theme music.
Amazing Race faces including newlyweds Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich, a bridesmaid, also attended the wedding.
Divorced with two sons, Housteau, 44, an entrepreneur, solidified an on-and-off relationship with Shane, 27, during the series. By the time they lost during a footrace in Botswana, "I realized I'm never going to find a better fit," he says. And she says: "We fought less than anybody on the race but every time we bickered (it was put on the air)." The rest of the time, she insists, "We were laughing and singing – but they never showed any of that."
Her new husband agrees that the TV cameras didn't help their courtship. "You're relationship is put under more stress than you can imagine," he says. "And if you can come out fairly unscathed, you know you went up against more than you'll confront in any life situation."
Sounds like a perfect recipe for marriage. And among the other nuptials:
• Chef Jason Simpson, 35, the oldest son of O.J. Simpson, 57, wed Jessica Roney, 27, on May 14 near Homestead, Fla. O.J. and his three other children attended the ceremony.
• Alias's Kevin Weisman, 34, who plays tech whiz Marshall Flinkman on the ABC series, and L.A. preschool teacher Jodi Tanowitz, 24, wed in a traditional Jewish service – though there were a couple of twists, including Weisman's recitation of an Eskimo love song, followed by blue martinis at the reception. "It was unbelievably beautiful," says Weisman.
• For their trip to the altar, Boris Kodjoe took Nicole Parker, his costar on UPN's now canceled Second Time Around, to Gundelfingen, his hometown in Germany's Black Forest. After being with the 32-year-old Kodjoe for two years, "I can understand German," says Parker, 34, "but I still talk like a child." Speaking of which, a nanny carried the couple’s 3-month-old daughter, Sophie, down the aisle. Keeping it a family affair, the wedding cake was supplemented by linzer torte baked by Kodjoe's grandmother, 87.
