When Lyle Married Julia

MARION, INDIANA – St. James Lutheran Church – June 27, 1993

The entertainment world was abuzz as country singer Lyle Lovett married Hollywood's "Pretty Woman," Julia Roberts, in a surprise wedding at the church of one of his tour bus drivers in Marion.

The two had met on the set of the movie The Player. Apparently, they hit it off, and after three weeks of secretly dating, the marriage was planned before Lovett and his band played a concert at nearby Deer Creek Music Center (now Ruoff Music Center) in Noblesville, Indiana. The happy couple held their wedding reception at Deer Creek. Later, Julia stepped onto the stage to introduce the band while still wearing her wedding dress.

Back in Marion that day, news spread quickly, and it was perhaps the biggest local celebrity story since actor James Dean, who was born in Marion, died in California on September 30, 1955. It was later learned that the Grant County Clerk and the pastor of St. James Lutheran Church were aware of the pending marriage. The clerk even completed the marriage license on the tour bus.

Sadly, the marriage ended amicably in March 1995, though they remain friends.