Beth Chapmans final words to her husband Duane “Dog” Chapman were those of consolation. Although the Dog the Bounty Hunter star never accepted death, she recognized that her family was afraid for her.
Duane Chapman spoke to reporters in Hawaii for about 10 minutes just hours after Beths death, providing numerous details about his wifes final days and hours, her outlook in the weeks prior and news that there would be a memorial service that would be open to the public. The 66-year-old remained composed as he graciously offered insight and answered a few questions, including one about his wifes final words to him.
“When she had an attack I didn’t know anything to do but to say in Jesus name and hold her,” Chapman told reporters, including Hawaii News Now, “and when I said ‘in Jesus’ name’ she said, ‘Say it again, say it more. And then she told the girls and everybody, with her mouth — she came out of it a couple times — ‘I love you’ and ‘Are you guys all okay? Don’t worry,’ but she never accepted it.”
Duane Chapman says the family knew the day would come when Beth would lose her battle to cancer, but she never fully accepted that truth. Even after a breathing episode that sent her to the hospital, the family expected shed recover enough to live another day. They didnt prepare for the end to come so quickly.
“It’s terrible, the most terrible time in someone’s life,” Dog said in a press conference video to Hawaii News Now. “You kind of try to remember that you’re celebrating life, but right now we’re mourning the death, so it’s not good.”
Chapmans daughters stood alongside him, and at one point daughter Lyssa revealed they didnt have details for memorials in both Hawaii and Colorado, reiterating that they just were not prepared.
The Chapmans had two children together and several from previous relationships. Dog wanted mourners and fans to know they did not authorized any public memorial funds and wont be doing so, adding that they dont need money. The reminder came as a warning that online fundraisers are most likely a scam. “Please save your money and send flowers,” he said.
The Chapmans rose to fame in the 2000s thanks to their A&E reality show, Dog the Bounty Hunter, which chronicled Dogs work chasing fugitives, with Beth as his business partner. The show aired from 2004 until 2012.
A first Dog the Bounty Hunter spin-off, Dog and Beth: On the Hunt, aired on CMT for three seasons. Another spin-off, Dogs Most Wanted, made Beth Chapmans cancer battle a prominent storyline.
His former wife,
, died after a battle with cancer in June 2019. She was 51. Chapman is set to marry Francie Frane, who lost her husband, Bob, to cancer before Beth Chapman died.
How many wives has Dog the Bounty Hunter had?
“I saw the scripture that says, God does not want a man to be alone,” Chapman once shared in an interview. “That He knows we need a companion, whether were a man or a woman.” Chapman must have taken that verse seriously, because he’s been married five times. The first time was to La Fonda Sue Honeycutt, who he married when he was just 19. She filed for divorce upon his murder conviction. Next in line was Agness Tegnell, whom he married when he was 26 and out on parole after serving about 2 years in prison. They divorced but reunited briefly.
Chapman’s third wife was Lyssa Rae Brittain—whom he met in a bar mere days before they got hitched. In his autobiography, Chapman said he offered $1,000 to her if she’d have his child—she must have agreed, because they stayed married for nine years.
Chapman’s next wife was a former perp; he had tracked down Tawny Marie for drug possession charges, but hired her on as a secretary. They married when Chapman was 39 years old but separated two years later.
Beth Smith, his fifth wife, met him when she simply called Chapman for bail, she told Rosie O’Donnell in 2011 (she’d gotten picked up for shoplifting two lemons, which she denies she did). When she met him in person, she said she thought, “Oh yes, he will be mine.” They dated on and off for years until they married in 2006, and they stayed married until her death in 2019.
There was almost another wife—sort of. In January 2020, Dr. Oz shocked fans with a brief clip of Chapman tearfully asking a woman to marry him. The woman, Moon Angell, had been a close friend of Beth’s and had been spending time with Chapman, to the displeasure of some of his kids. On Oz’s show, Angell told Chapman that she only saw him as a friend. They both called it a fake proposal later. “Moon and I were not in a relationship and I tried to prove that and it really hurt Moons feelings, and shes the one that took the beating over it,” he said later.
How did Dog the Bounty Hunter meet his new wife?
Chapman wasn’t looking for a wife when he met Frane; he just needed some yard work done. He called Frane’s home looking for her husband, Bob, an excavator. However, unbeknownst to Chapman, Bob had passed away about six months before his own wife did. Frane, who wasn’t that familiar with “Dog” or his show, returned his call and they both discovered that they were grieving the deaths of their spouses.
He was smitten right away, even painting her nails in quarantine. “It’s going really good,” he told the US Sun in March 2020. “It’s a God relationship because it’s just like a miracle. It’s a miracle how we met and it’s a miracle how great we’re getting along…..both of us are allowed to talk about our spouses that are in Heaven – its not like were afraid to mention it or anything like that.”
When did Dog the Bounty Hunter get remarried?
When asked if he’d marry Francie in March 2020, Chapman said, “There will never be another Mrs. Dog but it looks like there will be a final Mrs. Chapman.” And true to his word, Chapman got down on one knee and in May 2020 they became engaged.
Like many couples, Chapman and Frane had to contend with the COVID-19 pandemic, which affected their plans. However, they were finally married in Colorado Springs on September 2, with only close friends and family around; Frane wore a sleeveless white gown. Their honeymoon began in Florida, which is where they were when Laundrie went missing and people asked him to get involved in the hunt.
FAQ
What did dogs wife die from?
How did Dog the Bounty Hunter’s daughter Barbara die?
This accident happened on May 19, 2006, near Fairbanks, Alaska, the day before the reality star’s wedding. Barbara and another victim met their end when the stolen SUV they were riding fell off the side of the road and crashed.
How long after Beth died did Dog remarry?
What is Dog doing since Beth died?