Kelly Bishop First Husband: What Most People Get Wrong About Peter Miller

We all know her as Emily Gilmore—the sharp-tongued, impeccably dressed matriarch who could dismantle a person’s confidence with a single raised eyebrow. But before she was the queen of Hartford or the mother to a teenage runaway in Dirty Dancing, Kelly Bishop was a young Broadway dancer just trying to figure out her life in New York City. While her nearly 40-year marriage to TV personality Lee Leonard is often cited as a Hollywood success story, the chapter involving Kelly Bishop first husband is a much darker, grittier tale that she only recently laid bare in her memoir, The Third Gilmore Girl.

His name was Peter Miller.

He wasn't an actor or a famous face you’d recognize from a 70s sitcom. He was a stagehand and an electrician—someone who worked in the wings while Kelly was under the bright lights. Honestly, looking back at the timeline, it’s clear this wasn't exactly a match made in heaven. It was more of a collision.

Who Was Peter Miller?

Peter Miller entered Kelly’s life during a whirlwind era of her career. She was in her mid-20s, a time when many young women of that generation felt the ticking clock of societal expectations. In her book, Kelly admits she felt the "curse of spinsterhood" looming, a sentiment that feels ancient today but was a heavy weight in 1970.

Peter was "cute, sexy, and charming." He was also employed and single, which, at 26, seemed like enough of a checklist for Kelly. They tied the knot in 1970. But the honeymoon phase didn't just end—it evaporated.

The reality of Peter Miller was far from the stable "working man" image he projected. He was a compulsive gambler. And not the kind who loses twenty bucks on a Friday night poker game. We’re talking about the kind of addiction that hollows out a bank account and a marriage simultaneously.

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The Financial and Emotional Toll

People often assume that celebrity divorces are about "irreconcilable differences" or "growing apart." For Kelly Bishop, it was much more practical and painful. Peter Miller basically cleaned her out.

Imagine being a rising star on Broadway, working grueling hours in rehearsals and performances, only to find out the person you’re sharing your life with is betting your future on horse races or card games. Kelly has been incredibly candid about the fact that she was "dead broke" by the time she finally walked away.

• The Addiction: In the early 70s, resources like Gamblers Anonymous weren't common knowledge. Kelly mentions she even tried to "love him" out of the addiction, thinking if she provided enough confidence and support, he’d stop.
• The Therapy: She pushed him into therapy, made "deals" with him, and tried every bargaining chip in the book.
• The Reality Check: It didn't work. It never does with deep-seated addiction unless the person wants to change.

Basically, she spent five years trying to fix a man who was busy spending her paycheck.

The Divorce That Dragged On

They separated in 1975, but the exit wasn't clean. The divorce process took two years—nearly half the length of the actual marriage. When you’re dealing with someone who has financial issues and an addiction, the legalities of splitting assets (or what’s left of them) become a nightmare.

Kelly has described the end of the marriage as leaving her emotionally and financially exhausted. It’s a side of her life that fans of Gilmore Girls might find hard to reconcile with the composed, wealthy Emily Gilmore. But maybe that’s why she played Emily with such steel; she knew what it felt like to have the floor fall out from under her.

What Really Happened With the "Green Dress"

There's a bit of lore among Kelly Bishop fans regarding her wedding attire. For her second (and final) wedding to Lee Leonard, she wore a simple, elegant outfit that wasn't a traditional white gown. But the story of her first wedding dress is even more telling.

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Kelly wore a green dress when she married Peter Miller.

Why? Because, as she’s admitted in recent interviews, she was so disinterested and unenthusiastic about the marriage even as it was happening that she couldn't bring herself to do the whole "white wedding" production. It’s a haunting detail. It shows that even then, her gut was telling her something was wrong. She just wasn't ready to listen yet.

Transitioning from Peter to Lee

It’s easy to see why Lee Leonard was such a breath of fresh air after the chaos of Peter Miller. Where Peter was secretive and financially destructive, Lee was "incredibly honest." They met shortly after her divorce and married in 1981.

Lee was a pioneer in cable sports broadcasting (one of the original faces of ESPN), and he provided the stability and mutual respect that Kelly had missed out on in her first go-around. They stayed together until his death in 2018.

Lessons from the "First Husband" Chapter

Kelly Bishop’s story isn't just celebrity gossip; it’s a bit of a cautionary tale about why we choose the people we do. She married Peter because she was afraid of being alone and thought she could "fix" his flaws with enough affection.

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Actionable Insights from Kelly’s Experience:

• Trust the "Green Dress" Instinct: If you find yourself unwilling to lean into the joy of a major life milestone, stop and ask why. Your subconscious often knows the truth before your brain is willing to admit it.
• Addiction Isn't a DIY Project: You cannot love someone out of a gambling, drug, or alcohol problem. Professional help is the only path, and even then, the individual has to want it.
• Financial Red Flags are Real: In a partnership, transparency with money is a requirement, not a suggestion. If assets are disappearing, the relationship is already in jeopardy.
• It’s Never Too Late to Pivot: Kelly was "dead broke" and divorced at 30. A year later, she won a Tony Award for A Chorus Line. Her life didn't end with her first marriage; it actually began.

Kelly Bishop eventually found her "Richard Gilmore" in Lee Leonard, but she had to survive the Peter Miller years to get there. It’s a reminder that even the most put-together people have lived through some messy, un-glamorous history.

If you're looking for more details on her life, her memoir The Third Gilmore Girl offers the full, unvarnished truth of her journey from the ballet bar to the soundstage. It's a masterclass in resilience for anyone who feels like they've made a "wrong" turn in their personal life.