Who Is Don Lemon’s Husband? All About Tim Malone

After years of delivering breaking news, CNN anchor Don Lemon is married!

On April 6, 2024, Lemon married real estate agent Tim Malone in New York City five years after the couple announced their engagement in 2019.

Lemon — who publicly came out as gay in the 2011 memoir Transparent and via a New York Times profile — began dating Malone in 2016, one year after they met at a restaurant in the Hamptons.

In 2021, Lemon told PEOPLE how he knew Malone was "the one."

"I just found the right person … Someone who really believes in family, and I decided, you know, I need to lean into my life because I grew up never thinking that I'd be able to be open about who I was in love with and about my love life and my relationship," he said. 

When Lemon was abruptly fired from CNN in April 2023 after 17 years with the network, Malone stood by his side. A source later told PEOPLE in June 2023 that Lemon's firing had brought him and Malone closer together.

"Don is very happy at the moment," the source said. "He has several opportunities he's mulling. He's enjoying his extra bonus time with his fiancé this summer in the Hamptons."

So who is Don Lemon's husband? Here's everything to know about Tim Malone's relationship with the ex-CNN host and author.

He's from New York

Malone was born on April 6, 1984, in Water Mill, New York. He attended Southampton High School and graduated in 2002.

He continued his education at Boston College and graduated in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in history and journalism.

Malone then moved to New York City, where he has lived ever since. He's had the opportunity to call several neighborhoods "home," such as N.Y.C.'s Midtown East, Harlem and Hudson Yards.

He worked in media

According to his LinkedIn, Malone kicked off his post-collegiate career by joining the NBCUniversal Page Program in 2006. There, he got his start in television as a production assistant on the Today show. He remained at NBC until 2013, working in sales at networks like USA and SYFY and in the sports and olympics department. 

Malone transitioned to marketing at Billboard, serving as director of brand partnerships from 2013 to 2016. He also was an executive director at the entertainment company Jukin Media in 2017.

He's a real estate agent

After more than 10 years in media and advertising, Malone switched careers and joined the Corcoran Real Estate Group as a realtor in 2018. However, two years later, in 2020, he left Corcoran Group to join Douglas Elliman Real Estate, where he is an N.Y.C. and Hamptons realtor.

He's sold several luxury properties, including then-fiancé Lemon’s $1.5 million Harlem condo. Of selling homes in the Hamptons, Malone told Gay City News seeing his hometown change over the years impacted his decision to become a realtor.

"The Hamptons were a lot quieter then [while growing up]. I really think the 'dot com' movement in the late '90s changed the Hamptons and made them blow up," Malone said in 2021. "That was one thing that got me into real estate — watching the place develop and really seeing the beautiful real estate evolve over the years."

He started dating Lemon in 2016

According to Gay City News, Malone and Lemon's love story began when they met at Almond Restaurant in Bridgehampton, NY, in 2015 — but they didn't make it official until the following summer. Later, the couple memorably rang in 2018 with an on-air kiss during CNN's New Year's Eve Live broadcast.

As co-hosts Lemon and Brooke Baldwin counted down the hours until midnight in New Orleans, Baldwin asked how Lemon's relationship with Malone was progressing. 

"I found love on a two-way street," a top-hat-wearing Lemon crooned during his impromptu ditty before revealing to Baldwin how he and Malone started dating. 

"We met in New York," he said, adding, "I don't care where you meet. If you're happy, you're happy."

He and Lemon are obsessed with their dogs

It's clear by the adorable way Malone popped the question that he and Lemon share a deep love for their poodles: Barkley, Boomer and Gus.

On Malone's birthday, he proposed to Lemon with a little help from their pups — attaching engraved dog tags to Boomer and Barkley's collars. They read, "DADDY WILL YOU MARRY PAPA?"

In March 2019, Malone poked fun at the couple's commitment to their precious fur babies, posting a screenshot of a funny text exchange on Instagram about their dogs' bathroom routines.

"Watcha think?" read a text from Lemon. Malone's response? "Barkley's poops are great."

Malone playfully captioned the snap, "These are our conversations 50% of the time. Can't think of anything more fun to talk about." 

He hits red carpets with Lemon

In April 2023, Malone and Lemon suited up for the TIME100 Gala at N.Y.C.'s Lincoln Center. The pair donned matching navy blue tuxedos with black satin lapels and black bow ties. Malone added a blue vest under his jacket, and the couple posed for cameras — smiling, hand-in-hand.

Malone shared a sweet pic with his then-fiancé on Instagram, writing, "What an amazing night celebrating all of the honorees of #Time100 ✨."

He wants to start a family with Lemon

Malone and Lemon have expressed their desire to have kids once they tie the knot. However, in 2020, Lemon shared the pair wanted to wait until the COVID-19 pandemic was under control. He also revealed they were beginning to discuss logistics.

"So we're thinking about, do we want to adopt, do we want to go through surrogacy, how we want to do it," Lemon told PEOPLE of the couple's thought process. "Tim is definitely going to have to be the one to have the kid because he's younger — his body will bounce back."

He's opened up about relationship obstacles with Lemon

In the 2021 interview with Gay City News, Malone shared that sexuality was the least of his and Lemon's relationship challenges.

"As a couple, I think we have a pretty interesting story, just in terms of our age difference," said Malone of their 18-year gap.

He continued, "We have different backgrounds, different racial backgrounds … There were a lot of questions when we started dating of what was going to be the issue, and honestly, the fact that we were gay was, like, last on the list … It was more about 'he is in the public eye' than anything, which took some getting used to."

He and Lemon share a home in the Hamptons

When the pandemic hit, Malone and Lemon traded N.Y.C. for a Hamptons hideaway.

"People think of the Hamptons, and they think 'Oh, it's fancy and it's rich or whatever' — and we just have a normal life there," Lemon told Dan's Papers, a Hamptons news outlet, in March 2021. 

Malone agreed, adding, "That's key — it's an escape."

The pair shared that they worked with interior designers (who happened to be their neighbors) to outfit their dream home in Sag Harbor, New York. Designers Bill Cummings and Bernt Heiberg were tasked with decking out their abode.

"I love their work; they're so quirky and amazing," Lemon told Hamptons magazine in August 2019. "I wanted it to be a home — and that's what it is ... it's warm and comfortable and masculine."

He supported the Hamptons community during the pandemic

In April 2020, Malone revealed to Elliman Insider how he values and supports the Hamptons community. 

"My boyfriend Don Lemon and I have two rescue dogs from the Southampton Animal Shelter," he said. "When the virus hit, and no one was adopting dogs, we decided to foster a third senior dog. Gus Gus has now officially become part of the family."

He continued, "In addition, I decided to start a fundraiser for the local food pantries in the Hamptons."

Malone set a goal of $45,000 on GoFundMe for the nonprofit organization Heart of the Hamptons, which replenishes local food pantries and provides meals for community members in need.

He and Lemon got married on April 6, 2024

Lemon and Malone tied the knot in the spring of 2024 at New York City's Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church as 140 guests looked on. The ceremony was officiated by United States ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who the couple said is a friend of theirs.

“We wanted to make a public statement, and we wanted to involve our loved ones," Malone told PEOPLE ahead of the wedding. "We obviously could have easily gone to city hall. We could have used Covid as a perfect excuse to do something really quiet. But I think this is also a message. For I don't know what percent of our guests, on both sides, but for a lot of them it's going to be their first gay wedding.”

The couple entered the church to "What a Wonderful World” and exited to "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" before forming a New Orleans style "second line" to celebrate at Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar — the place where they had their first date.

Lemon said, “We were pretty traditional over all. Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue…”