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#REDIRECT [[John Edwards extramarital affair]]
{{Short description|American film producer}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2013}}
{{Redirect category shell|
{{Use American English|date=August 2018}}
{{R with history}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Rielle Hunter
| other_names = Lisa Druck, Lisa Jo Druck, Lisa Hunter, Lisa Jo Hunter, Rielle Jaya James Druck
| birth_name = Lisa Jo Druck
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1964|03|20}}
| birth_place = [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida]], U.S.
| known = {{ubl | The [[horse murders]] scandal | ''[[Story of My Life (novel)|Story of My Life]]'' | [[John Edwards extramarital affair]] | Internet political media producer }}
| occupation = Filmmaker
| years active = 1987–2012
| spouse = {{marriage|Alexander M. "Kip" Hunter, III|August 3, 1991|September 1, 2000|end=div}}
| partner = [[John Edwards]] (2006–2015)
| children = 1
| party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| education = [[North Marion High School (Florida)|North Marion High School]]
}}
}}
'''Rielle Hunter''' (born '''Lisa Jo Druck'''; March 20, 1964, also known as '''Lisa Hunter''',<ref name="IMDBLISA">[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0402932/ IMDb entry for Lisa Hunter]</ref> '''Lisa Jo Hunter''',<ref name="IMDBLISA"/> and '''Rielle Jaya James Druck''')<ref name="MERCURY">[http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_10067918 Birth certificate of child linked to ex-Sen. John Edwards lists no father], August 1, 2008, [[San Jose Mercury-News]].</ref> is an American former [[film producer]]. She is known for having had [[John Edwards extramarital affair|an affair]] with, and a child by, former U.S. Senator [[John Edwards]], while he was a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008.<ref name=CT>{{cite web|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-rielle-hunter-john-edwards-affair-080808-ht,0,2154658.story|title=Rielle Hunter, John Edwards Affair|date=August 8, 2008|periodical=[[Chicago Tribune]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080809145755/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-rielle-hunter-john-edwards-affair-080808-ht,0,2154658.story|archive-date=August 9, 2008}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web |author1=Baker, Mike|url=http://www.theoaklandpress.com/article/OP/20100121/NEWS/301219944 |title=Former candidate Edwards admits he fathered videographer's child| work=Oakland Press|agency=Associated Press| date=January 21, 2010}}</ref> She is said to be the basis of a character in a [[Jay McInerney]] [[Story of My Life (novel)|novel]].<ref name=GenXLit>{{cite news |title=Edwards' Mistress Rielle Hunter the Model for Character in Gen-X Lit |date=August 9, 2008 |work=[[ABC News]] |author=Jake Tapper |author-link=Jake Tapper |url=http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/08/edwards-mistres.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080829224323/http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/08/edwards-mistres.html |archive-date=August 29, 2008 |access-date=August 10, 2008 |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=NYPost/>

==Early life==
Hunter was born in [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida]].<ref name=WashPost>{{cite news| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/08/AR2008080802371_pf.html | title= Edwards Admits He Had An Affair | date= August 9, 2008 | newspaper = The Washington Post | first1=Howard | last1=Kurtz | first2=Lois | last2=Romano | access-date=May 22, 2010}}</ref> Her parents, James Druck (1934–1990) and Gwen Druck, owned Eagle Nest Farm in [[Ocala, Florida]], where they raised [[show jumping|show horses]]. They had four daughters. James Druck was a wealthy lawyer, who specialized in defending insurance companies.<ref name="Palm Beach Post 2">{{cite news | title = Dad of Edwards' mistress had dark side | last = Lambiet | first = Jose |url= http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/local_news/epaper/2008/08/12/a2a_jose_0813.html |newspaper=Palm Beach Post | date = September 13, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080815041521/http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/local_news/epaper/2008/08/12/a2a_jose_0813.html |archive-date=August 15, 2008 |access-date=April 15, 2014}}</ref>

Hunter went to St. John Lutheran School<ref name=STARBANNER>{{Cite news|last=Hiers | first=Fred |title= John Edwards affair story has an Ocala angle | date = August 12, 2008 |url= http://www.gainesville.com/article/20080812/NEWS/23042967&title=John_Edwards_affair_story_has_an_Ocala_angle | work = Ocala Star Banner accessdate 2008-08-12}}</ref> and [[North Marion High School (Florida)|North Marion High School]] in Ocala.<ref name=STARBANNER2>{{Cite news|author =Star-Banner |title= Lisa Druck (n/k/a Rielle Hunter) North Marion H.S. yearbook photo | date = August 14, 2008 | url= http://www.ocala.com/article/20080814/NEWS/694276770/1340/NEWS&title=Lisa_Druck__n_k_a_Rielle_Hunter__North_Marion_H_S__yearbook_photo| work = Ocala Star Banner accessdate 2008-08-16}}</ref> After high school, Hunter attended the [[University of Tampa]], but she transferred after two years to the [[University of Florida]]. In her junior year she withdrew from the University of Florida to move to New York City to pursue an acting career.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Weisensee |first=Nicole |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20219151,00.html |title=The Edwards Affair: The Mysterious Other Woman, Rielle Hunter – Scandals & Feuds, Elizabeth Edwards, John Edwards |magazine=People.com |date=August 14, 2008 |access-date=December 17, 2012}}</ref><ref name="NEWSOB">{{cite news|url=http://www.newsobserver.com/643/story/1169932.html|title= Who is Rielle Hunter? |author1=Jarvis, Craig |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080812063557/http://www.newsobserver.com/643/story/1169932.html |archive-date=August 12, 2008 |date=August 8, 2008|work=The News and Observer|location= [[Raleigh, North Carolina]]}}</ref>

==Horse killings and Henry the Hawk==
{{Main|Horse murders}}
According to [[ABC News]], Lisa Druck was a prize-winning [[Equestrianism|equestrian]] when her father was implicated in the "horse murders" scandal, "an ugly plot to electrocute horses for insurance money".<ref name=ABC>{{Cite news|last=Baram | first=Marcus |title= The Many Lives of Rielle Hunter: From Equestrian With an Infamous Father to NYC Party Girl Immortalized in Fiction, Hunter's Life Story Is Unique | date = August 12, 2008 | url= http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=5560261&page=1 | work = [[ABC News]] |access-date = August 12, 2008 }}</ref> The convicted criminal and FBI informant Tommy "The Sandman" Burns stated that James Druck was involved in the 1982 insurance fraud death of Lisa's [[show jumper]] horse Henry the Hawk. Gwen and James Druck divorced that same year; Lisa was 17 years old at the time.<ref>{{Cite news|last =Hiers | first=Fred |title= John Edwards affair story has an Ocala angle | date = August 12, 2008 | url= http://www.gainesville.com/article/20080812/NEWS/23042967&title=John_Edwards_affair_story_has_an_Ocala_angle | work = [[Ocala]] accessdate 2008-08-12}}</ref><ref name=ESPN>{{cite news | last = Munson | first = Lester | title = Edwards' "other woman" revives memories of gruesome scandal | date = August 14, 2008 | work = [[ESPN]] | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=munson_lester&id=3533725 | access-date = August 14, 2008}}</ref> James Druck was never charged, and he died of cancer in New York City in 1990.<ref name=STARBANNER/><ref name=ABC/><ref name="PALMBEACHPOST">{{cite news|title=Was dad of John Edwards' lover a horse killer? |last=Lambiet |first=Jose |url=http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/state/epaper/2008/08/12/0812jose.html |newspaper=Palm Beach Post |date=September 12, 2008 |access-date=August 11, 2008 }}{{Dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

==Literary inspiration==
"[[Brat Pack (literary)|Brat Pack]]" novelist [[Jay McInerney]] said that Hunter, his former girlfriend, is the basis for the lead character Alison Poole in the 1988 novel ''[[Story of My Life (novel)|Story of My Life]]''. McInerney described their relationship and Hunter's role as the inspiration for the character in an interview in 2005.<ref name=BreatheMag/><ref name="Huffington2007"/><ref name=NYPost>{{cite news | title = Novel Tale Of Pol's 'Mistress' | work = [[New York Post]] | date = August 6, 2008 | url = https://pagesix.com/2008/08/06/novel-tale-of-pols-mistress/?_ga=2.172623142.444763952.1510523963-808237787.1488502769 | quote =We dated for only a few months, ...I ended up basing a novel on the experience.}}</ref> McInerney also said that he chose to write about her and her friends because he was both "intrigued and appalled" by their behavior.<ref name=BreatheMag>{{cite news | last = McInerney| first = Jay | author-link = Jay McInerney | title = Interview | work = BREATHE MAGAZINE | date = January–February 2005 }}</ref><ref name="Huffington2007">{{cite news | title = Scrubbed: Edwards Filmmaker's Deleted Website Raises Questions | last = Stein | first = Sam | work = [[Huffington Post]] | access-date=August 1, 2008 | url = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/10/10/scrubbed-edwards-filmmak_n_67868.html | date=October 10, 2007}}</ref><ref name=NYPost/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/10/opinion/10dowd.html | title = Keeping it Rielle | date = August 9, 2008 | last = Dowd | first = Maureen | author-link = Maureen Dowd | work = [[New York Times]] }}</ref><ref name=Radar>{{cite news | title =EDWARDS' MISTRESS DISHES ON SLEEPING WITH POWERFUL RICH MEN, SORT OF | work =[[Radar (magazine)|Radar]] | date =July 29, 2008 | url =http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2008/07/edwards-mistress-dishes-on-sleeping-with-powerful-rich-men-s.php | access-date =August 8, 2008 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20080805080126/http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2008/07/edwards-mistress-dishes-on-sleeping-with-powerful-rich-men-s.php | archive-date =August 5, 2008 | url-status =dead | df =mdy-all }}</ref>

McInerney's friend and fellow Brat Pack author [[Bret Easton Ellis]] also includes the character Alison Poole in two of his novels, ''[[Glamorama]]'' and ''[[American Psycho]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/08/allow_bret_easton_ellis_to_int.html |title=Allow Bret Easton Ellis to Introduce You to Alison Poole, A.K.A. Rielle Hunter – Daily Intelligencer |publisher=Nymag.com |access-date=December 17, 2012}}</ref>

There was open speculation that ''Story of My Life'' was a ''[[roman à clef]]'' novel when it first appeared; to ''[[New York Magazine]]'''s questions "Is it real? Did it happen?" McInerney replied, "I'm anticipating some of that kind of speculation, but I'm utterly confident of not having any lawsuits on my hands. The book is a fully imagined work of fiction. On the other hand, it's not to say that I didn't make use of [pause] … That's why I live in New York. Mine is not an autonomous imagination."<ref name=NYMag1988>{{cite news | title = Slave of New York: Jay McInerney is back with another nightlife novel. | work = [[New York Magazine]] | date = September 5, 1988 | url = http://nymag.com/arts/books/profiles/48479/index3.html | access-date = August 15, 2008}}</ref>

In 2008, McInerney incorporated the John Edwards affair into the Allison Poole follow-up story "Penelope on the Pond" in his collections ''[[The Last Bachelor]]'' and ''[[How It Ended]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25002685-5003900,00.html|title=Familiar groove in the Big Apple|work=The Australian|access-date=March 25, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715080634/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25002685-5003900,00.html|archive-date=July 15, 2009|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

==Marriage and name change==
Druck married attorney Alexander M. "Kip" Hunter III (born April 14, 1959) in [[Cabo San Lucas]], [[Mexico]], on August 3, 1991,<ref name="NEWSOB-C">{{cite news |title=John Edwards Chronology |date=August 9, 2008 |newspaper=The News & Observer |url=http://www.newsobserver.com/politics/politicians/edwards/story/1170351.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080814182311/http://www.newsobserver.com/politics/politicians/edwards/story/1170351.html |archive-date=August 14, 2008 |access-date=May 25, 2011}}</ref> and they moved from New York to establish a new home in [[Beverly Hills, California]]. She [[name change|changed her name]] to Rielle Hunter in 1994.<ref name="NEWSOB-C" /><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/10/us/politics/10edwards.html?ref=politics Woman in Edwards Affair Will Not Allow DNA Test], August 9, 2008, ''New York Times''</ref>

Rielle Hunter filed for divorce in October 1999,<ref name="NEWSOB-C"/> which was finalized September 1, 2000.<ref name="NEWSOB"/><ref name="NEWSOB-C"/>

==Acting, film, and video career==
During the 1980s and 1990s, as Lisa Hunter and Lisa Jo Hunter, she appeared in several films, most notably ''[[Overboard (1987 film)|Overboard]]'' (1987) and ''[[Ricochet (1991 film)|Ricochet]]'' (1991) in which she portrayed a reporter.<ref name="IMDBLISA"/>

According to ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'', during this same period, while she was married to Alexander Hunter, her husband "financed the production of a play for her&nbsp;— a coming-of-age story about a group of tough 30-something New Yorkers [...] titled ''[[Savage in Limbo]]''," which co-starred [[Elizabeth Dennehy]].<ref name=PEOPLE>{{cite magazine |first=Stuart |author=Nicole Weisensee Egan, Frank Swertlow and Lorenzo Benet |title=The Edwards Affair: The Mysterious Other Woman, Rielle Hunter | url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20219151,00.html |magazine=[[People (magazine)|People]] |date=August 14, 2008 |access-date=August 14, 2008}}</ref>

In 2000, as Rielle Hunter, she wrote, acted in, and produced a comedy short called ''Billy Bob and Them'', which starred [[Wolfgang Bodison]]. At that time her production company was called R Hunter Films.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0853230/ Billy Bob and Them (2000) entry at IMdb.] Retrieved August 9, 2008.</ref>

In 2002, Hunter appeared as a contestant on the [[Game Show Network|GSN]] series ''[[Lingo (US game show)|Lingo]]'' (episode #1061, hosted by [[Chuck Woolery]]), on which she and her partner together won $500.<ref>According to a conversation with a Game Show Network employee, episode #1061 of ''[[Lingo (US game show)|Lingo]]'' with Rielle Hunter will be broadcast again on December 13, 2008, if the current schedule is maintained.The episode was rebroadcast on Friday, April 30, 2010.</ref>

===Midline Groove Productions===
In 2006, Hunter [[Pitch (filmmaking)|pitched]] the idea of a series of short informal campaign videos to Democrat [[John Edwards]] when she met him at a bar in New York City, where he was attending a business meeting.<ref name = darman>{{cite news |first=Jonathan |last=Darman |title=Politics 2008: John Edwards, Untucked |url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/44245 |work=[[Newsweek]] |date=December 25, 2006 |access-date=August 2, 2008}}</ref> The Edwards campaign soon hired her to produce a series of promotional videos portraying behind-the-scenes life on the campaign trail and Hunter filmed and produced four of these short videos for the [[John Edwards presidential campaign, 2008|2008 presidential campaign of John Edwards]].<ref name= darman /><ref>{{cite video | title = John Edwards Webisode 1: Plane Truths | medium = internet video | publisher = Webcastr.com | date = 2008 | url = http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/edwards-webisode-1-plane-truths.html | access-date = August 9, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080808022222/http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/edwards-webisode-1-plane-truths.html | archive-date = August 8, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite video | title = John Edwards Webisode 2: The Golden Rule | medium = internet video | publisher = Webcastr.com | date = 2008 | url = http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/john-edwards-missing-webisode-2.html | access-date = August 9, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080914072859/http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/john-edwards-missing-webisode-2.html | archive-date = September 14, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite video | title = John Edwards Webisode 3: Plight of Uganda | medium = internet video | publisher = Webcastr.com | date = 2008 | url = http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/missing-edwards-webisode-3-plight-of-uganda.html | access-date = August 9, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080809135138/http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/missing-edwards-webisode-3-plight-of-uganda.html | archive-date = August 9, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite video | title = John Edwards Webisode 4: Plugs | medium = internet video | publisher = Webcastr.com | date = 2008 | url = http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/missing-edwards-webisode-4-plugs.html | access-date = August 9, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080809135143/http://www.webcastr.com/videos/politics/missing-edwards-webisode-4-plugs.html | archive-date = August 9, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref>

In July 2006, Hunter formed the production company Midline Groove Productions LLC with her partner Mimi Godfrey Hockman. This company, which was based in [[South Orange, New Jersey]], produced campaign promotional videos for Edwards. The series of ads, "Inspiring Politics: A Webisode Series Following John Edwards," was broadcast on the Internet rather than through conventional television. According to the [[Associated Press]], Edwards' [[One America Committee]] paid Midline Groove Productions $100,000 on July 6, 2006, five days after Hunter incorporated the firm in Delaware. The committee later made two subsequent payments totaling $14,461, the final one on April 1, 2007.<ref>{{cite news |title=Edwards admits to affair, denies fathering child|work=Frederick News-Post |agency= Associated Press |date=August 8, 2008 |access-date= August 9, 2008|url=https://www.fredericknewspost.com/archive/john-edwards-admits-to-affair-denies-fathering-child/article_efc39f5b-82f3-58c5-bff7-b5dbec54c89d.html }}</ref> In all, Midline Groove filmed and produced four of these short videos; the shortest was 2½ minutes long.<ref name=WCNC1Aug>{{cite news |first=Stuart |last=Watson |title=No father on alleged love child's birth certificate |url=http://www.wcnc.com/news/topstories/stories/wcnc-073108-krg-birthcertificate.1f42367b.html |publisher=[[WCNC-TV]] |date=August 1, 2008 |access-date=August 2, 2008}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>

Hunter's videos were uploaded to YouTube. Recognition of the innovative nature of the series was given by ''[[BusinessWeek]]'' magazine, which included one of the episodes in a 2006 feature on new developments in [[Web video]]. Catherine Holoran, writing for the magazine, noted that the Hunter videos had effectively announced the presidential candidacy of Edwards ten days before he released the information to the [[mainstream media]]. Holoran stated that Hunter's series marked a "tipping point" in the history of web video which "sent the message that online video is a serious medium, ready to contend with traditional media for audiences and ad dollars."<ref>{{cite news |first=Catherine |last=Holahan |title=The Year in Web Video |url=http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/01/0102_videostory/source/1.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070104221741/http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/01/0102_videostory/source/1.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 4, 2007 |work=[[BusinessWeek]] |access-date=August 2, 2008}}</ref> In 2008, Maria Russo, the reviewer of websites for the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', also mentioned that Hunter had been among the earliest adopters of YouTube for [[viral marketing]] purposes, and was the first filmmaker who exploited that venue for political campaign marketing.<ref>{{cite news |first=Maria |last=Russo |title=A closer look at the John Edwards/Rielle Hunter webisodes |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/webscout/2008/08/edwards-rielle.html |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=August 11, 2008 |access-date=August 11, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080813112142/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/webscout/2008/08/edwards-rielle.html |archive-date=August 13, 2008 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }} "...&nbsp;the peppy, jagged little production called 'Inspiring Politics: A Webisode Series Following John Edwards' was made in the summer and fall of 2006. YouTube was just over a year old, and the idea of a "Webisode series" was barely a twinkle in Hollywood’s eye&nbsp;— [[lonelygirl15]], the first such series to attract mainstream attention, did not get big until September."</ref>

==Involvement with John Edwards==
{{Main|John Edwards extramarital affair}}
''[[The National Enquirer]]'', a U.S. [[Tabloid (newspaper format)|tabloid]], cited claims by an anonymous source that Edwards had engaged in an [[extramarital affair]] with Hunter during [[John Edwards presidential campaign, 2008|Edwards's 2008 presidential campaign]] and that Hunter was pregnant. After a report by the ''National Enquirer'' on December 19, 2007, Hunter announced she was pregnant with the child of [[Andrew Young (political operative)|Andrew Young]], a married man who is a former staffer for John Edwards' presidential campaign. Young, his wife Cheri, and their young children were living outside of [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]], at the time in the same "Governor's Club" complex where Hunter was renting.<ref name="NEWSOB-C"/> Soon afterward, the Youngs and Hunter moved to California.<ref name="LARRY">[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0808/08/lkl.01.html Transcript: John Edwards Admits Extra-Marital Affair], August 8, 2008, guest host Wolf Blitzer interviewing ''National Enquirer'' reporter on [[CNN]] ''Larry King Live.''</ref>

Hunter became pregnant with Edwards' child in May 2007; she later said she found out she was pregnant only in July.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprahs-Conversation-with-Rielle-Hunter/12 |title=Rielle Hunter's Unplanned Pregnancy |publisher=Oprah.com |date=April 29, 2010 |access-date=December 17, 2012}}</ref> She gave birth to her daughter on February 27, 2008, in [[Santa Barbara, California]], but did not list the child's father's name on the birth certificate.<ref name="NEWSOB-C"/><ref>{{cite news | url=http://articles.cnn.com/2010-02-05/justice/edwards.sex.tape_1_andrew-young-edwards-former-mistress-senator-edwards?_s=PM:CRIME | work=CNN | title=Alleged John Edwards sex tape survives courthouse fire | date=March 26, 2010 | access-date=May 13, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615175651/http://articles.cnn.com/2010-02-05/justice/edwards.sex.tape_1_andrew-young-edwards-former-mistress-senator-edwards?_s=PM:CRIME | archive-date=June 15, 2012 | url-status=dead | df=mdy-all }}</ref> She gave her own name as "Rielle Jaya James Druck" on her daughter's birth certificate, but gave the child the surname "Hunter".<ref name="MERCURY"/>

In July 2008, ''The National Enquirer'' said Edwards was the father of Hunter's child.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news | title = Edwards Admits to Extramarital Affair | work = [[New York Times]] | date = August 8, 2008 | access-date = August 8, 2008 | url = http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/08/abc-news-edwards-admits-to-extramarital-affair/index.html?hp | first1=Katharine Q. | last1=Seelye | first2=Kate | last2=Phillips}}</ref>
On August 8, Edwards admitted the affair, but denied that he was the father of Hunter's child and stated that he was willing to take a paternity test.<ref name=CO>{{cite news|url=http://www.charlotteobserver.com/100/story/100081.html|title=Birth certificate for Rielle Hunter's child lists no father|date=July 31, 2008|author1=Zagaroli, Lisa|work=[[Charlotte Observer]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130119004347/http://www.charlotteobserver.com/100/story/100081.html|archive-date=January 19, 2013|access-date=August 9, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5441195&page=1 | title=Edwards Admits Sexual Affair; Lied as Presidential Candidate |author1=Rhonda Swartz |author2=Brian Ross | publisher=ABC News | date=August 8, 2008 | access-date=August 8, 2008}}</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'' reported that Robert Gordon (Hunter's attorney) stated that she had refused to allow a [[DNA profiling|DNA test]] to establish paternity "now or in the future."<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/09/AR2008080901298_pf.html | title=Edwards's Ex-Lover Rejects Idea of DNA Test: Hunter Requests Privacy For Herself, Her Child | author=Lois Romano and Howard Kurtz | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=August 10, 2008 | access-date=August 10, 2008}}</ref> However, Hunter's sister publicly asked Edwards to take a paternity test to determine whether the child was his.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Rhonda |last1=Schwartz |author2=Brian Ross |title=Mistress' Family Challenges Edwards to Take DNA Test |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5546813&page=1 |work=ABC News |date=August 9, 2008 |access-date=August 9, 2008}}</ref>

On August 12, 2008, Hunter's friend Pigeon O'Brien told [[CBS News]] that Edwards had lied about the timeline of the affair. She said the affair began in February 2006, six months before Edwards hired Hunter, and said the affair was not a brief liaison, but rather was allegedly characterized by Edwards to Hunter as a committed relationship.<ref>{{cite video | title = Edwards Account Challenged | medium = internet video | publisher = CBS News | date = 2008 | url = http://www.webcastr.com/videos/news/Edwards-Account-Challanged-Webcastr.html | access-date = August 12, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080815013744/http://www.webcastr.com/videos/news/Edwards-Account-Challanged-Webcastr.html | archive-date = August 15, 2008 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}</ref> On August 13, 2008, Hunter's sister, Roxanne Druck Marshall, personally apologized to John Edwards's wife [[Elizabeth Edwards|Elizabeth]] for her sister's behavior. She said Edwards had lied in his confession because, she said, the affair had been ongoing.<ref>{{cite video | title = Edwards' Ex-Mistress' Sister Pans Both: Says Her Family Is "Very Upset," And She Feels Most For Edwards' Cancer-Stricken Wife | medium = internet video | publisher = CBS News |date = 2008 | url = http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/08/13/earlyshow/main4347468.shtml}}</ref>

On January 21, 2010, Edwards admitted publicly that he is the father of Hunter's daughter Quinn.<ref>{{cite news | author=Lisa Myers and Michael Austin | title=Edwards admits fathering child with mistress | url=https://www.today.com/news/edwards-admits-fathering-child-mistress-1C9016137 | work=NBC News | date=January 21, 2010 | access-date=January 21, 2010}}</ref>

On June 26, 2012 Hunter's book, ''What Really Happened: John Edwards, Our Daughter and Me'', was released through a Dallas-based boutique publisher, BenBella Books. The same day, Hunter stated that her relationship with Edwards had broken up.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/356563/20120626/rielle-hunter-john-edwards-book-breakup.htm |title=Rielle Hunter, John Edwards Breakup Announced Same Day As Book Release |date=June 26, 2012 |publisher=Ibtimes.com |access-date=December 17, 2012}}</ref>

On February 9, 2016, Hunter spoke on ''[[Steve Harvey (TV series)|Steve Harvey]]'' in her first televised interview in almost five years, and stated they were still dating until February of 2015.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Good |first1=Dan |title=Rielle Hunter says she was dating shamed politician John Edwards as recently as last year: 'We still love each other' |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/rielle-hunter-john-edwards-dating-year-article-1.2525412 |website=nydailynews.com |access-date=8 September 2021 |date=9 February 2016}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}} <!-- 2-column mode unusable -->

==External links==
*{{iMDb name|2377467}}

{{John Edwards}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Rielle}}
[[Category:1964 births]]
[[Category:20th-century American actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from Fort Lauderdale, Florida]]
[[Category:American film producers]]
[[Category:Florida Democrats]]
[[Category:John Edwards]]
[[Category:Mistresses]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:University of Florida alumni]]
[[Category:University of Tampa alumni]]
[[Category:American women film producers]]

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