‘The View’ Star Sunny Hostin Described Meeting Her Husband for the First Time: ‘He Was Gorgeous… I Looked Ridiculous’

Sunny Hostin often speaks affectionately of her husband, Dr. Emmanuel “Manny” Hostin, on The View. Married since 1998, the couple have two children — Gabriel, 18, and Paloma, 14. The View co-host recalled the first time she set eyes on her spouse, as well as the very casual outfit she was wearing.

Sunny Hostin met her husband in church

In her 2020 memoir, I Am These Truths: A Memoir of Identity, Justice, and Living Between Worlds, Hostin described how her dating life was “less than satisfactory” when she lived in Maryland in the mid-90s. She still had plenty of interests, including training for a marathon. One day after going for a run, Hostin decided to take her mom’s advice and attend a church service before heading home.

“I certainly wasn’t dressed to attend service that day,” Hostin wrote. “My hair was slicked back in a ponytail, and the sweat suit I was wearing was living up to its name. … Since Mom believed I’d find my soul mate once I got back into church, I figured I’d drop in, then call to tell her I’d followed her advice and indeed find the man of my dreams. Not!”

Turns out, mother really does know best. Shortly after Hostin found her seat near the back of the church, she spotted her future husband entering the church with a friend.

“I’d been there about five minutes when I turned around,” The View co-host recalled. “And in walked Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Hostin. He was gorgeous, decked out in a beautifully tailored suit. … All I could think about was how I could meet this man. … I looked ridiculous. I would have to sit and wait. My eyes were glued to his every move.”

‘The View’ co-host tried bonding over bagels

After the church service, Hostin saw Manny and his friend head into a bagel shop around the corner. The View star was in hot pursuit, and got in line behind them. When she struck up a conversation with Manny, he was surprised to hear that she had been at church.

“He looked me up and down, from the rubber band holding my ponytail in place to my athletic socks and sneakers,” Hostin explained. “‘You went to church dressed like that?’ Knowing Manny as well as I do now, I know that it was bordering on blasphemous in his view to go to church dressed in jeans, let alone sweatpants. But I ignored the dig.”

Hostin told Manny she was training for a marathon and tried to continue the chat. Manny’s friend seemed a little more interested in having a verbal volley.

“We got the the counter, and Manny turned away to order his sesame seed bagel,” The View panelist remarked. “He’d answered my 20 questions, but it was obvious he wasn’t checking for me. His friend, on the other hand, who was a lot more talkative and friendly, mentioned that he and Manny liked to throw parties. When he offered his phone number, I took it.”

Sunny Hostin said her husband ‘just hadn’t seen me’ that first time around

Fate intervened for Hostin when she later ran into Manny’s friend at a party. She was out of the sweat suit and into a form-fitting dress and flawless hair and makeup. The friend mentioned a gathering that he and Manny would be hosting and invited her to attend.

“When I made my way to their apartment a few days later, Manny opened the door,” Hostin wrote. “He didn’t recognize me, but I said it was nice to see him again. When he asked if we had met before, I told him yes, we’d met in church. That’s still our running joke.”

The daytime talk show host considered their church interaction their very first meeting, even if her husband initially hadn’t given her a second look.

“He would tell folks that we’d met in a bagel shop, but I’d let him and everyone else know that we’d met in church. That’s where the connection happened. He just hadn’t seen me. … Two years later, we got married.”