Paulina Porizkova was married to Ric Ocasek for nearly 30 years, before his death in 2019. The supermodel is now sharing her memories from the pair’s final days together, as well as the moment she knew he was dead.
Porizkova and Ocasek’s Relationship
Porizkova and Ocasek met while filming the 1984 music video for The Cars’ single “Drive.”Suzanne Ocasek was his wife at the time, but he and Suzanne divorced in 1988. The following year, he and Porizkova were married. They have two sons.
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Ocasek & Porizkova announced their separation in 2018, but continued to live together at their New York City home.
Both hypertensive heart disease and coronary artery disease were common in the singer. Porizkova said that he was currently recovering from surgery to treat Stage 0 lung cancer.
“He had surgery because they’d found stage 0 lung cancer,” She said this while appearing on a recent episode Red Table Talk. “And he was recovering really well. Two weeks [later], he was walking around, he was starting to feel much better, he was sleeping better. And this night, he said, ‘You know what, I’m feeling kinda tired.””
Porizkova recalls the Moment He Knew He Was Dead
The next morning, Porizkova recalled that he slept late, but didn’t think anything of it, saying he “tended to sleep late”Because of his “rockstar hours.”Porizkova eventually decided to wake Porizkova up after hours of sleepless nights.
“By 11, I was like, ‘He’s sleeping in a little bit too long, so I’m going to make him a cup of coffee and I’m going to bring it up to him,’”She shared.
“I brought him a cup of coffee and he just looked like he was sleeping. … I set the coffee down next to him and that’s when I saw his face; I saw his eyes. And they didn’t look like eyes anymore.”
Her Financial Struggles Following Ocasek’s Death
Porizkova suffered financial hardship after his death. Porizkova didn’t sign a prenup and Ocasek left her nothing in his will. Although she had assets, she claimed she didn’t have any. “no cash”She had to ask her friends for help to purchase groceries.
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Porizkova settled with Ocasek’s estate in 2021. The settlement amount has not been disclosed by her, however. While appearing on the podcast The OriginalsIt was saidShe was “going to be fine.”
Porizkova and Ocasek’s marriage might have been coming to an end at the time of his death, but it’s clear Porizkova still cared for him very much. Her story may help others who had to go through the heartbreaking experience of losing their loved ones.