Kelly Rizzo Got Permission From Bob Saget's Friends to Date After His Death

Kelly Rizzo made sure she had the blessing of her late husband Bob Saget's friends before she started dating again after his death.

"I said, ‘OK, in terms of dating or moving forward, I'm not even gonna think about that for one year,'" Rizzo, 46, said during the Monday, May 18, episode of the "Girls Gotta Eat" podcast, adding that she felt like "anything before a year might be seen as a little too soon."

Saget died at age 65 of blunt head trauma after an accidental fall in January 2022.

"We are devastated to confirm that our beloved Bob passed away today," his family shared in a statement at the time. "He was everything to us and we want you to know how much he loved his fans, performing live and bringing people from all walks of life together with laughter."

During Monday's podcast episode, Rizzo told hosts Ashley Hesseltine and Rayna Greenberg that she began thinking about dating again after a conversation with Saget's friends on the first anniversary of his death.

"At my house, I had Jeff Ross and John Mayer over and Bob's nephew, Adam," she explained. "And then Jeff Ross goes, ‘Kel, elephant in the room, we got to talk about it. When are you going to start dating again?' And I was like, ‘Jeff, I mean, I'm not really ready just yet.'"

"And John's like, ‘Whenever you're ready, it's OK. If you want to get back out there, like, it's OK,'" she continued, recalling that Ross, 60, warned her that they would revisit the subject if she didn't start dating again by the second anniversary of Saget's death.

"And then two months after that, so now 14 months later or so, I started to feel a little lonely," Rizzo added. "And then you start to feel - after over a year of not having a hug or a kiss or feeling lonely, I'm like, ‘Oh, I don't want to feel like this frumpy old widow.'"

Rizzo said she wanted to "feel alive again" and felt as though any potential suitors saw her as "off limits."

"But I was starting to feel a little lonely and a little sad and a little like, well, it might be nice to get a coffee with somebody. Like, I'm not ready to date date yet, but maybe hike or coffee," she noted. "And I sat down with Bob's daughters, and I said just that: ‘I'm starting to feel a little lonely.'"

Saget's daughters with ex-wife Sherri Kramer - Aubrey, 39, Lara, 36, and Jennifer, 33 - told Rizzo, "We want you to be happy.'"

"They're like, ‘Well, you don't need our permission.' I go, ‘I know I don't need your permission, but I want your blessing,'" the Special Forces: World's Toughest Test alum continued. "[They said,] ‘Our dad would want you to be happy.'"

Rizzo, who was married to Saget from 2018 until his death in 2022, went public with boyfriend Breckin Meyer in early 2024. Throughout their romance, the television host has often gushed about how supportive and respectful Meyer, 52, has been of Rizzo's grief.

"People have said, ‘I think Bob sent you Breckin,'" Rizzo exclusively told Us Weekly in November 2024. "The funny thing is that when [Bob and I] were together, the thought of me talking to somebody else, he would have lost his mind. But, I distinguish between heavenly Bob and earthly Bob."

She continued, "Earthly Bob would have been like, ‘How dare you?' Heavenly Bob wants me to be happy. I feel, like, if he could have picked anyone for me, it would have been Breckin because he really respected Breckin a lot and really liked him a lot and they really liked each other."

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This story was originally published May 18, 2026 at 12:45 PM.