16th February, 2013 - Child

Singer Howie Dorough is slowly but surely on his way to starting his own little boy band. The Backstreet Boys member and his wife, Leigh, welcomed their second son on Saturday, E! News confirms. So what's the little guy's name? Howie Dorough is a dad — again! The Backstreet Boy and his wife Leigh welcomed their second son, Holden John Dorough, on Saturday, Feb. 16, the singer confirms to PEOPLE exclusively. “My beautiful wife Leigh and I are so proud to welcome our son to the world,” Dorough, 39, tells PEOPLE. “Holden surprised us by arriving three days ahead of schedule at 6:37 a.m., [weighing in] at 6 lbs., 15 oz. and 20 inches long.” “Holden is healthy and we couldn’t be happier,” Dorough continues. “Leigh is such an incredible woman and mother, and our son [James Hoke, 3½] is so excited to have a baby brother. I feel so lucky to have such an amazing family.”

6th May, 2009 - Child

It’s a boy for Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough and wife Leigh! James Hoke Dorough wasn’t due until June but arrived at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 6th. Weighing in at 4.5 lbs. and 16 ¼″ inches long, James’ middle name is in honor of Howie’s father Hoke, who passed away last year after a brain and lung cancer battle.
According to a statement on the Backstreet Boys’ site,
“Both mommy and baby are doing great and Howie D is an ecstatic new daddy. They’d like to thank everyone for their well wishes!!”
Howie and Leigh announced the pregnancy in January. Although the couple chose a delivery surprise, Howie’s family was open about their wish for a boy, since there wasn’t a male to carry on the family name. “I think everybody would love a boy,” Howie said then. “We’re just hoping for a healthy baby.”

8th December, 2007 - Marriage

After getting engaged in front of family and friends on December 31, 2006, by proposing a custom ring on New Year's Eve, the couple decided to tie the knot at Howie's family church in Orlando, Florida. But the building was about to undergo renovations, meaning they could either rush to have the ceremony within six months or wait a year. The "full speed" planning became a blessing, as Howie's father, Hoke, sadly died from cancer in 2008, meaning he may not have been around having they waited.
The couple plans to host a wedding for 250 guests on their big day, which is being held at an undisclosed location, while the Backstreet Boys, currently promoting their new single "Inconsolable," prepare to release their sixth studio album on October 30. Among those 250, at least four will be very familiar faces.
"We've invited all the Backstreet Boys, including Kevin [Richardson]," Dorough told People, who have no hard feelings regarding former bandmate Kevin Richardson's departure from the group last summer, opting out of the group's sixth album, Unbreakable. "Kevin was among the first people I talked to about our engagement."
Less than a month away from his Orlando wedding to longtime sweetheart Leigh Boniello, Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough enlisted his brother, Johnny, bandmate AJ McLean, and a crew of friends to throw him one last bash in Las Vegas.
"My brother just got married about a month and a half ago, and I did his bachelor party maybe two months before that, so I kind of got a little of an idea what I'm in store for," Howie explained to OK! "But he's got a bit more rowdier friends than mine. So, I'm excited about it. It's an American tradition. It seems like Vegas is the ultimate place to have a bachelor party."
The 34-year-old swears his lady doesn't mind his boys' weekend on the town. She packed his bags for him! "The ongoing joke is, I wonder what's actually going to be in the bags — if the clothes will be cool or the worst clothes ever for me to be seen in. But she's great," he said.
Leigh joked, "It's awesome. I'm jealous. I wish I could tag along. But you never know; I may show up. I told him he may not know that I'm there."
Meanwhile, fellow Backstreet Boy AJ McLean thinks his friend is making the right decision by getting married. However, he fears Howie could jeopardize his life if he doesn't! "It's high time for them to get married," he added. "She comes from a strong Italian background, so I think if they didn't get married, he would probably have a hit out on him."
But what does the bachelor think of finally taking the plunge and settling down? Mixed, but generally excited. "Kevin Richardson, one of the guys in the group, had mentioned something when we were all talking like, 'You never know, this may be girl Howie marries,' and I remember for the first time hearing that, and I was like, 'Wow, I actually could see that.'"
»What: Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough's bachelor party
»The itinerary: The weekend-long festivities kicked off with poker and Hypnotiq cocktails at Howie's Hollywood Hills homes. Afterward, the boys loaded onto a party bus to Las Vegas, where they had dinner at Tao in the Venetian Hotel and then hit the casino
»The wedding: The nuptials will take place in early December at Howie's hometown of Orlando, Fla. – in the same church where he was baptized and sang in the choir! Invited guests include Marc Anthony, Rob Thomas, and Deborah Gibson, but Howie says, "No Britney Spears at this one."
»Lil' boy banders: Howie, who became an uncle when he was just four years old, says, "We're all about creating a family together and taking our lives to the next chapter."
While Howie was having innocent fun, Leigh went to the final fitting of her wedding dress, a strapless embroidered form-fitting floor-length Rivini creation with a mini train with a veil with matching embellishment. "I put this dress on, and everyone said that was it. Just enough without being too bling, bling." Boniello told ET with a giggle.
We wish these two the best!
Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough is single no more. The band's attorney confirmed he wed his longtime girlfriend Saturday in his hometown with his fellow boy band members.
"The wedding took place as planned, and all went well," attorney Jason L. Turner said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough has traveled the world playing in front of millions of fans, but he has always dreamed of returning to his hometown to marry the woman he loves in front of close family and friends. The 34-year-old I Want It That Way star's wishes came true when he married and exchanged vows and tied the knot over the weekend with longtime girlfriend Leigh Boniello, 33, in an intimate ceremony at St. James Cathedral in Orlando, Fla., followed by a lavish reception at the La Viance. The couple's relatives were joined by Howie's bandmates Brian Littrell, AJ McLean, and Nick Carter, along with Kevin Scott Richardson, who left the band in 2006. The guests enjoyed three celebration days, including a catholic wedding mass and a pre-wedding dinner followed by a visit to a karaoke bar!
But the festivities were tinged with sadness because of the absence of a couple of close relatives. Leigh's sister Stacy O'Neil was to have been maid of honor, but after discovering she was pregnant with twins, she was advised not to travel for medical reasons. Guests' thoughts also turned to Howie's sister, Caroline Dorough-Cochran, who died of Lupus. So, when the newlyweds left the church, their guests released 200 butterflies in her memory.
Belting out dozens of swoon-worthy and romantic ballads couldn't prepare Howie Dorough for the biggest day of his life — his wedding to longtime girlfriend, Leigh Boniello.
On December 8, 2007, with his friends, family, and Fellow Backstreet Boys Bandmates in attendance, Howie Dorough, 34, said "I do" to his lovely new bride, Leigh Boniello, at St. James Catholic Cathedral in a tearful traditional Catholic ceremony in his hometown of Orlando, Fla., on Saturday, People and OK! magazine reported on their Web sites.
Boniello, a Webmaster for the band's Web site, began dating Dorough about six years ago.
No honeymoon for the couple, though -- the Backstreet Boys continue their tour today in Buffalo. (And ladies, Nick Carter and A.J. McLean are still single.)
With this ring...
There are many emotional moments at a wedding. Still, the highlight for a Backstreet Boy was seeing his bride walk down the aisle. To the sounds of trumpets, carrying a cascading bouquet of white phalaenopsis, Boniello strolled down the aisle of the flower-adorned church to the altar in Orlando, looking beautiful wearing a strapless satin silk Duchesse gown by Rivini, where her groom, who wears a Dsquared tuxedo, stood waiting. "When I saw her walking down the aisle, I was like 'WOW!' I had to hold myself back from crying," Howie tells OK! about the ceremony. "She was so beautiful. It really was like a fairy tale." "Everyone described it as a supermodel wedding dress," Leigh tells OK! The couple, who have been dating since 2000 and got engaged last New Year's Eve, were married at Saint James Cathedral in the groom's hometown of Orlando, Fla. The church was beautifully decorated for the ceremony by Father Miguel Gonzalez, who performed the traditional Catholic mass, which featured a reading by Howie's sister Angie and an "Ave Maria" performance by his other sister Pollyanna.
The flowers in the church were all white and off-white lilies, orchids, and roses, contrasting with the bright salsa colors of the flowers at the reception – 11,000 stems were used altogether, including a thousand white orchids flown in from Hawaii, and two thousand orchids were flown in from Thailand. Howie also recalls a special moment that made his late sister Caroline's presence felt. After Howie and Leigh said, "I do," they exchanged the vows and their beautiful platinum wedding bands, which they designed themselves and made by Howie's friend Alex at Plantation Jewelers in Winter Garden, Fla. ("We came up with the design," says Leigh. Her ring is seven carats, one for each year the couple has been together.), the new couple exited the church, the same church Howie had been baptized in as a child, as guests released 200 black and orange monarch butterflies outside the cathedral into the air in memory of the groom's sister, Caroline, who passed away from complications of Lupus in 1998. One randomly landed on his mom's shoulder. "It was like, 'Oh, that's my sister,'" he reflects. "It was beautiful... very emotional," says Leigh. After Caroline died of Lupus in 1998, Howie founded the Dorough Lupus Foundation with a butterfly logo.
"The whole thing was like it belonged in a bridal magazine," one guest tells PEOPLE of the Catholic religious ceremony held at St. James Cathedral. "It was perfect."
Party time!
Following the ceremony, Limo Buses transported the 180 guests to the reception. However, The couple agrees their most memorable moment was choosing to go all out for their grand entrance arrival into their lavish reception site at La Viance, a sprawling 35,000-square-foot 160-acre private home in nearby Groveland, arriving from the church via helicopter, circling overhead several times as their 185 puzzled guests looked on while sipping champagne, thinking they were paparazzi, then erupting in screams and cheers as they landed on the estate's own helipad for their dramatic arrival! "We didn't tell anyone we were going to do it," Leigh reveals to OK! "So, when we flew in, everyone was shocked. It was such a huge surprise!" "My favorite part of the wedding was taking the helicopter with my new wife to the reception grounds," he recalls to The Knot. "And landing to surprise our guests with our magical entrance that nobody expected. Most people thought we were 'paparazzi at first sight,'" he adds with a laugh. With the help of planner Heather Snively and florist Ian Prosser, the ballroom was decorated with orchids, hydrangeas, roses, and calla lilies in salsa colors to match the bridesmaids' stunning ruby Vera Wang dresses, whose color matched the flower girls' sashes.
An affair to remember
The four-tiered wedding cake was designed and decorated by Deborah Dupree-King, Head of Decorating, for Mark Lotti's Classic Cheesecakes & Cakes of Atlanta, Georgia, who also created fellow Backstreeter Brian Littrell's wedding cake. Deborah decorated the cake to reflect several design elements from Leigh's wedding gown. The top tier was a pedestal of handmade sugar paste flowers, created as a keepsake for the couple.
"It really was a dream come true," Howie tells OK! about his wedding day. "Honestly, my cheeks are hurting from all the smiling!"
What would a Backstreet wedding be without the Boys? Of course, The extravagant nuptials were attended by all of Howie's bandmates, fellow Backstreet Boys members AJ McLean, Brian Littrell, Kevin Richardson (who decided to sit out on the group's latest album, Unbreakable), and Nick Carter. "The wedding was beautiful," Brian Littrell says to OK! "Welcome to the club, Howie!" Meanwhile, AJ McLean had his own matrimony on his mind, revealing to OK! "Hopefully, I'll be next!" The night was complete with special toasts from them. "They're like my brothers," Howie says to OK! "The fact that they recognized Leigh and how long we've been together was so sweet." In addition, '80s icon singer Deborah Gibson and former *NSYNC member Chris Kirkpatrick were there to share his special day with him.
The new groom poses for a shot with his adoring mother, Paula, who told OK! "I am so proud and happy to welcome Leigh into the family. I wish them all the happiness in the world and for them to live their lives with God always in their hearts."
Following the reception, the bride and groom were swept away by the crowd into their awaiting limo at 4:30 a.m. 'Everyone was like, "Go consummate the marriage,"' Howie said OK! Howie & Leigh then jetted off for a three-day honeymoon in Antigua. "We were going to do a honeymoon in Africa and Greece for a month, but we couldn't because of the schedule with Backstreet," Howie explains to OK! "But just taking this time... We're just so glad to chill and relax."
The Backstreet Boy, 34, tied the knot with his lady on Dec. 8 in front of 180 guests, including his bandmates, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter, A.J. McLean, and Kevin Richardson, who left the group last year, and OK! was invited for the big bash. After Howie and Leigh, 33, made it official, the couple sat down with OK! to reflect on their special day as they embarked on their new life as husband and wife.
Congrats, describe the day, the wedding!
HD: Seriously, it was a fairy-tale, rock-star wedding. I couldn't ask for anything more. But honestly, my cheeks are hurting from smiling so hard.
LB: It was amazing. It really went well. We had so many surprises for everyone. The whole thing went on for three days. The house where we had the reception was 45 minutes from the church. We provided bus transportation for all our guests so nobody would have to drink and drive. We wanted people to be comfortable and able to enjoy it. We didn't tell anybody, but Howie and I jumped on a helicopter in front of this 32,000-square-foot mansion where we had the reception; there was a helicopter pad right in front where the cocktail hour was being served. So, we flew in, which was a huge surprise. We got off the helicopter, and it was awesome. Everyone was shocked.
Howie, what did you think as Leigh walked up the aisle?
HD: Oh my God. I was holding myself back from crying. I had to take a couple of big breaths. She was so beautiful; it was more than I ever expected. It was so breathtaking.
Did you cry?
HD: I was holding it back; I definitely got choked up. My eyes definitely watered here and there. I was like, this is really happening. The priest told me, 'This is your dream come true.' I always wanted to get married in my church, where I was baptized. My oldest sister got married there. It was a dream come true; It was a fairy-tale wedding.
LB: I'm a pretty emotional person, so I totally thought I would. But after all the planning, as soon as we were getting ready to go, I was like, all right, we're doing it. I didn't even cry, my makeup looked so good, and I didn't want to ruin my makeup. So, I shocked myself; I got in mode. My dad was worse than I was. My dad was tearing up. I'm looking at him like, "Don't start!"
Leigh, your sister (Stacy) couldn't make it. Was it emotional not having her there?
Yes, I mean, I can't even talk about it. She's (Stacy) been wanting to have a baby for a long time. And now that she's pregnant with twins, I was so happy for her. She taped a speech on DVD, and they played it at the reception.
Were you nervous?
HD: Oh yeah, a couple of days before we married, everyone said, "Wow, you're so calm." I was like, "Hey, no big deal!" The last hour before we got married, I was nervous. I couldn't find my cufflinks, so that just started it off. From there, I accidentally spilled a glass of champagne on one of my groomsmen. My brother was like, "Dude, it's good luck." He was like, enjoy it! It went by so fast. Everyone says it goes by so fast, and I was like, "Yeah, yeah, whatever." It did; it went by so fast. But we had such a great time.
LB: Yeah, definitely. I think more nervous in the morning getting ready, but not so nervous at the church. It went really smoothly.
Did anyone forget their vows/have a problem saying them?
HD: My voice is hoarse because I lost it a couple of days ago. But besides that, it was all good. I was a little shaky.
LB: No, not at all. We handled the vows well. We didn't get choked up or anything. We just did it. I was proud of us. We put on a good show!
What was the most emotional moment?
HD: I think, seeing Leigh coming down the aisle. It was amazing. I just kept on telling her I loved her so much. I kept saying, "You look so beautiful." It was a dream come true for me. She's my best friend.
LB: Just seeing my dad cry as I walked down the aisle. And my mom, of course.
Was it essential that you get married at the cathedral?
Howie: I'm from Orlando, and this is the church I was baptized at, had my first communion and confirmation, and my oldest sister got married here. I'm the baby of the family, so I wanted to complete the circle.
What was your first dance to "Endless Love"? Describe it.
HD: Yes, we did. It was to Endless Love. She has a lower base voice than me, so she did the Lionel Richie part. I did the Diana Ross part. Just the fact that everyone was there and enjoyed the moment with us. We got a cover over the whole pool, which was the dance floor. No nightclub in LA could match it.
LB: Not your typical wedding song, but it's always been an inside joke with Howie and me. In our house in LA, we have music on throughout the house. That was one of the songs when we first moved in. We probably heard it 15 times, like while we were cooking. Our big joke is he sings all the high parts. He does the Diana part, and I do the Lionel Richie part. So, we did a little of that. I wonder if anyone got the joke. But it ended up being pretty funny.
What did you serve at dinner?
LB: Everyone got a beef tenderloin and a halibut with lemon zest. And sweet potato mashed potatoes and vegetables on the side. I'm a vegetarian, and they made a fantastic meal with eggplant, mozzarella, and roasted red pepper, like a Napoleon.
Any last-minute problems/hitches?
LB: Besides my fiancé losing his passport two days before our wedding as we're going to go on our honeymoon?! Luckily, The Firm, his management company, was great. They were there - they got it done in a day. We got the FedEx package yesterday.
HD: Besides me not finding my cufflinks, that was about it. It actually was really smooth. And besides me spilling champagne on my friend. It was perfect. I was really choked up. I'm getting choked up just thinking of it.
What was your favorite/most memorable moment?
LB: Flying in on the helicopter for sure. Howie might have mentioned it to you. And to make certain people leave the church and not congregate, we did a butterfly release in memory of Howie's sister, Caroline, who died of Lupus. They released two hundred butterflies when we walked out of the church, and then we got into a horse-drawn carriage and just rode around the block until everyone left and didn't go back to the church. It was a nice touch.
HD: By all means, the helicopter. I wanted to do a rock star entrance. Everyone was like, "WOW!" So, the helicopter swooped around the house several times - It was a drastic entrance! And the butterfly release outside the beautiful church. And we rode in this horse carriage. It was like a fairy tale, like Alice in Wonderland.
Were all the Backstreet guys there?
HD: Yes, everyone was there. Unfortunately, Nick didn't attend the wedding but was at the reception. Deborah Gibson was there. And Chris Kirkpatrick from 'N Sync.
What was it like to have them there?
HD: It was awesome. They all got up to say a special blessing to Leigh and me. It was sweet. They're like my brothers, and I got choked up for me to have them there. They said something to both of us. They know Leigh as well because she used to work for us. So, the fact that they said something, recognized her, and how long we've been together was so sweet.
LB: I worked for the group, so they all cared for me. They always knew we would get married. They've been so supportive. So, I just said to Nick, who's the only single one, well, AJ is too. So, I just said to Nick, "Don't think you have to stop partying with us! You're not losing a brother."
Tell me about your honeymoon to Antigua—are you excited?
HD: We're so excited. We have three days to get away because I must do some shows with the group in Columbus, Boston, Hartford, and New York. But we're so excited to get away for three days. We were going to do a month's honeymoon in Africa and Greece, but we couldn't because of the schedule with Backstreet. But just taking the time to go to this place, all-inclusive with a butler, we're just so glad to chill and relax.
How about having children?
HD: We've definitely talked about kids. We're both excited about taking on that next chapter in our lives. We've had some fantastic years of being on the road, partying, having fun, and living life to the fullest. We are getting closer to our mid-30s, we're not thinking so much about ourselves anymore. We're now about creating a family together and taking our lives to the next chapter.
Following a gorgeous, beautiful December 8 wedding in Orlando, Fla., that took months of planning, Howie Dorough and Leigh Boniello needed to unwind. And what better place to do that than the beautiful white beaches of Antigua?
The Backstreet Boy and his new bride jetted off for a four-day island getaway and had the time of their lives. Their honeymoon at the all-luxuries-included, 373-room Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa, located on Dickenson Bay, was the perfect stress-busting solution, the Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa Mediterranean village features 180 spacious suites.
The newlyweds stayed in a Mediterranean penthouse suite with an ocean view. "It had a cool, plantation vibe," says Leigh. "Our two butlers catered every meal," says Howie. "Needless to say, we enjoyed it."
"The resort catered to our every need," Howie says to OK! "The beaches had some of the most amazing white sand we have ever seen. We would have loved to stay longer." Echoes Leigh, "Everyone was friendly and accommodating. It was the perfect getaway."
Their favorite part of their romantic honeymoon?
"We had an amazing candlelit dinner at the beach," Leigh, 33, recalls. "It was a gift from Howie's brother, Johnny. The resort set up a private gazebo with many tropical flowers and candles. So, we had a chance to enjoy our first dinner as a married couple."
The next few months will be hectic for the couple as Howie prepares for a world tour with fellow Backstreet Boys Nick Carter, Brian Littrell, and AJ McLean; it kicks off in Tokyo on Feb. 16. "There will be another Backstreet Boys album." Howie tells OK! (Their latest album, Unbreakable, is in stores now.) "We have enjoyed an unbelievable career for 15 years and plan to continue making music for our fans and us for years to come."
As for the future, Howie, 34, and Leigh "definitely" plan on having children, but not yet.
"We see having a family in the future," Howie says. "Right now, we want to enjoy traveling and being married."

31st December, 2006 - Engagement

After being together six years later, The couple got engaged last New Year's on December 31, 2006. But, for one Backstreet Boy, love wasn't all he had to give. He also had a ring.
The "I Want It That Way" crooner Howie Dorough has popped the surprise proposal question to his girlfriend of nearly six years, Leigh Boniello, with the duo planning to tie the knot later this year.
While the boy-bander has until now kept mum on the impending vow swap, the 33-year-old proposed to Boniello, also 33, in front of 40 of her family and friends at a New Year's Eve party they attended at Boniello's father's family home in New Jersey on New Year's Eve.
"She wasn't expecting it, and I was quite nervous – more nervous about proposing to her in front of 40 family and friends than about performing in front of 40,000 people onstage," Dorough told People of the New Year's Eve proposal. "I couldn't even like have a drink. My cheeks were all flush and everything."
Dorough said they were "cautious" to keep their engagement private at first and quiet about the marriage until now. Still, as the wedding date—which he will not divulge—is fast approaching and with the wedding right around the corner, they finally felt it was the right time to share the happy news. "We're very, very excited," he said.
Dorough carefully planned the proposal to his "soulmate" in days. Dorough says he looked at "at least 40 or 50 diamonds" before he prepared his "Will you marry me?" speech while he and an unsuspecting Boniello were on an annual benefit cruise. (The trip was to support the Dorough Lupus Foundation, founded in honor of his late sister.)
Dorough, who says he went the traditional route in the run-up to the proposal, asking the permission of Boniello's mother, father, and grandmother before getting down on bended knee, popped the question in a not-so-traditional way. "And I asked her mother, father, and grandmother for their permission," he adds. "I figured, what better timing because all of her family was going to be there, including her 92-year-old grandmother."
"He decided to pull a practical joke on me in front of my whole family," Boniello told People of the big day. "He acted like he forgot to give me one Christmas present — it was in a large box."
So just before midnight, when it came time to propose, he made a toast, got a big box, put three carrots in it, wrapped it up, and presented it to her.
While processing the meaning of the present in her head, she opened the box. She found three large carrots inside the box, referring to Playing off an inside joke between the duo that Dorough was "dangling the carrots" of marriage in front of Boniello whenever they talked about it throughout their 6-year lengthy relationship.
"She was laughing and trying to tell everyone the joke, and by the time she turned around, I was down on one knee with the real carat," says Dorough.
Make that more than three carats. Dorough, a native of Orlando, even had a hand in custom-designing the three-stone diamond engagement ring – one round, brilliant-cut diamond surrounded by two smaller round diamonds, all set in platinum – with a family friend at Plantation Jewelers in Winter Garden, Fla.
"It meant a lot for my whole family to hear it," she says. "The room was filled with more love than I ever expected."

14th February, 2001 - Dating

While the pair soon discovered they shared a love of theme parks, socializing, and food, one significant difference was their musical tastes. Leigh knew little about BSB’s music when she landed the job. Over time, they introduced each other to their favorite bands, with Howie getting more into Primus and Ben Harper while Leigh learned about Sade, Maxwell ... and BSB!
“She opened my mind to music I hadn’t listened to, like Ben Harper and Dave Matthews,” the Dead 7 star continues. “She took me to Primus and exposed me to a totally different realm of music, and I introduced her to more pop/R&B, like Maxwell and Sade -- as well as our music. She knew who we were but didn’t truly know our songs, so when I hung with her, I was like, ‘She’s not a typical fan who knows every word and asks crazy questions.’ Having somebody with totally different interests was a breath of fresh air, but we still saw eye-to-eye on many things.”
“I had never listened to their music before I started working for them,” Leigh confessed. “I grew up on rock and reggae, and my parents were friends with Bruce Springsteen and many people in that camp, so I went to shows and backstage when I was five years old. I thought that was the norm until I hit my teens and started going to concerts on my own and was like, ‘Wait a minute, I want to be back there!’ So obviously, I figured out a way to get backstage again!”
While their courtship was free of the glare of social media and the backlash to which the wives of younger bandmates Nick Carter and AJ McLean have been heavily subjected, Leigh “still got a lot of hate.” Unsure how to handle herself in public, she would keep her head down and stay quiet, which ignited more criticism. Howie confesses he “didn’t help the situation” by avoiding publicly confirming their relationship.
“In the early years, we were encouraged not to announce girlfriends, and that stayed in my mind longer than the other guys,” he explains. “I never announced any previous girlfriends and wasn’t one to talk about it until I knew I wanted to. I always had my sister, Pollyanna, as my date because she wanted to come to everything! Once I felt comfortable enough to look at fans and hope they could see past the performer and want me to be happy as a person and acknowledge her as my significant other, many fans accepted her. Before that, they were like, ‘Who’s this hoochie mama hanging around?’ I think fans thought about all our girlfriends until they became part of our lives and realized they weren’t just a one-night stand.”

January, 2009 - Hookup

6th December, 2000 - Hookup

Backstreet Boy Howard "Howie" Dorough got more than he bargained for after hiring Leigh Boniello to be the band's webmaster in December 2000.
Leigh Boniello was a 26-year-old music enthusiast, anxiously starting a new job for the Backstreet Boys during the height of their fame when suddenly she found herself caught up in an epic made-for-TV romance.
"Actually, at the time, we were approached by management in early 2000, when the internet was booming, and I don't even know what it [internet] was, but our management decided to create a little special site for our fan club [fans] get to see us do stuff outside of our concerts like just traveling on the days off. Her job was to get content of us doing stuff outside of the everyday show ritual, and I was always the one who would put my hand up when they'd ask, 'Does anyone want to go hang-gliding in Rio today?'" Howie Dorough recalls to ET. "So, she would come out, and we did the pyramids and many fun things. I always joked the website became mostly about me! She would videotape me consistently all over the place."
"It was like being on The Bachelor because it was all these crazy experiences," adds Leigh. "It was like, 'Here we are in Mexico; let's get a private tour of the pyramids and go on crazy adventures together!' So it just lent itself to a romantic situation."
Sure enough, romance bloomed, and now, as the couple prepares to mark their 10-year-wedding anniversary on Dec. 8, they're opening up for the first time about their globetrotting courtship, most memorable wedding moments, juggling family life with BSB, and why time apart has strengthened their bond.
Leigh, 43, admits she never expected a job interview would lead to love when she sat in the Los Angeles office of BSB's management, having completed her final interview for a webmaster gig. The band's team suggested she meet with the guys immediately; however, the group had just wrapped a six-hour planning meeting after flying in from the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada, so no one was in the mood.
"We were all still hurting from the night before, and just out of a six-hour meeting, then they're like, 'Is anyone willing to stay and say hi to the new webmaster?'" says Howie, 44. "Everyone was like, 'I'm outta here,' and Kevin and I -- the good old faithfuls -- were like, 'Alright, we'll do it.' So, we walked in, and I remember thinking, 'She's cute. Alright, I'll listen to this meeting.' So I sat down and thought, 'Well, she's coming on tour. Eventually, one of us is going to hit on her!' So, I hired her because she had a good resume of just other artists she'd worked for."
And, when it came to remembering her first day on the job as BSB's new webmaster in 2000, Leigh recalled some exciting advice from loved ones! "I remember my sister telling me, 'Put your hair up in a ponytail and don't put any lipstick on,'" she shared. "It was kind of nerve-wracking."
While Leigh had previously worked on websites for celebrities, including Claudia Schiffer, and commercials and music videos for Quentin Tarantino's company, A Band Apart, she needed hands-on experience with video and behind-the-scenes content. "Then, within the next couple of days, I was at the office by myself in the evening, and they just handed me a camera and a map of the video shoot for BSB's 2001 hit "The Call," and was told, 'Here you go,'" then got into her car and burst into tears wondering how she would pull off her first primary task the following day. "I got in my car and started crying. It was overwhelming having to work on a set with all these people and not know anybody." Pulling through, she joined the band on their Black & Blue tour a month later and quickly bonded with Howie. She went from working on the internet to working over Dorough's heart.
"I drove to downtown LA, which is sketchy, and lucked out because one of my best friends ended up being their hair and makeup artist, so that made it a little easier," continued Leigh, who went on to work for Jerry Weintraub Productions on projects including Oceans 12 and Westworld. "Then Howie and I talked while he was in the hair and makeup chair. He was definitely the friendliest!"
"We were, like, best friends for the first few weeks," recalls Leigh, who had also worked alongside the head writers of Seinfeld and developed television projects at Dreamworks. "We did a lot of stuff together; we would sit together on the plane and just struck up a friendship. We were sharing potato chips!"
"I had come out of a relationship, so I wasn't looking for anything serious. Neither of us was looking for a relationship, but she was around, and we had a lot of same interests," adds Howie. "We both loved entertaining, being around people, going out, visiting theme parks, riding roller coasters, and eating.