Mark Gastineau’s ex-wife mocks his dementia: ‘It’s karma’
Karma may be a bigger you-know-what than, well, you know how the saying goes.
After Mark Gastineau, the former Jets defensive end, spoke out about his deteriorating health, citing struggles with dementia and Parkinson’s, during a recent interview, TMZ caught up with his ex-wife, Lisa, outside West Hollywood haunt Craig’s over the weekend, alleging a spiritual power could be to blame.
“Maybe it’s karma,” Lisa, 58, said, before literally spelling it out, “K-A-R-M-A.”
Gastineau, 61, wed his first wife in 1979, then separated in 1986 as a result of his affair with actress Brigitte Nielsen. He and Lisa would finalize their divorce in 1991. They share one daughter, Brittny, now 35, who would later appear on the E! reality series, “Gastineau Girls” with her mom.
Earlier this month, Gastineau publicly pleaded for commissioner Roger Goodell to help former players who are suffering, revealing he has yet to receive compensation as a result of the NFL’s billion-dollar concussion settlement.
“I want the NFL to treat people right,” Gastineau told WOR’s Pete McCarthy in a radio interview. “They have to. The commissioner has to. … Hey, Roger Goodell, treat people right.”
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Gastineau and Goodell have known each other for decades, with the five-time Pro Bowler once referring to the former Jets public relations intern as his “ball boy.”
“I want to hold you to your promise, Roger Goodell,” Gastineau said. “When I was big, I treated him good. He’s big now, you know what? Treat us good.”
Gastineau first addressed his ailing health last year, revealing he was suffering from dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
“My wife, she and I used to go around and do yard work, but you know what, she does everything now for me,” Gastineau said of second wife, JoAnn. “It’s not good, it’s not good when I’m lying in bed till 3, 4 or 5 [in the afternoon]. It’s not good. There’ll be days I get up and I’m good. I’ll tell you, and my wife will tell you, she helps me get out of bed. She’ll help me remember names.”
Gastineau retired from the NFL in 1988 after nine seasons.