If you spent any time watching TV in the '90s or early 2000s, you know Courtney Thorne-Smith. Whether she was the girl-next-door Alison Parker on Melrose Place, the high-strung Georgia on Ally McBeal, or the grounded Cheryl on According to Jim, she was everywhere. But while her TV characters were usually navigating messy love triangles or slapstick sitcom marriages, her real life was way more low-key. At least, it was until recently.
People are constantly Googling about the Courtney Thorne-Smith husband situation because, honestly, the news cycle moved fast on this one. For nearly two decades, she was one half of a Hollywood marriage that actually seemed to work. No scandals. No tabloid fights. Just a steady partnership with a guy named Roger Fishman.
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Then, everything changed.
The 18-Year Run: Who is Roger Fishman?
Let’s get the basics out of the way. Courtney married Roger Fishman on New Year’s Day in 2007. It was a private ceremony, very much in line with how they lived their lives. Roger isn't an actor, which probably helped. He’s a former talent agent who pivoted into a world that’s arguably way cooler: aerial and wildlife photography.
If you look up his work, it’s stunning. He spends his time in helicopters over Greenland and Iceland, capturing these massive, abstract shots of ice and water to help climate scientists at places like MIT and Brown. He basically went from Hollywood "office guy" to "Arctic adventurer."
The Split Nobody Saw Coming
In June 2025, the news dropped that Courtney had filed for divorce. It felt like a gut punch to fans who viewed them as one of the "safe" couples. But here’s the kicker: according to the court documents, they had actually been separated since September 2021.
They lived separate lives for nearly four years before even filing the paperwork.
That is wild when you think about it. In a town where people live-tweet their breakups, they managed to keep a four-year separation completely under the radar.
- The Filing: Courtney filed without a lawyer (pro se), which usually hints at an amicable vibe.
- The Reason: The standard "irreconcilable differences."
- The Settlement: Just this month, in January 2026, the divorce was finalized.
- The Money: Reports from Us Weekly show they both make a healthy living—Courtney around $50,000 a month and Roger around $60,000. They both waived spousal support.
The Family Dynamic and Their Son
One of the biggest questions people have when a long marriage ends is: "What about the kids?" Courtney and Roger have one son, Jacob Emerson Fishman, born in January 2008.
Jacob is 18 now.
Because he was reaching adulthood right as the legal side of the divorce was wrapping up, the custody stuff was pretty straightforward. They agreed on joint legal and physical custody. You don't see them posting him all over Instagram; Courtney has always been fiercely protective of his privacy. She once joked in an interview that being a "boy mom" was a whole different world of dirt and energy compared to her polished TV roles.
Why Do People Keep Mentioning Andrew Conrad?
You can't talk about Courtney Thorne-Smith's husbands without mentioning the "seven-month itch." Before Roger, Courtney had a very brief, very public marriage to a geneticist named Andrew Conrad.
They got married in Hawaii in June 2000.
They split by January 2001.
The timing was legendary for all the wrong reasons. Their wedding photos were literally on the cover of InStyle magazine's wedding issue the same week they announced they were breaking up. Talk about awkward. That experience is likely why Courtney kept her marriage to Roger so much more guarded. She learned the hard way that putting your private life on a pedestal makes the fall a lot harder.
Life in 2026: Is She Dating Someone New?
Honestly? Yeah, it looks like it.
A few months after the divorce filing in 2025, paparazzi caught Courtney in Los Angeles looking very happy and kissing a new man. We don't have a name yet—she’s keeping him under wraps—but she seems to be embracing this new chapter.
At 58, she’s also leaning back into her Melrose Place roots. She co-hosts a podcast called Still the Place with her old castmates Daphne Zuniga and Laura Leighton. If you listen to it, she sounds lighter. She talks about menopause, aging in Hollywood, and the "freedom" of midlife. It’s a far cry from the days when she felt pressured to be "Ally McBeal thin."
What We Can Learn From the Fishman Split
Most celebrity divorces are a dumpster fire. This one wasn't. There’s something to be said for the way they handled it:
- Privacy is a choice. You don't have to announce a split the second it happens. Taking four years to process things privately probably saved them a lot of public heartache.
- Financial Independence. By both being successful in their own right, they avoided a nasty alimony battle.
- Co-parenting over Ego. Keeping things quiet for the sake of their son, Jacob, seems to have been the priority.
If you’re looking for a scandalous story about a "cheating husband" or a "secret double life," you won't find it here. The story of Courtney Thorne-Smith and Roger Fishman is just a story of two people who grew apart after nearly two decades and decided to handle the end of their marriage with more dignity than the characters Courtney used to play on TV.
If you want to keep up with Courtney's current projects, your best bet is following her new social media presence or tuning into her podcast. She’s finally sharing her voice on her own terms, which is a lot more interesting than any tabloid headline.
Next Steps for Readers
To get the most accurate picture of Courtney's career and personal evolution, you should listen to the Still the Place podcast. It provides a rare, unscripted look at how she views her time in the spotlight and her life today. Additionally, if you're interested in Roger Fishman's work, his environmental photography website offers a glimpse into the world he transitioned into after his career as a talent agent.