When it comes to Kelly Ripa, New Jersey pride isn’t just a personality trait; it’s practically a superpower. On the September 30 episode of "Live with Kelly and Mark," the talk show host reminded her husband, Mark Consuelos, and viewers everywhere that being Jersey-bred is a forever thing.
It started with a seemingly harmless conversation about driving quirks. Consuelos recalled how baffled he was when he first moved with Ripa to New Jersey and realized the state’s infamous aversion to traditional left turns.
"I remembered how weird it was that you could not make a left anywhere," he said. Ripa didn’t miss a beat. "Yeah, but it sort of impacts the way you move through the world. I move through the world never going left," she quipped.
For the uninitiated, New Jersey’s reliance on jughandles (those curved ramps that reroute you to make a left safely) is a long-standing traffic feature. Outsiders groan about it; locals just accept it as part of life.
The Gas Pump Showdown
The conversation escalated when Consuelos remembered an early trip where his New Jersey complaints reached a breaking point. "I think I used the word 'communist,'" he admitted, laughing at his past dramatics.
The trigger was New Jersey’s unique ban on self-service gas stations, the only state in the nation where pumping your own gas is illegal. "I said something crazy, and then we pulled into a gas station and I couldn't pump my own gas," Consuelos shared.
That’s when Ripa’s Jersey fire came out. "Yeah, if Tampa's so great, go back there. Pump your own gas," she recalled telling him, referencing his Florida roots. While Consuelos argued it felt “un-American” to have someone else do the job, Ripa doubled down, defending the state’s tradition: "Most people say thank you!"
A Classic Ripa-Consuelos Exchange
The banter didn’t stop there. When Consuelos claimed people should always know which side their gas tank is on by checking the gauge, Ripa fired back: "No, because I'm from New Jersey. They do it for me!"
It was a line so perfectly New Jersey, you could almost hear a diner waitress pouring coffee in the background.
Jersey Girl Forever
Anyone who’s moved away from home knows the feeling of defending local quirks that outsiders just don’t get. Whether it’s bagel loyalty, hometown slang, or pumping gas, we all carry a little piece of “home” with us. For Ripa, that piece will always be New Jersey, and judging by her quick comebacks, she’s more than happy to keep carrying the torch.
This playful sparring is exactly what fans love about Ripa and Consuelos, who’ve been married since 1996 after meeting on "All My Children." Their chemistry translates seamlessly to their co-hosting duties on Live, which they’ve been tackling together since 2023.