Did Joe Simpson Come Between Jessica & Tony?

 
 

FIRST PUBLISHED: June 4, 2008 5:49 PM EDT
LAST UPDATED: June 4, 2008 7:40 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

His control issues are legendary and now, a new report claims Joe Simpson might just be the thorn in the side of his daughter, Jessica, and her boyfriend, Tony Romo.

It is no secret that Joe Simpson is the brains behind both Jessica and Ashlee’s careers, but according to Us Weekly, Joe has crossed some personal-life boundaries.

“After seven months of meddling, Tony Romo has told Jessica, either your father stays out of the way, or this relationship is over,” Us Weekly contributor Jill Martin told Access Hollywood.

During a trip the couple took to Mexico in January, Joe was a frequent sight.

“The two were photographed on a very romantic Mexican getaway and Joe was actually, literally, in the picture at the time,” Martin said.

And Joe was there during Jessica’s marriage to Nick Lachey too.

Us Weekly reported that as Nick and Jessica’s marriage was crumbling, dad-ager Joe was pitching a Simpson-Lachey holiday special.

“The only thing he’s really been wrong about was me getting married,” Jessica told Access at the time. “He thought I was too young and that it would ruin my career. But that’s the only thing my dad’s ever been wrong about.”

In a 2004 interview with GQ, Joe raised eyebrows when he praised daughter Jessica’s “double D’s,” as he put it, acting more as a sex-selling manager than a father.

And last year, Joe introduced Jessica, 27, to Tony Romo, 28, and a romance began. Several months later, they split.

“Apparently [Tony] said it was over, and then Joe and Jessica called him, pleading with him not to end this,” Martin said. “Joe actually said ‘Man, don’t do this!’”

More recently, according to Us Weekly, Joe made an offer that was a bit premature.

“Recently, Joe actually sold the photos to a magazine of Ashlee and Pete [Wentz’s] wedding and apparently, he had offered to Tony that if Tony and Jessica get married, he’ll do the same thing,” Martin said.

Joe, however, refutes the story claiming there are no problems between him and Tony.

“Tony and I were friends a year before Jessica ever met him,” Simpson said in a statement to Access. “I don’t contact Tony, except to congratulate him on a great game, and I certainly never discuss business with him. He and I have golfed together and he, his dad and I spent the weekend together during the Master’s golf tournament. To suggest there’s a problem between us is just false.”

Joe also went on to defend his role as his daughters’ manager.

“It’s also unfair to criticize me for what every manager does for his or her clients,” Joe’s statement continued. “And in this business, where people can quickly turn on you, who better than a parent to be working for his children? A parent will always be there for his kids and never give up on them. I work hard seven days a week for my girls because I love them. Why in the world would I ever want to do anything that would hurt my children?”

Copyright 2009 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.
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