Don Diamont has spent decades playing complicated romances on daytime television.

But one of the most talked-about relationships of his own life happened long before he became a familiar face on The Bold and the Beautiful — and involved a woman who was already well known when they met.

In a rare reflection on his past, Diamont opened up about his relationship with actress and singer Gloria Loring, remembering a romance that began when he was still a young man trying to find his footing in Hollywood.

The relationship drew attention in part because of the age difference between them. Loring was older, more established and already had children, while Diamont was still early in his career.

Years later, however, he does not describe the relationship as something he regrets.

Instead, he remembers it as a meaningful chapter that helped shape the person he became.

They Met Before Diamont Became a Major Soap Star

Diamont, now one of daytime television’s most recognizable leading men, was still building his career when he became involved with Loring.

She was already known to television audiences, particularly for her work on Days of Our Lives, where she played Liz Chandler.

Loring was also a singer and had a public life that extended well beyond daytime television.

By comparison, Diamont was younger and less established.

That imbalance in age and experience became one of the defining features of how outsiders viewed the relationship.

According to PEOPLE, Diamont recently acknowledged that the romance attracted attention because of the age gap, but his own memories of the relationship are much more personal than the headlines surrounding it.

He has described Loring warmly and made clear that he still has affection for that period of his life.

The Age Difference Was Impossible to Ignore

Celebrity relationships with a noticeable age gap often become reduced to a number.

That happened with Diamont and Loring as well.

She was more than a decade older than he was, and because Diamont was still relatively young, the difference was especially visible at the time.

But he has suggested that what mattered inside the relationship was not the number itself.

He has spoken about Loring as someone who was supportive, intelligent and influential in his life.

For a young actor trying to navigate Hollywood, being involved with someone who already understood the industry could bring both comfort and perspective.

That does not mean the relationship was simple.

Loring had already lived through experiences Diamont had not yet reached. She had children and an established career, and the two were at very different stages of adulthood.

Still, the relationship lasted long enough to become a meaningful part of both of their histories.

Loring Had Already Been Married to Alan Thicke

One reason the romance attracted additional attention was Loring’s own famous past.

Before her relationship with Diamont, she had been married to actor and television personality Alan Thicke.

The two married in 1970 and had two sons, Brennan and Robin Thicke, before divorcing in 1984.

That meant Diamont was entering not simply a relationship with an older woman, but with someone who already had a family and a public history.

Robin Thicke would later become famous in his own right as a singer.

For Diamont, that period of his life therefore placed him inside a household that was already connected to entertainment in multiple ways.

He was not yet the seasoned soap star viewers know today.

He was the younger man in a relationship with someone who had already experienced marriage, motherhood and fame.

He Says the Relationship Helped Him Grow

What stands out in Diamont’s recent comments is the absence of bitterness.

He does not frame the romance as a mistake or as something he wishes had never happened.

Instead, he appears to view it as part of his development.

Relationships that begin when one person is very young can leave a lasting mark, particularly when the other partner has more life experience.

In Diamont’s case, he has credited Loring with helping him mature and understand himself better.

That perspective becomes more understandable when looking at what happened next in his career.

Not long after that period, Diamont began establishing himself more firmly in daytime television.

He joined The Young and the Restless as Brad Carlton, a role that would make him widely known to soap audiences.

His career then expanded into The Bold and the Beautiful, where he became Bill Spencer Jr., another major character defined by romance, family conflict and ambition.

The young actor who once stood beside a more famous partner eventually became a daytime star himself.

Their Relationship Did Not Last Forever

Diamont and Loring ultimately went their separate ways.

Like many relationships formed during periods of major personal change, theirs did not become permanent.

But the fact that it ended does not seem to have erased the affection Diamont still feels when discussing it.

That is perhaps what makes his comments unusual.

Celebrity retrospectives often focus on scandal, betrayal or regret.

Diamont’s account is quieter.

He seems to recognize that people can play important roles in each other’s lives even if they are not meant to remain together forever.

The romance happened at a formative time.

It helped shape him.

Then both people moved on.

Diamont Eventually Built a Large Family of His Own

In the decades since his relationship with Loring, Diamont’s personal life has changed enormously.

He later married Rachel Braun, with whom he had children, and after their divorce, he married actress Cindy Ambuehl.

Diamont has spoken frequently about the importance of family and fatherhood, and his life today looks very different from the one he was living when he first met Loring.

That distance may be one reason he can now discuss the relationship with perspective.

What once seemed dramatic — an age gap, an established older partner, a young actor trying to build a career — has become one chapter in a much longer life.

It no longer needs to be defined solely by controversy.

A Relationship Remembered With Affection

For longtime soap fans, the revelation offers a glimpse at a much younger Don Diamont before Brad Carlton or Bill Spencer Jr. made him famous.

It also complicates the usual way celebrity romances are remembered.

The relationship with Loring was notable because of the age gap.

It was notable because she was already famous.

It was notable because she had previously been married to Alan Thicke and was raising children.

But for Diamont, those are not the only details that matter.

He remembers the person.

He remembers what he learned.

And he remembers the relationship as part of the road that led him into adulthood.

Decades later, that may be the most revealing part of his reflection.

The romance did not last forever.

The impact did.