Biography

Melanie Leis: Where Is Kelly McGillis’ Former Wife Now: What Does She Do?

By Shradhda Gurung | Updated on November 1, 2022
Facts reviewed by Editor at Celebrity Digest
Table of Contents

    Melanie Leis is an ex-celebrity spouse who got famous for once being married to a well-known personality Kelly McGillis, the Top Gun actress. Before Melanie, Kelly had already been married twice.

    While mostly known for her past affiliation with an actress, Melanie is also a reputed name on her own, especially in the field of business. Those who know from a close circle apparently know her as a woman with a very well-known knowledge of the business. She apparently has worked with several different companies.

    So read more about Kelly McGillis’ ex-wife, Melanie, in the headers below including her education and her parents as well as a detailed recounting of Leis’ relationship with actress McGillis; when they started dating to why they separated.

    Who are Melanie Leis’ Parents? Her Early Life 

    Melanie Leis was born in 1967 in the United States. Melanie was born and raised in the States. Her ethnicity is Caucasian and her nationality is American.

    There, however, is very little information about her early life and family. Though, there are reports that say Melanie is the daughter of the late couple, Walter Leis of Old Brookville and Barbara Ix Leis. Leis’ father was a retired Engineer with RCA and was also in the Air Force during WWII.

    She has two younger sisters named Stephanie Leis and Malinda Leis Jones. Besides, Melanie reportedly is quite adept at playing piano, who started her hands around it when at the age of six. She also has a good grasp of playing drums.

    Her Education

    Talking about her education, Melanie completed her schooling at a nearby high school. She later got her graduate degree in music from Berklee College of Music.

    Leis also has an associate degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management from New Bury College.

    What Does Melanie Leis Do At Present? Her Profession And Other Details 

    Kelly McGillis’ ex-wife Melanie Leis now mostly is a sales executive. Meanwhile, the ex-celebrity spouse has also been acting as the vice president of Tappit, a global cashless payment and data ecosystem for live events since July 2021.

    In the past (around the year 2010), Melanie was a regional sales executive in Philadelphia with a company named, Independence Communications.

    Actress Kelly McGillis' ex-spouse, Melanie Leis
    Philadelphia native and sales associate Kelly McGillis

    She also has experience in theater and bartending. Leis additionally is a member of the International Ticketing Association. To say more about her credentials, the ex-wife of McGillis has quite a lot of them actually.

    She has been an employee at various firms ranging from AT&T, Sovereign Bank, Simply Wireless/Mobile Now, Independence Communications, All Covered, Vendini, PD Corp, and others.

    Melanie was once a partner of KPMG- an international working network whose main objective is to extend advisories and business assistance.

    Moreover, Leis has done some aid-related work for Houston Hurricane and Haiti Orphanage.

    Melanie Leis Was Bartending When She Met Her Ex-Wife, Kelly McGillis

    When Leis met actress Kelly, Melanie used to work as a bartender in a restaurant. McGillis happened to be the owner of the restaurant along with her ex-husband Fred Tillman.

    Melanie, however, didn’t care for Kelly’s movie fame. In an interview, she said when she met Kelly she was a newbie in the film knowledge and that it was McGillis’ sense of humor that attracted her.

    Tappit employee, Melanie Leis.
    McGillis’ ex-partner, Melanie. Facebook

    Melanie and her then-partner Kelly were celebrating a colleague’s birthday when they realized they both had feelings for one another. They then soon started dating. After dating for some time, the lovers also moved into an apartment together.

    However, soon after they began their lovey-dovey, the ex-couple fell into bad habits. They both started to drink heavily and do drugs. McGillis and Leis, fortunately, were able to get rid of their addiction.

    Wedding: Melanie And Her Partner Kelly Exchanged Vows In 2010

    Melanie and her wife Kelly married in the year 2010. The same-sex couple tied the knot in a civil ceremony. While Kelly had previously married twice, it was the first ever marriage to Melanie.

    Top Gun actress Kelly McGillis with her former wife, Melanie Leis.
    Kelly and Melanie during their civil union. The New York Times

    Kelly first married Boyd Black in the year 1979. The relationship with Boyd lasted for eight years. Kelly then married Fred Tillman in the year 1989. Kelly has two daughters from her marriage to Fred, Sonora Tillman and Kelsey Tillman.

    However, considering the fact that it was Kelly’s third marriage, it also didn’t work out. The former couple called their marriage off in the year 2011.

    What Was The Reason Behind Melanie and Her Wife Kelly’s Split?

    There haven’t been any official claims about the couple’s split. However, Melanie and Kelly called it off when they both realized that the relationship was no longer working. They realized that they both had different directions to follow and different paths to choose.

    The pair parted ways in 2011. While a detailed reason behind their separation has never come out in the open, McGillis once implied it had something to do with Leis’ behavior.

    In an interview, the actress speaking of her break up with Melanie said that they each had changed and grown at different rates, at different times.

    Is Melanie Leis Dating Someone Else?

    There haven’t been any official claims about each of the former partners’ dating life lately. However, Kelly recently stated that she was very happy being single and enjoying her life with her friends and kids.

    On the other hand, there haven’t been any suchlike reports about Kelly’s ex-wife Melanie.

    Melanie Leis’ Social Media Accounts

    Leis has accounts on Instagram and Facebook. On her Instagram account which goes by @mellleis67, she frequently posts memes and quotes she finds relatable to herself.

    Melanie Leis also posts pictures of herself and her family time and again. She recently posted a picture of her parents whilst expressing her love for them on the occasion of their anniversary.

    Melanie Leis with her friend.
    Kelly’s ex-spouse, Melanie with her friend. Facebook

    On the other hand, her Facebook account goes by her name ‘Melanie Leis.’ There, she posts mostly about global problems. Leis has also mentioned her work history on the account itself.

    Melanie Leis’ Net Worth

    Although Melanie has an impressive work resume, what the brunette has made for herself (in terms of wealth) is quite a brainteaser. Considering she is not as media famous as her ex-partner, there, hardly, has been a pursuit to assess her real net worth.

    Some estimates have, nonetheless, assumed Leis at the very least has some six figures in her bank account. On the other hand, her former partner Kelly McGillis who has had a moderately successful acting career has an estimated net worth of $7.5 million in 2022.

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