Televangelist Jim Bakker, who built the PTL Club empire and was convicted of fraud, dies at 86

Jim Bakker, the televangelist who built a multimillion-dollar ministry around "The PTL Club" with his first wife, Tammy Faye, and was later convicted of defrauding followers, has died at age 86. His second wife, Lori Bakker, said in a statement that he died Monday; the cause of death was not provided, according to PBS NewsHour, NPR and The Jerusalem Post, while The Guardian reported that the death was announced on social media and quoted Lori Bakker as saying he died that evening. Bakker and Lori Bakker lived near Branson, Missouri, where they had taped "The Jim Bakker Show" since its 2003 launch, and he suffered a stroke in 2020, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR.

Bakker was born in Muskegon, Michigan, and met Tammy Faye LaValley at North Central Bible College in Minneapolis, according to PBS NewsHour, NPR and The Jerusalem Post. They married in 1961 and left school to work as traveling evangelists, with him preaching while she sang and played the accordion at churches and tent revivals, the outlets reported. According to The Jerusalem Post, citing Reuters, he was born James Orson Bakker on January 2, 1940, the son of an auto parts factory worker.

The couple came to the attention of televangelist Pat Robertson and launched a children's show on his Christian Broadcasting Network, according to the sources. PBS NewsHour and NPR place that show in 1965; The Jerusalem Post dates it to 1964. By 1966 Bakker was hosting "The 700 Club," a Christian talk show, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR. He left CBN in 1972 and formed the PTL Satellite Network two years later, with "The PTL Club" becoming its signature program, those outlets reported.

At its mid-1980s peak, the ministry drew 13 million nightly viewers, according to all four sources. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that PTL reached 13 million viewers on 200 television stations and took in $129 million a year. PBS NewsHour, NPR, The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post each reported that the Bakkers faced parody and mockery over their lifestyle and Tammy Faye's heavy makeup. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that the operation employed 2,000 people and included the 2,300-acre Heritage USA complex and resort in Fort Mill, South Carolina.

Bakker resigned from the ministry in 1987 after revelations of a sexual encounter with Jessica Hahn, a church clerk or former church secretary, according to the sources. PBS NewsHour reported that Hahn alleged Bakker sexually assaulted her and that Bakker maintained the encounter was consensual, and that he admitted to the encounter in March 1987. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post described an encounter in 1980 and reported a subsequent $265,000 payoff using ministry funds to secure Hahn's silence; The Guardian reported he was later defrocked. PBS NewsHour and NPR reported that Bakker turned the ministry's operations over to pastor and broadcaster Jerry Falwell.

Bakker was indicted in 1988 on mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy charges following an investigation of PTL's finances, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that he was convicted in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1989 after a six-week federal trial on all 24 fraud and conspiracy counts. Prosecutors said he defrauded followers of $158 million through promises of lifetime annual vacations he could not provide and diverted $3.7 million to fund a lifestyle that included homes, luxury cars, fur coats, diamonds, servants and an air-conditioned dog house, according to The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post. Judge Robert Potter told Bakker before sentencing that people who practice a religion were tired of being exploited by money-seeking preachers and priests, those two outlets reported.

Bakker was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison, PBS NewsHour, NPR, The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported. PBS NewsHour and NPR said the sentence was later reduced to eight years, while The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post said only that it was reduced. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that Bakker told the court he had sinned and made mistakes but never intended to defraud anyone, and that his chief aide, Richard Dortch, served 18 months of an eight-year sentence after pleading guilty to reduced charges in exchange for testifying against Bakker. Tammy Faye was never charged, they reported.

Tammy Faye divorced Bakker in 1992 while he was still in prison, just short of their 31st anniversary, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR. She later married building contractor Roe Messner, whose projects included Heritage USA; he was convicted of bankruptcy fraud in 1995 and served about two years in prison, the two outlets reported. She died of colon cancer in 2007, according to all four sources. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that Bakker was released in 1994, renounced the prosperity gospel he had preached and wrote a book titled "I Was Wrong."

After his release, Bakker married Lori in 1998 and launched a television ministry with her in 2003, according to the sources. PBS NewsHour and NPR reported the couple launched "The Jim Bakker Show" on the PTL Satellite Network. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that in 2008 they began taping the program at a 600-acre development called Morningside near Branson. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post also reported that Bakker became a supporter of Donald Trump and said in 2017 that Christians would launch a civil war if Trump were impeached, and that Trump later became the first U.S. president impeached twice.

PBS NewsHour and NPR reported that in June 2021 Bakker and his Morningside Church Productions Inc. settled a lawsuit accusing him of falsely claiming the health supplement Silver Solution could cure COVID-19. The settlement called for $156,000 in refunds to people who paid money or gave contributions to obtain the product early in the pandemic, and the lawsuit said Bakker and a guest made the claim during 11 episodes in February and March 2020, according to those outlets. The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post reported that in 2020 he drew criticism from state and federal officials for selling a false COVID-19 treatment.

Bakker and Tammy Faye had two children, and he and Lori Bakker adopted five children in 2002, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR. A film about the couple's lives, "The Eyes of Tammy Faye," was released in September 2021, according to PBS NewsHour and NPR.

Where sources differ

• PBS NewsHour and NPR report the Bakkers launched a children's show on Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network in 1965, while The Jerusalem Post (reporting for Reuters) dates the show to 1964.
• PBS NewsHour and NPR say "PTL" stood for "Praise the Lord"; The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post say it stood for both "Praise the Lord" and "People That Love."
• PBS NewsHour reports that Jessica Hahn alleged she was sexually assaulted by Bakker and that Bakker maintained the encounter was consensual; The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post describe a sexual encounter and add that $265,000 in ministry funds was paid to secure her silence, details not included in the PBS NewsHour or NPR accounts.
• PBS NewsHour and NPR say Bakker's 45-year sentence was later reduced to eight years; The Guardian and The Jerusalem Post say only that the sentence was later reduced, without giving the revised term.
• The Guardian reports the death was announced on social media and quotes Lori Bakker as saying he died that evening; PBS NewsHour, NPR and The Jerusalem Post say he died Monday. The Jerusalem Post dates the announcement to Monday, October 6, 2026.

• None of the sources establishes the cause or circumstances of Bakker's death; NPR says the cause was not immediately clear, while the others say it was not provided or revealed.
• No source establishes whether Jessica Hahn, Jerry Falwell's organization, the Morningside ministry or family members other than Lori Bakker have commented since the death was announced.
• No source gives the full terms of the 2021 Silver Solution settlement beyond the refund amount, or any response from Bakker or his company to the lawsuit's allegations.
• No source specifies the exact date the children's show on Pat Robertson's network aired, beyond the conflicting 1965 and 1964 dates, or which of PTL's two reported acronym meanings was formally used.
• No source establishes the total number of followers who paid for the vacation promises or the final financial outcome for them beyond the prosecutors' figures.
• The sources do not establish whether Bakker was still active in ministry at the time of his death or the current status of his television program.

1. PBS NewsHour — original — by Jim Salter, Associated Press
2. The Guardian US — by Reuters
3. The Jerusalem Post — by REUTERS
4. NPR News — by The Associated Press

Read the original at PBS NewsHour

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