After nearly two decades of sharing everything from children to court documents, Duane "Dog" Chapman married his longtime love Beth Smith on May 20 at the Hilton Waikoloa Village Resort & Spa. But it wasn't without the kind of drama that makes for riveting reality TV.

Dog's daughter, Barbara, was killed in a car accident in Alaska the day before the wedding, sending the couple into a spiral of emotion.

While Dog and Beth thought briefly about postponing the wedding to mourn her, they decided to celebrate her life instead.

The wedding will be part of a special airing today on A&E, cementing the union between two strong-willed characters after 16 years, two children and the couple's rise to fame as "bounty hunters" who run a Honolulu-based bail bonds business.

"I think that moment brought us closer to our children and to each other," said Beth Chapman from the family's home in Portlock. "It brought our family to be more united than ever before."

Beth had to break the news of his daughter's death to her husband the morning of their wedding. "He was just crushed and devastated," she said. But Dog gathered his children and told them that keeping the family together was the most important thing to him.

"He told them that kind of blood the Chapmans have don't run away," Beth Chapman said. "We're going forward with this wedding in celebration of her life and our life as a family." On the advice of Rev. Tim Story, who officiated the wedding, the couple stuck to their plans, exchanging vows in front of about 200 guests. The two-hour show documents their path to the altar, complete with tuxedo fittings, bridal showers and — naturally — a fugitive to capture.

"It takes you through every emotion you could have," Beth Chapman said. "You'll be sitting on the edge of your seat ... then 10 minutes later something tragic has happened ... then five minutes later you're joyous because everything is working out."

Reach Catherine E. Toth at ctoth@honoluluadvertiser.com.