Celebrities and Long Marriages
It’s been said that celebrities change partners more than most people change their socks and that a long-lasting marriage is a rarity in the entertainment world. Over the course of reading articles on entertainers in the acting and music worlds during the last 6 months or so, I’ve come across numerous long-term marriages that put the lie to that contention. Some, like Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach, I already knew about. Others were a big surprise, like Freddy Cannon. Always a memorable singer to me with his hit songs “Palisades Park” and “Action”, I was wondering what Freddy was up to these days.
Freddy Cannon’s marriage is the longest I came across so far, even though I wasn’t able to pinpoint the exact year!
1956 or 57 – In a 2013 interview on Malt Shop Memories Cruise, Freddy Cannon was asked about the highpoint of his life. His reply: “My wife. I’ve been married for 57 years and she’s been behind me all this time. She’s my biggest supporter.” That would make Freddy 16 or 17 at the time he and his wife Jeannette married if he was really born in 1940. Wikipedia says he was born in 1936 based on a census record. In that case he would have been 20 or 21. (Back then, you had to get parental permission to get married under the age of 21.) Whichever it is, Freddy and Jeannette have been married for 67 years as of 2023!
Here are many more long marriages, by decade from the 1960s to the 1990s, as of the date this is posted. (Also note, this list is limited to living people.)
1960 James Darren (d. 2024) & Evy Norlund
1961 Jay & Judy Siegel
1962 Anthony Zerbe & Arnette Jens
1962 Don & Betty Murray
1962 Kent McCord & Cynthia Lee Doty
1962 Neil Sedaka & Leba Strassberg
1963 Frankie Avalon & Kathryn Deibel
1963 Gary U.S. Bonds & Laurie Cedeno
1965 Leslie Uggams & Grahame Pratt
1967 David McCallum & Katherine Carpe
1967 John Kay & Jutta Maue
1967 Terence Hill & Lori Zwicklbauer
1968 Scott Glenn & Elizabeth Schwartz
1968 Mark Slade & Melinda Marie Riccilli
1968 Shani Wallis & Bernie Rich
1969 Billy Davis, Jr. & Marilyn McCoo
1969 Christopher & Georgianne Walken
1970 Billy & Janice Crystal
1970 Donovan & Linda Lawrence
1971 George & Norma Strait
1973 Gary Morgan & Suzy Madigan
1973 Herb Alpert & Lani Hall
1973 Michael Caine & Shakira Baksh
1974 Sissy Spacek & Jack Fisk
1975 Cherry Boone & Dan O’Neill
1975 Marlon Jackson & Carol Parker
1975 Ron & Cheryl Howard
1975 Tommy & Shelby Chong
1977 Jeff Bridges & Susan Geston
1977 Chris Franz & Tina Weymouth
1978 Donny & Debbie Osmond
1978 Mark Hamill & Marilou York
1979 Alan & Denise Jackson
1979 Brenda Scott & Dean Hargrove
1979 Debby Boone & Gabriel Ferrer
1979 Duane Eddy & Diane “Deed” Abbate
1979 Mamie Van Doren & Thomas Dixon
1979 Meryl Streep & Don Gummer
1980 Dustin Hoffman & Lisa Gottsegen
1980 Jay Leno & Mavis Nicholson
1980 Lou & Carla Ferrigno
1980 Lee Horsley & Stephanie Downer
1980 Samuel L. Jackson & LaTanya Richardson
1981 Ringo Starr & Barbara Bach
1982 Bono & Alison Hewson
1982 Chevy Chase & Jayni Luke
1982 Ozzy & Sharon Osbourne
1982 Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo
1982 Steven & Maureen Van Zandt
1982 Sting & Trudie Styler
1983 Denzel Washington & Pauletta Pearson
1983 Ed Harris & Amy Madigan
1983 Giancarlo Giannini & Eurilla Bono
1983 Kris Kristofferson & Lisa Marie Meyers
1984 Beau Bridges & Wendy Treece
1984 Jamie Lee Curtis & Christopher Guest
1984 Sam Elliot & Katharine Ross
1984 Sylvie Vartan & Tony Scotti
1984 Toby Keith & Tricia Lucus
1985 Linda Boone & Mike Michaelis
1985 Mitch Vogel & Christine Gilles
1986 Stacy Keach & Malgosia Tomassi
1987 Bill Pullman & Tamara Hurwitz
1987 Julia Louis-Dreyfus & Brad Hall
1987 Mark Harmon & Pam Dawber
1987 Tom Selleck & Jillie Mack
1988 Genie Francis & Jonathan Frakes
1988 Kevin Bacon & Kyra Sedgwick
1988 Michael J. Fox & Tracy Pollan
1988 Tom Hanks & Rita Wilson
1988 Wayne Gretzky & Janet Jones
1989 Bryan Cranston & Robin Dearden
1989 Kevin Kline & Phoebe Cates
1989 Pat Sajak & Lesly Brown
1991 Barbara Eden & Jon Eicholtz
1991 Bruce Springsteen & Patti Scialfa
1991 Cyndi Lauper & David Thornton
1991 Rob Lowe & Sheryl Berkoff
1991 Steve & Mary Ann Carlson
1991 Steven Spielberg & Kate Capshaw
1992 Annette Bening & Warren Beatty
1992 Gabrielle Carteris & Charles Isaacs
1992 Connie Sellecca & John Tesh
1993 Michelle Pfeiffer & David E. Kelley
1993 Spike Lee & Tonya Lewis
1994 Harry Connick Jr. & Jill Goodacre
1994 Joanna Gleason & Chris Sarandon
1994 Richard Thomas & Georgiana Bischoff
1995 Lisa Kudrow & Michel Stern
1995 Steve Carell & Nancy Carell
1995 Ted Danson & Mary Steenburgen
1996 Joel McHale & Sarah Williams
1996 Hugh Jackman & Deborra-Lee Furness
1996 Kelly Ripa & Mark Consuelos
1996 Tim McGraw & Faith Hill
1997 Angela Bassett & Courtney B. Vance
1997 Marty Stuart & Connie Smith
1997 Helen Mirren & Taylor Hackford
1997 Leslie Mann & Judd Apatow
1997 Snoop Dogg & Shante Broadus
1997 William H. Macy & Felicity Huffman
1998 Fabian Forte & Andrea Patrick
1998 Barbra Streisand & James Brolin
1998 Cindy Crawford & Rande Gerber
1998 Talia Balsam & John Slattery
1999 Jerry Seinfeld & Jessica Sklar
1999 Manny & Jinkee Pacquiao
Contributions:
from Jacob:
1966 Dolly Parton & Carl Dean
1966 Eric Braeden & Dale Russell
1987 Ralph Macchio & Phyllis Fierro
From Rhonda:
1974 Susan Seaforth & Bill Hayes
1978 Henry & Stacy Winkler
1983 Keith Richards & Patti Hansen
1989 Jon Bon Jovi & Dorothea Hurley
VJ, Fantastic work on listing celebrities and long marriages. One of my favorite TV actors and his wife are missing. Eric Braeden and his wife Dale are missing. Eric used to star in Rat Patrol and now the Young & Restless. He has reported that he has cancer but he is still alive as of this posting and still acting.
The one that really shocked me was Tom Jones and how long he had been married when his wife died a few years ago. You never know right? I realize your list is restricted to both parties still being alive but that was a shocker. Some celebrities are good at keeping their private lives private. Ralph Macchio is another one that pops into my head. Aren’t both parties still alive?
Thanks so much for the compliment, Jacob. I’ve been collecting these for a while now and it’s been a trip, to say the least! And thank you so much for your contributions. I added them at the end of the list — giving you the credit you deserve. I’m shocked I didn’t get Eric Braeden. I’ve seen him in various shows over the years. OMG! He is most memorable to me as a crazy villain in “Gunsmoke”. So sorry to hear about his diagnosis.
I didn’t know about Ralph Macchio either. As for Tom Jones, I guess I’d have to include him if his wife was still alive but I think that was pretty much a marriage in name only. Tom freely admitted to unrivaled promiscuity and he also had a serious affair (she thought anyway) with Mary Wilson of The Supremes.
VJ, I’m almost convinced we are twins separated at birth. Thank you for such an interesting topic. My better half and I have long been interested in this topic. She keeps the list though. 😂
Celebrities get no coverage on staying married because bad news sells. Think about Dolly Parton. I think it’s been almost 60 years for her marriage. No kudos from the media for her either. Yikes.
I thought about Dolly, Jacob, but I forgot to look her up. Last news I saw was that her husband has Alzheimer’s. You’re right about bad news though — bad news and scandal! The public loves it., Also, the MSM rarely covers entertainment figures who aren’t considered big celebrities.
VJ, I second Jacob’s compliment, thanks so much for doing this fun article, you always do such a wonderful job no matter what topic you choose. I love Eric Braeden, too. I know he’s had a long career but I only know his work from watching Y&R. He is being treated for prostate cancer and he said that he is going to continue on the show while he is undergoing treatment, as he loves his work and his fans. He had a knee replacement last winter and that’s when they diagnosed his cancer.
Thanks, Rhonda. I’m glad you enjoyed the post. Here’s a picture of Eric Braeden from “Jaekel”, the Gunsmoke episode I referred to. Carl Jaekel was his character and he was a very bad boy!
Thanks so much for the picture, VJ, he was quite handsome back then and still looks great for 83! I guess he’s always liked playing a bad boy! Victor Newman will not allow anyone to mess with him or his family lol.
Rhonda, Nice find. I forgot about those two.
Thanks, Jacob. I’ve always loved “Doug and Julie”.
Rhonda, Isn’t VJ the greatest? I love how her brain works. VJ, Thanks for the picture of Eric Braeden. I always considered him a great actor. The guy is Mr. Cool. Also, Thanks for pulling this information together. Fantastic work on your part. 👏👏
Awww! You’re making me blush now, Jacob. Anyway, this is going to be an ongoing list. I will keep adding couples as I come across more long marriages.
Yes, Jacob, VJ is indeed the greatest!! We are so lucky to have her!!
VJ, what do you think about adding Susan Seaforth Hayes and Doug Hayes from DOOL to your list?
Oops, that should be Bill Hayes, sorry about that VJ, Doug is his character’s name on the show. And he is still going at 97!!
Great find, Rhonda. I added them. I wanted to add Robert S. Woods aka Bo Buchanan and Loyita Chapel but it says they got married twice so I’ll have to find out the year of the most recent marriage for them.
Thanks so much for adding them, VJ! Robert Woods, my goodness, I miss OLTL so much still. Good old Bo Buchanan, I remember when Snoop Dogg was on, an old buddy of Bo’s lol.
Unbelievable as it may seem, after I watched the Masters last night, I put on an episode of The Virginian and who should be in it but Eric Braeden! He was still going by his birth name then– Hans Gudegast.
That’s so uncanny, VJ! On a more morbid note, I happened to google the author Martin Amis on Sunday because I had read there is a movie adaptation coming out of one of his books. Then that evening, they announced that he had died. Yikes.
Wow, Rhonda, how sad that he didn’t live to see the film.
Yes, VJ, it really is sad, the film had just premiered at Cannes.
VJ, I came up with Henry Winkler, Keith Richards and Bon Jovi, what do you think?
Rhonda, Great ones. I always admired Bon Jovi for his maturity and giving back to his community. Always a good family man.
Awesome, Rhonda! I added them to our growing list. 😁
Thanks, guys!