# Celebrities who have a surprising spouse or girl/boyfriend **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 20, 2021, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213 "2021-08-20T13:20:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundane_super_hero/32/6304_2.png) [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2021, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/81 "2021-08-21T23:16:10Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I know you were dying to know. No. No I wasn’t. If radar shows a blip, something is probably there but nobody is looking for 8x10 color glossies. I don’t care how many rusty horseshoes he’s shod onto it. I guessed right. ---
**Author:** ![Jungian\_Camisole1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jungian_camisole1/32/3646_2.png) [@Jungian\_Camisole1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jungian_Camisole1)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2021, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/82 "2021-08-21T23:37:06Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > I wouldn’t say he’s obviously handsome, but he’s definitely not ugly. He has a very friendly face, and a lovely voice. I always thought he had the kindest eyes I’d ever seen. I had a crush on him for the longest time just because of the eyes. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2021, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/83 "2021-08-21T23:53:44Z")
If you don’t define “surprising” as “poorly matched” but simply as “an unexpected and rather charming story,” here’s a coupling (or thrupling, sort of) that I’ve always delighted in: Lalla Ward (one of Tom-Baker-as-Dr.-Who’s companions) was briefly married to Tom Baker (which made sense to me; despite the age and beauty gap, they had a certain sexual energy on screen, I always thought). The marriage didn’t last and she married Richard Dawkins. Apparently, the split from Baker was quite amicable and Ward, Baker and Dawkins were good friends. (Ward and Dawkins did split eventually, alas, but it was years later, I believe). I’ve always thought it quite lovely to imagine Dawkins, Baker, and Ward casually sitting around shooting the breeze together. ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/84 "2021-08-22T00:00:11Z")
Kinda looks like Jeb Bush there over Liz’s left shoulder… ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/85 "2021-08-22T04:10:49Z")
Meryl Streep’s daughter, Mamie, is a respected actress in her own right. I’ve thought that punk rocker Richard Hell and pop singer Patty Smyth, who’s now married to John McEnroe, were an…interesting…couple. Their marriage didn’t last very long. BTW, Hell (AKA Lester Myers) and Smyth, when they met, had never heard of each other; she had never followed the punk scene, and he didn’t watch MTV or listen to Top 40 radio. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/86 "2021-08-22T04:13:18Z")
I can. He needed a beard, and Scientology needed money. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/87 "2021-08-22T14:40:44Z")
How about Martha and Snoop? Are they an item or just BFFs? Either way, it’s odd. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/88 "2021-08-22T15:26:54Z")
Richard Hell and Susan Sontag. ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/89 "2021-08-22T15:35:03Z")
I don’t get that. Did an image search, and to me they fit each other very well, even look a bit like each other (like many couples). They both were artists, writers, too. So, I don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/90 "2021-08-22T15:52:00Z")
I thought Susan Sontag’s partner was Annie Leibovitz. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2021, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/91 "2021-08-22T16:46:15Z")
Sontag had a large group of lovers. It’s not clear to me if Richard Hell was one of them. They were certainly friends though. Can anyone find a source claiming that they were lovers? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/92 "2021-08-23T05:29:47Z")
Gay porn star Jack Wrangler and singer Margaret Whiting. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/93 "2021-08-23T09:54:54Z")
> [@Loggins](#): > > Micky Rooney and anyone id say We remember him now as a fat, grumpy jerk known for his deeply offensive role in _Breakfast in Tiffany’s_ but Rooney was, in his youth, handsome, charming and _insanely_ successful as an actor, including Oscar nominations at age 19 and 23. It’s not hard to see the initial appeal. But his eight (mostly quite brief) marriages suggest that he wasn’t, shall we say, the best of husbands. > [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I’ve thought that punk rocker Richard Hell and pop singer Patty Smyth, who’s now married to John McEnroe, were an…interesting…couple. Their marriage didn’t last very long. For a moment I thought you meant singer Patti Smith, who didn’t marry John McEnroe but who did have a torrid relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe before he decided that his inclinations lay elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/94 "2021-08-23T14:27:50Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Can anyone find a source claiming that they were lovers? No proof, but I heard Sontag on a radio interview years ago, and the way she was talking about Richard Hell sure sounded like they were “involved.” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/95 "2021-08-23T15:48:33Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Gay porn star Jack Wrangler and singer Margaret Whiting. I’ve always found that rather odd. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/96 "2021-08-23T19:59:10Z")
Love this thread. Wished I knew who half these people were. > [@Gyrate](#): > > For a moment I thought you meant singer Patti Smith, She was also involved with the keyboard player of Blue Oyster Cult, but that actually makes perfect sense. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/97 "2021-08-23T21:13:02Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > She was also involved with the keyboard player of Blue Oyster Cult, but that actually makes perfect sense. And she was married and has a son with Fred Sonic Smith, one of the guitarists of the famous Detroit proto-punk band the MC5. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2021, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/98 "2021-08-23T21:35:25Z")
And a daughter too. ---
**Author:** ![Magdalenna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/magdalenna/32/6692_2.png) [@Magdalenna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magdalenna)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/99 "2021-08-25T18:16:10Z")
I think they are well matched in level of attractiveness. Clearly I don’t follow celebrity gossip, though, they’ve apparently been together for 20 years and he was on Sex in the City (yeah I’ve never seen that either)? To me he’ll always be Chris in the Morning 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Hoops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoops/32/6408_2.png) [@Hoops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoops)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2021, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213/100 "2021-08-25T19:12:12Z")
Padma Lakshmi and Salman Rushdie > **[Padma Lakshmi on Sex, Salman Rushdie and the End of Her Tempestuous Marriage](https://people.com/celebrity/padma-lakshmi-on-sex-salman-rushdie-and-the-end-of-her-tempestuous-marriage/)** > > 'Top Chef' host Padma Lakshmi reveals how she was swept off her feet by Salman Rushdie and the reason behind their painful split [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-have-a-surprising-spouse-or-girl-boyfriend/949213.md?page=6)