The marriage of the famous actor Kirk Douglas, the star of the golden age of Hollywood, and his second wife Ann Bidens lasted more than 65 years. Their letters to each other are filled with love and gratitude, feiky.net shares the details of this beautiful and touching story.
In 1953, Kirk Douglas was already a star on the screen, the role of a courageous hero and a charismatic criminal won him the adoration of fans around the world. He enjoyed no less success with his fellow actresses, but it was Ann that he called his most difficult woman in life.
At his invitation to a trendy restaurant, she stated that she preferred dinner at home and without him. This was not empty coquetry, the girl did not want to be another victory for the Hollywood handsome man. It took Douglas a whole year to bring her to the altar, according to his confession, the relationship improved only after he began to listen in conversation not to himself, but to Ann.
A smart, talented wife changed a lot in the life of an actor. She was a friend, colleague, the most honest critic, and the main woman in his life. During their parting, many letters were written, full of love and gratitude, which show how much both valued their union. They formed the basis of Ann’s memoir Kirk and Ann: Love Letters, Laughter and Life in Hollywood.
Ann gave her husband two sons, saved his life, and saved him from financial ruin. Four years after the wedding, the actor was going to take a private flight to New York for the Showman of the Year ceremony with colleagues. But the wife that day experienced strange anxiety, she went into a quarrel, but still managed to insist that her husband stays at home.
Just a couple of hours later, the radio announced that the plane had crashed. There were no survivors among the passengers and crew.
Accustomed to handling money freely, Douglas was on the verge of bankruptcy by the time they met. After the wedding, Ann Bidens immediately began to save the situation, she insisted on the competent investment of her husband’s funds, and soon their financial situation improved noticeably.
Throughout his life, the actor and his wife generously donated millions of dollars to charity. They set up funds to help single women, actors with Alzheimer’s disease, and many scholarship funds to educate young people. The couple used their own money to equip hundreds of playgrounds in poor areas and patronized a homeless shelter that once fed aspiring actor Kirk Douglas.
Together they survived the tragic death of their youngest son, a severe stroke of the actor himself, and his wife’s oncology. Until the last days, Kirk Douglas extolled his wife, calling him his soul mate and confessing that her love and support gave him the strength to survive all life’s trials.