Margie Willett gained fame as the first wife of Dick Van Dyke. Dyke is an iconic American actor, comedian, and entertainer. She died in 2008 at the age of 81 after suffering from pancreatic Cancer. The celebrity wife was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. She spent a year with this disease. Margie had an introverted personality and did not like the media at all. She always kept her children and family away from paparazzi. Her marriage to Dick Van Dyke spanned over three decades, and they had four children. Dyke is a famous American actor, producer, writer, and comedian. After 36 years of her marriage, she got divorced due to reasons of adultery.
What Is Known About Her Early Life?
She was born in Danville, Illinois, United States of America in 1927. She was an American citizen of white ethnicity. Dick is an American comedian, actor, writer and producer. She follows the Christian religion. Her height was 5 feet 4 inches, and she weighed around 55 kilograms. Margie had brown eyes and white/grey hair.
Margie Willett was a private person. She avoided the public and never revealed details about her life. The celebrity wife kept her life and children away from the paparazzi. Even after marrying one of Hollywood’s most prominent personalities, she successfully kept life away from the limelight.
What Do We Know About Her Family?
The lady grabbed quite some attention when she got married to Dick Van Dyke. He is a famous American actor, comedian, producer, and writer. His career has crossed six decades.
Before her marriage, she was just an American citizen. She did not have any connection to Hollywood. The lady is famous only because of her husband and later, of course, for her son Berry. Both these males in her life are well-known Hollywood actors. The celebrity couple tied the knot back in 1948 on February 12.
During the initial years of their marriage, as Dick Van Dyke once mentioned in an interview, Margie had a miscarriage and lost twins. However, a few years later, they were blessed with four children: two daughters named Carrie and Stacy and two sons named Berry and Christian.
Berry Van Dyke, the couple’s younger son, always follows in his father’s footsteps. The young man decided to become an actor. He is famous for his role in Diagnosis Murder. The celebrity wife has ten grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
How Did She Meet Her Husband?
The couple met in Danville in 1947. After a month of dating, the two of them got engaged and moved to Los Angeles, California. This is where the couple tied the knot. They exchanged their vows on 12 February 1948.
It was incredible to think about how they found a way to make their wedding happen. Considering the financial situation of the Hollywood stars at the time, this was a dream come true for them. It happened during a live broadcast show called Bride and Groom on ABC Radio. At the time, both of them were too broke. So, the producer of the radio show offered to cover the wedding expenses. He even gave them a honeymoon ticket. So, they had their honeymoon and tickets sponsored by the same show.
Before the celebrity rose to fame, the Hollywood star Dick struggled financially. He could not even afford to buy a house. As a result of this, he and his then-wife Margie had to spend several months living in their car.
What Was The Reason For Margie’s Divorce?
Margie and Dick Dyke’s marriage lasted for 36 years before they got divorced. It was due to reasons of adultery. The actor was engaged in an extramarital affair with his general secretary, Michelle Triola. Both kept their relationship private. It remained under the wraps until Dick was upset with shame. After some years of being involved with his secretary, he admitted it to his wife in 1976. An affair can put anxiety in relationships and lead to difficult decisions. The couple finally decided to get divorced on 4 May 1984.
After the divorce, Margie did not get married. But Dick Van Dyke moved on after his divorce with his first wife. He then married Michelle Triola. Later, the star got married a third time. This time, he married a make-up artist, Arlene Silver.
How Many Children Did She Have?
The ex-couple had four children: two daughters and two sons. Earlier in her marriage, she suffered a pregnancy loss. The couple lost twins in this.
Her oldest son, Christian, was born on 13 May 1950. He started his career as an actor on the Van Dyke Show. However, he later transitioned into practising law. Currently, he is married to Caroline Heller, and they have two children, a boy and a girl.
Her second son, Barry, was born on 31 July 1951. He followed in his father’s footsteps and decided to become a Hollywood actor. The celebrity son is best known for his roles in Heavenly Deposit, Diagnosis Murder, and Remington Steele. The actor is married to Mary Carey, and they have four children.
Willet and Van Dyke’s third child, Stacy Van Dyke was born in 1955. She is a former actress. The daughter of the Van Dyke couple has been featured in several films and TV series. These include The New Dick Van Dyke Show and Diagnosis Murder: Town Without Pity. Stacy is married to Mike Breen, and they share two children.
Her youngest child is Carrie Beth. She was born on 27 August 1972. The youngest daughter of Willet is married to Kevin McNally, and they share two kids.
What Is Her Net Worth?
Willett did not have a specific profession of her own while she was alive. She was well-known as the wife of the famous American actor. The celebrity never had any specific known professional identity for her.
Sometimes, people become well-known because of their association. So, it is quite difficult to tell her net worth. However, her ex-husband had a net worth estimated to be 50 million dollars. She was diagnosed with pancreatic Cancer in 2007 and had spent one year with her illness. Later, she died in 2008.
Conclusion
As we conclude, the late Margie Willett is a very private and introverted person. She came into the limelight when she was married to famous American actor, writer, comedian, and producer Dick Van Dyke. Later, the couple had a divorce and the Hollywood star married twice after that. Willet never married again. She spent the happiest life with her husband and shares four children with him. After her divorce, she suffered from pancreatic Cancer and died in 2008.
Also read:
