8 celebrities with the most marriages (bet you can’t guess who’s #1!)

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Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor

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‘I do … again’

They say love knows no bounds, but for some celebrities, it seems that the same can be said for marriage. While some people vow to spend the rest of their lives with just one partner, these celebrities have shown us that they’re not afraid to take a chance on love over and over again

We looked through the biography pages of Hollywood’s most famous names to compile a list of the stars who said “I do” more than most.

From Elizabeth Taylor to Mickey Rooney, here are eight celebrities who have taken multiple walks down the aisle.

8. James Cameron: 5 marriages

James Cameron

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Acclaimed director James Cameron is known for his blockbuster films, but his personal life has also made headlines over the years. Cameron has been marriedfive times, with his first marriage to Sharon Williams in 1978 ending in divorce in 1984. After ending his marriage with Sharon Williams, Cameron wasted no time saying “I do” again. He tied the knot with his film producer collaborator Gale Anne Hurd in the same year, only to divorce in 1989. Cameron then exchanged vows with director Kathryn Bigelow in 1989, but their marriage ended in a divorce two years later. It wasn’t long until he found love again with Linda Hamilton, who played the lead in his iconic “Terminator” series. They welcomed a daughter together in 1993 and eventually got married in 1997. However, their marriage was on shaky ground amidst rumors of an affair with actress Suzy Amis. After only two years, Hamilton walked away with a hefty $50 million settlement. Cameron and Amis eventually got married in 2000, making her his fifth wife. They share three children together.

7. Tied: Hedy Lamarr: 6 marriages

Hedy Lamarr

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Golden Age Hollywood actress Hedy Lamarr captivated audiences with her beauty and talent on the silver screen, but her personal life was just as fascinating. The Austrian-born starlet was married six times, with her first marriage to wealthy Austrian munitions manufacturer Fritz Mandl in 1933, which ended in divorce in 1937. After fleeing to America to escape her controlling husband, Lamarr pursued her acting career and married screenwriter Gene Markey in 1939, with whom she had a son. She went on to marry actor John Loder in 1943, followed by oil tycoon Howard Lee in 1953, nightclub owner Ted Stauffer in 1957, and finally, her divorce lawyer attorney Lewis J. Boies in 1963. After her divorce in 1965, Lamarr remained unmarried for the last 35 years of her life.

7. Tied: Richard Pryor: 7 marriages

richard pryor

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Comedian and actor Richard Pryor was married seven times throughout his life, with his first marriage to Patricia Price lasting from 1960 to 1961. He went on to marry Shelley Bonus in 1967, but they divorced just one year later. Pryor’s third marriage, to Deborah McGuire, lasted from 1977 to 1978, while his fourth marriage, to actress Jennifer Lee, lasted from 1981 to 1982. In 1986, Pryor married Flynn Belaine, with whom he had a son, but they divorced in 1987, then remarried in 1990, and divorced again in 1991. His sixth and final marriage, to Jennifer Lee, whom he remarried in 2001, lasted until his death in 2005.

7. Tied: Jerry Lee Lewis: 7 marriages

Jerry_Lee_Lewis_1950s

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Jerry Lee Lewis, the legendary rock and roll artist known as “The Killer,” had a life and career that were as turbulent as they were prolific. One aspect of his personal life that captured the public’s attention was his seven marriages. His first marriage to Dorothy Barton ended in divorce after a year. He then married Jane Mitcham and they were together for four years. In 1957, he married his 13-year-old cousin, Myra Gale Brown, which led to him being blacklisted from radio and television. They were married for 13 years before divorcing. Lewis went on to marry Jaren Elizabeth Gunn Pate, Shawn Stephens, and Kerrie McCarver, the latter of whom he was married to for 21 years before their divorce in 2005. Jerry Lee Lewis tied the knot for the seventh time with Judith Lewis (formerly Brown, and coincidentally, the ex-wife of Myra Gale Brown’s brother) on March 9, 2012, and they remained married until Lewis’s passing in 2022.

4. Mickey Rooney: 8 marriages

Mickey Rooney

Mickey Rooney was married a total of eight times throughout his life. His first marriage was to Ava Gardner in 1942, which lasted only a year. He then went on to marry Betty Jane Rase in 1944, and they had two children together before their divorce in 1949.

Rooney’s third marriage was to Martha Vickers in 1949, but they divorced just two years later. He then married Elaine Devry in 1952, but they also divorced in 1958. Rooney then married Barbara Ann Thomason in 1958, and they had four children together before her tragic death in 1966.

After Thomason’s death, Rooney married Marge Lane in 1966, but they divorced in 1967. He then went on to marry Carolyn Hockett in 1969, and they had one child together before their divorce in 1975. Rooney’s final marriage was to Jan Chamberlin in 1978, which lasted until 2012.

3. Lana Turner: 8 marriages

Lana Turner

Wikipedia

The silver screen siren, whose captivating beauty and undeniable talent left an indelible mark on the golden age of Hollywood, led a life marked by tumultuous relationships and numerous scandals.

Throughout her lifetime, Lana Turner said “I do” a total of seven times, with one of her marriages being to the same man twice. Her first marriage to Artie Shaw ended quickly, lasting just a few months. Turner then married Steve Crane, but their marriage was annulled due to his unresolved divorce. They later remarried and then divorced after only a year. She went on to marry Bob Topping and Lex Barker, with both marriages lasting approximately four years each. Her sixth husband, Robert Eaton, proved to be her longest-lasting marriage, with the couple remaining together for four years. However, her marriages to Fred May and Ronald Pellar were both brief, lasting less than two and three years, respectively.

2. Elizabeth Taylor: 8 marriages

Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor

Wikipedia

The legendary actress and Hollywood icon, was known not only for her immense talent but also for her many high-profile marriages. Over the course of her life, Taylor was married a total of eight times, each marriage capturing the attention of the media and the public.

Taylor’s first marriage was to hotel heir Conrad Hilton Jr. in 1950, which lasted only eight months. She then went on to marry actor Michael Wilding in 1952, with whom she had two children. After their divorce in 1957, Taylor was three months pregnant when she wed film producer Mike Todd, whom she called the love of her life. However, Todd tragically died in a plane crash just a year later.   Taylor found solace in the arms of her Eddie Fisher while he was still married to actress Debbie Reynolds. Taylor and Fisher tied the knot in 1959.

Taylor famously began an affair with actor Richard Burton while filming “Cleopatra.” They were both married at the time, but eventually divorced their respective spouses and married each other in 1964. The couple went on to star in numerous films together and had a tumultuous relationship that was highly publicized in the media. They divorced in 1974, remarried in 1975, and divorced again in 1976.

Taylor then married politician John Warner in 1976, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1982. She went on to wed construction worker Larry Fortensky in 1991, in a highly publicized ceremony held at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. However, the marriage ultimately ended in divorce in 1996.

1. Zsa Zsa Gabor: 9 marriages

Zsa Zsa Gabor

The Hungarian-born actress known for her glamorous lifestyle and larger-than-life persona, was married a total of nine times throughout her life. Her first marriage was to Burhan Belge, a Turkish diplomat, in 1937, but the union was short-lived.

Gabor went on to marry Conrad Hilton, the hotel magnate and great-grandfather of Paris Hilton, in 1942. Their union produced one child, Francesca Hilton, but ended in divorce just five years later. She then married actor George Sanders in 1949, followed by businessman Herbert Hutner and then in 1962 she tied the knot with Joshua S. Cosden Jr. In 1975 Gabor wed the designer of the Barbie doll Jack Ryan whom she divorced one year later.

She went on to marry Michael O’Hara, in 1976 and the couple remained together for nearly a decade.

Gabor’s final marriages were to Felipe de Alba, a Mexican actor, and Frédéric Prinz von Anhalt, a German-born socialite. Her marriage to de Alba was annulled after just one day when it was discovered that Gabor was still legally married to Michael O’Hara. Her marriage to von Anhalt lasted for over 30 years, until her death in 2016 at the age of 99. The ninth time’s the charm, right?

This article was produced and syndicated by MediaFeed.

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Alex Andonovska

Alex Andonovska is a staff writer at Cheapism and MediaFeed, based in Porto, Portugal. With 12 years of writing and editing at places like TheVintageNews.com, she’s your go-to for all things travel, food, and lifestyle. Alex specializes in turning “shower thoughts” into well-researched articles and sharing fun facts that are mostly useless but sure to bring a smile to your face. When she's not working, you'll find her exploring second-hand shops, antique stores, and flea markets.