The news about the death of Phil Donahue was shocking to many people. What was not shocking, however, is the fact that he had his faithful wife by him through even the difficult last days.
Marlo Thomas was happy to live as a single woman and she really didn’t have an interest in getting married. When she met Phil Donahue, however, she would eventually fall in love and her life would be changed forever.
Since that time, they have lasted through a 45-year marriage and they were able to make it work beautifully. Unfortunately, Donahue recently passed away at the age of 88 after struggling with a long illness. It left Marlo devastated.
In the book that Marlo Thomas and Phil Donahue put together, “What Makes a Marriage Last: 40 Celebrity Couples Share with Us the Secrets”, they talk about their own marriage. It was then that she admitted that when she was a young girl, she didn’t want anything to do with marriage.
It wasn’t necessarily that she disagreed with matrimony, she just said that marriage didn’t leave enough room for her personally. She was against it and would even respond strongly when she got in a discussion.
Thomas said that being married was like living with the jailer and having to please them. She also said: “Marriage is like a vacuum cleaner: you stick it to your ear, and it sucks out all your energy and ambition.”
Obviously, she did not agree with being married.
Despite all of that, she found the love of her life in Phil Donahue. Up until the time when he breathed his last, they were together.
The family broke the news about his passing. They said that Phil Donahue died Sunday night at home surrounded by his wife of 44 years Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren, and his beloved golden retriever Charlie.
The family also decided they wouldn’t give any details about why he died. They requested that donations be sent to either the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund or the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital instead of sending flowers.
When Thomas was on his talk show in 1977 while on a movie set, she said that they clicked. It was said: “It was very obvious that we were very attracted to each other. I just loved his confidence. He knew what he was doing.”
She said that it was love at first sight and was physically attracted to him with his white hair and blue eyes. After her job was done, she moved on to another city.
Donahue decided to pursue a relationship and reached out to her. He paid a visit to Denver, and they had dinner. That was when the relationship really started to grow.
Three years later in 1980, they were married in a small gathering with their family. There were about 35 people present. Many people who knew Thomas couldn’t believe that she got married.
The person who was most surprised that she got married was her mother. She kept on asking him: “How did you get her to do this?” At the wedding.
Over the years, they went through good times and bad times, just like any other couple. One relative even said that they weren’t married because they were not living in the same city all of the time.
Thomas had difficulty adjusting to her new life. “I was worried that they might be too overwhelmed by the steaminess in the other room,” she said. Donahue also had to adjust to having meals with the children.
In 2020, 40 years of marriage were celebrated. Donahue said that most people were too focused on divorced couples so they didn’t get all that much attention.
He also said that lasting marriages were “strengthened by trust.” Thomas said that it wasn’t just about trusting that you wouldn’t face betrayal but “You build trust when you realize that this person always has your back.”
We know that she is going to be going through a difficult time. We wish her peace.