Dick Van Dyke’s ex-wife Margie Willett, Biography, Career, Age Nationality, Children, Wiki

Jeevy Lamii
7 Min Read

Dick Van Dyke’s ex-wife Margie Willett, Biography, Career, Age Nationality, Children, Wiki: Margie Willett was a famous person in the United States. She was best known as the ex-wife of the famous American actor Dick Van Dyke. She was born and raised in Illinois, where she met Van Dyke. They dated for about a month before getting engaged.

The wedding took place in Los Angeles in 1948. Before Van Dyke became famous and rich, they didn’t even have enough money to pay for their wedding. A kind radio producer, on whose show they agreed to get married, paid for their wedding and honeymoon. Before her husband became famous, life was very hard for the new couple. At one point, they were both addicted, and they both went to the same rehab center to get help.

Margie Willet didn’t like show business very much, so she tried to stay out of the spotlight. In 1984, after more than three and a half decades of marriage and four children, they split up. The reason they broke up was that Van Dyke cheated on her. She never got married again after her divorce, and she died of pancreatic cancer in 2008.

Wikipedia Summary

  • Date of birth: 1927
  • Year of death: 2008
  • Age at the time of death: 81
  • Place of birth: Danville, Illinois, the USA
  • Children: 4
  • Cause of death: pancreatic cancer

Margie Willett Career

Career-wise, Margie Willett did not make any public announcements to the press. She has kept the media and the internet in the dark about most of her private life. While she had a lot of notable accomplishments, she is most known as the ex-wife of American actor Dick Van Dyke.


In contrast, her spouse was an actor who achieved great success. Way back in 1940, he was a DJ on WDAN in Danville, Illinois, USA. He was also talented at stand-up comedy when he was younger.
After much persistence, he was cast in the 1959 Broadway production of The Girls Against the Boys. Then, after tying the knot with Margie Willett, he remained steadfast in his professional pursuits.

Dick Van Dyke’s marriage to Margie Willett

Margie and Dick Van Dyke allegedly met in high school in Danville, Illinois, where Dick Van Dyke had attended. According to Dick, Margie had a crush on another kid who was much stronger and bigger than he was and participated in sports like football and wrestling.


Even while Dick refused to name the student, he did add that ever since Margie abandoned his football and wrestling friend, he had to be on the lookout for potential fights.
The lovers packed up and headed to the City of Angels. They tied the knot on a local radio broadcast called “Bride and Groom” on February 12, 1948.


In addition, Margie Willett and Dick Van Dyke were unable to afford a wedding ceremony and reception. For this reason, the “Bride and Groom” show’s producer, who had previously struck a contract with the couple, contributed to the cost of the wedding.
Over fifteen million people watched the live broadcast of their wedding. The same producer even forked out the cash for their honeymoon!


Whatever the reason, Margie and Dick Van Dyke split up in 1976 after Dick began having sexual relations with other women. This ultimately led to Margie and Dick Van Dyke breaking up. It all came to an end on May 4, 1984, and they were no longer a married couple. Margie and Dick’s relationship and life together were exciting and full of adventure until the end.


During Dicks’ early years in the film industry, the Dicks family lived in a Malibu duplex.Margie became pregnant with twins while they were together, but she tragically gave birth to stillborn infants.
Dick claims that he and Margie lost their Malibu apartment because they failed to pay their rent while they were both receiving medical care at separate hospitals. They accomplished this goal, at least temporarily, by settling into a van.

How many marriages has Dick Van Dyke had?

Three distinct women have been in a relationship with Van Dyke. He only married two of them. After his divorce from his first wife, he remained unmarried for some time. Eventually, he began dating Michelle Triola Marvin. 2006 was the year of their first meeting. She was an actress during this time. They discussed their wedding frequently but could not decide on a date. They had been together for 35 years but were never married. In 2009, Triola died of lung cancer.

What killed Margie Willett? Dick Van Dyke’s ex-wife Margie Willett

Willett died in the year 2008. At the age of 81, she died of pancreatic cancer.

Margie Willett’s Family

During the time that Margie Willett and Dick Van Dyke were married, they had four children. Their names were Barry, Carrie Beth, Stacy, and Christian. At the beginning of their marriage, Margie lost twins during a miscarriage. She has ten grandchildren and great-grandchildren altogether.

Like his father, her son Barry Van Dyke is also an actor. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Detective Steve Sloan on “Diagnosis: Murder,” which was the son of Dr. Mark Sloan, who was played by his real-life father.

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