Only in the new issue of Closer Weekly, TV icon Martin Milner’s widowed wife opens up, sharing fond memories of the beloved actor.

“The kids never realized he was an actor except when they’d see him on TV,” his widow, Judy, tells Closer. “When our son Andrew was little, he’d go behind the TV and say, ‘Daddy, come out!’”

Even after classic shows Route 66 and Adam-12 turned him into a TV star, Martin never acted like one at home.

martin milner wife

Martin and his wife, Judy, in December 1990.

“Martin went to work in the morning and came home and didn’t talk about what he did all day,” Judy says of Martin, who died of heart failure on Sept. 6 at 83. “He wanted to know what we did.”

“His fans have always been marvelous, and he loved them,” Judy tells Closer, fighting back tears. “He was gentle, understanding and wonderful.”

For more from Martin’s co-stars and friends, pick up the latest issue of Closer Weekly, on newsstands now!