Actor Tony Curtis Searched for Love During His Hollywood Career: Get to Know His 6 Ex-Wives

Late actor Tony Curtis earned the label of Hollywood heartthrob during his successful six-decade career as a film and television star. In his personal life, he searched for love and was married six times.

Though his life in the spotlight seemed glamorous, Tony, who died in 2010, suffered many traumatic moments throughout his childhood before he even made it to Hollywood. He and his brother, Julius, lived in an orphanage for a few years during childhood as their parents did not have enough money for food. Julius died a few years later when he was hit by a truck. The New York native turned to the arts to help him cope.

“He was happiest when he was creating,” Kelly Curtis, Tony’s eldest daughter, told Closer in April 2022. “On a film set, in front of a group of fans, or alone in his art studio painting.”

The Spartacus star set out to pursue acting in California after returning home from World War II. He landed the lead role in The Prince Who Was a Thief in 1951, the start of a lifetime full of blockbuster roles. His life changed dramatically as he entered the first of his six marriages that same year.

Perhaps Tony’s most famous bride was Janet Leigh, a widely popular MGM actress who earned herself a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination for her role in 1960’s Psycho. Her effortless beauty and ability to act, sing and dance made her a starlet in the eyes of many. 

“Her face was exquisite,” Tony shared in Janet Leigh: A Biography. “It just devastated me to look at this woman.” 

The pair welcomed two children during their 11-year marriage: Kelly Curtis and Jamie Lee Curtis. Both of their daughters ended up following in their parents’ footsteps and became actresses themselves. 

“One of the great benefits of being the daughter of great film stars, Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, is I had the opportunity to watch them play the game,” Jamie Lee said of her father and mother, who died in 2004, at the ICG Publicists Awards in March 2019. “Their example was crucial.”

However, their union did not last. The couple called it quits on their marriage in 1962. They both went their separate ways and moved on with other partners. 

“My parents’ bond had deteriorated precipitously as their stardom grew,” the Halloween star recalled in More magazine in April 2010. “And like any other save-the-marriage baby, I failed.”

Keep scrolling to learn more about Tony’s six marriages.