The 'king of character actors' was a title given to Charles Durning. A hard-working actor, Durning was married twice. He said in interviews that his "marriage suffered" due to the amount of time he was on the road or working on stage and films.

First Marriage -- Carol Doughty (1959-1972)

Second Marriage -- Mary Ann Amelio (1974-)

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Charles Durning Information:

Born:

Charles Durning: February 28, 1923 in Highland Falls, New York, New York.
Died:

Charles: On December 24, 2012, at the age of 89, Charles died at his home in Manhattan, New York. Charles will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Children:

Charles and his first wife Carol had three children.

• Douglas Durning:
• Michele Durning:
• Jeanine Durning:

Occupations:

Charles: Award winning actor on stage, film, and television, veteran of World War II where he earned three Purple Hearts and a Silver Star, pro-boxer, dance instructor, and numerous other jobs. PBS: Charles Durning at the 2007 National Memorial Day Concert (Video)

Linda Deutsch: "'It took about 25 years for me to make a living in this business,' he says of the climb which cost him a wife who left when she tired of trying to raise three children on $8,000 a year and dreams."
Source: Linda Deutsch. "Fame arrives late in life for actor Charles Durning." Anchorage Daily News. 10/20/1981. pg. d-6.

Charles: "And I'll do anything. Whatever she [agent] finds for me would be a dream role. I don't care if it's a gangster or a schoolteacher. They're all the same to me. I've never once turned down a single job, not a play or a movie. I'll [say] yes, even now."
Source: Rose Eichenbaum. The Actor Within: Intimate Conversations with Great Actors. 2011. pg. 89.

First Wife - Carol Doughty:

After meeting Carol Doughty at a dance exhibition when he worked at a Fred Astaire dance studio, Charles married Carol in 1959. After having three children together, the couple divorced in 1972.

Ann Guarino: "As he became more involved in the theatre and less of a 9-to-5er, his marriage broke up."
Source: Ann Guarino. "Charles Durning Man For Action." St. Petersburg Independent. 1/08/1976. pg. 8-B.

Dotson Rader: "The marriage suffered as a result of Durning's obsession with acting, his lack of major success and the need to be on the road in plays for months at a time."
Source: Dotson Rader. "An Actor Deals With His Dark Side." Parade Magazine. 10/10/1993. pg. 4.

Related: Learn More About Balancing Your Marriage and Work

Second Wife - Mary Ann Amelio:

Second Wife -- Mary Ann Amelio Mary Ann and Charles first met and fell in love when they were in high school but her family objected to their relationship. Both later married others and divorced. They were reunited when Mary Ann's daughter contacted Charles backstage after a performance of That Championship Season. Fifteen months later, in 1974, Charles and Mary Ann were married.

Charles: "We went together in high school and then broke up because her father didn't approbe of me. He knew I wanted to be an actor and he wanted something better for his daughter. He thought I'd never amount to anything."
Source: Nancy Anderson. "Success came slowly to Durning." Daily News. 2/18/1976. pg. 14.

Quotes About Charles Durning and Marriage:

Charles: “If I'm not in a part, I drive my wife crazy. I'll go downstairs to get the mail, and when I come back I'll say, `Any calls for me?'"
Source: N.R. Kleinfield. "Man of a Thousand Roles, but Who Is He?" NYTimes.com. 4/20/1997.

Charles: "'I'm a loner, not a party man,' said Durning, who claims he rarely leaves the house and sometimes says less than five words a day to his wife."
Source: The Victoria Advocate. 5/27/1978. pg. 10.