On his wife Vivien Leigh’s 46th birthday, Laurence Olivier took her out for dinner, gifted her a Rolls-Royce and asked for a divorce. It would take months before the marriage of England’s greatest acting couple was dissolved, but it was a giant first step toward a different life for Laurence.
After 20 years of marriage to the volatile Gone With the Wind beauty, Laurence longed for a simpler, less stressful existence. He believed he could create it with Joan Plowright, an actress 22 years his junior who had co-starred with him on the stage in The Entertainer. “I sometimes feel such a peacefulness come over me when I think of you,” Laurence wrote to his “Joanie” in a love letter. “A feeling devoid of all violence, passion or shattering longing...it makes me go out into the street with a smile on my face.”
This story is from the June 12, 2023 edition of Closer US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 12, 2023 edition of Closer US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Freshly Reinvented OLD-SCHOOL BITES
Discover a new and creative twist on traditional Hungarian recipes that you'll instantly add to your rotation
INA GARTEN - HOW THERAPY SAVED MY MARRIAGE
\"It was the hardest thing I ever did. I told him that I needed to be on my own.\"
FRANK SINATRA & DEAN MARTIN - The Night That Almost Ended in TRAGEDY
A MAN NEARLY DIED WHEN A CELEBRATORY EVENING AMONG THE RAT PACK WENT HORRIBLY WRONG
Prince Harry at 40 IT'S TIME FOR A CHANGE
AS HE PASSES HIS LATEST MILESTONE, THE DUKE IS HOPEFUL THAT HE’S ON THE RIGHT PATH
GRACE KELLY & AVA GARDNER - Inside Their UNLIKELY FRIENDSHIP
For many years, Ava Gardner received a bottle of champagne every year on her birthday from Princess Grace of Monaco.
MACKENZIE PHILLIPS - Every Day Is A GIFT
The One Day at a Time alum talks about the long road she's traveled and her happy life today
5 FOOD SWAPS FOR A LONGER LIFE
GET A TASTE FOR LONGEVITY WITH SOME HEALTHY CHOICE-
The BOB DENVER Only I Knew
THE WIDOW OF THE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND STAR SHARES PERSONAL STORIES OF THE BELOVED ACTOR
"I'm finally free of neck pain!"
Doctors said increasingly stronger pain medication was Suzie Walker’s only hope of ever living a normal life, but then her son suggested a remedy she never would have thought of trying— and it turned out to be her miracle cure
Natalie Wood - Glamour, Love & Secrets
STARDOM HAD A DARK SIDE UNTIL SHE TOOK CONTROL OF HER OWN LIFE