Johnny Carson

Prior to becoming a household name as a pillar of late-night television, Carson married Joan "Jody" Wolcott in 1949 after they met as students at the University of Nebraska. The pair welcomed three sons and split in 1963. The year after Carson took on the mantle of The Tonight Show in 1962, he met and married model and TV host Joanne Copeland, who encouraged him to pursue the host role full-time. She and Carson divorced in 1972. The comedian married model Joanna Holland that year, and the pair lived together in New York with her son until The Tonight Show’s move to California placed a strain on their marriage. Carson and Holland split in 1985, and he married his fourth and final wife, Alexis Maas, in 1987. Carson retired from The Tonight Show in May of 1992 and lived quietly with Maas until his death 20 years ago from emphysema at age 79.