Johnny Carson’s four wives, in order, were Jody Wolcott, Joanne Copeland, Joanna Holland and Alexis Maas. Their marriages spanned 1948 or 1949 to Carson’s death in 2005; the wedding year for Wolcott and the end dates for Holland’s marriage are reported differently by reliable sources.
Johnny Carson’s wives, in order
| Wife | Marriage | What is known |
|---|---|---|
| Jody Wolcott | 1948 according to the Library of Congress; 1949 according to the Television Academy | Carson’s first wife and the mother of his three sons; they divorced in 1963. |
| Joanne Copeland | 1963 | They divorced in 1972. |
| Joanna Holland | 1972 | They separated in 1982; sources describe the divorce as occurring in 1983 or a settlement being reached in 1985. |
| Alexis Maas | June 1987 | She remained Carson’s wife until his death in 2005. |
Sources: Library of Congress finding aid, Television Academy, The Independent, and Biography.com.
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Jody Wolcott: Carson’s first wife
Carson married Jody Wolcott in the late 1940s. The Library of Congress finding aid dates the wedding to 1948, while the Television Academy obituary gives 1949. The available accounts do not settle the discrepancy, so neither year should be treated as definitive. They divorced in 1963.
Wolcott was the mother of Carson’s three sons. Accounts of Carson’s personal life also preserve his own rueful assessment of marriage. In 1986, he told the Los Angeles Times: “If I had given as much to marriage as I gave to ‘The Tonight Show,’ I’d probably have a hell of a marriage,” the newspaper reported.
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Joanne Copeland: the second marriage
Carson married Joanne Copeland in 1963, the year his marriage to Wolcott ended. The Library of Congress and the Television Academy both give 1972 as the year he and Copeland divorced.
Joanna Holland: separating the end-date milestones
Carson married Joanna Holland in 1972. Accounts give three dates for the end of the marriage, but they refer to different milestones rather than one consistently recorded divorce date: the Television Academy says they separated in 1982 and reached a divorce settlement in 1985, while The Independent describes the marriage as dissolved in 1983.
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Alexis Maas: Carson’s wife until his death
Carson married Alexis Maas in June 1987. They remained married until his death in 2005, nearly eighteen years later, according to Biography.com. The Television Academy’s account completes the sequence of Carson’s four marriages, while the Library of Congress chronology covers only the first three.
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