Famous Weddings
John Wayne
Jan 17 American actor John Wayne (38) weds actress Esperanza Baur (25) in Long Beach, California; divorce in 1954
Jackie Robinson
Feb 10 1st black pro-baseball player Jackie Robinson marries Rachel Isum
Hank Greenberg
Feb 18 MLB baseball player Hank Greenberg (35) weds heiress Caral Gimbel in Sea Island, Georgia
Ernest Hemingway
Mar 14 American "For Whom The Bell Tolls" novelist Ernest Hemingway (46) weds for fourth and final time to American journalist Mary Welsh (37), until his death in 1961
- Apr 26 Father Divine, controversial religious leader claimed to be God, marries the much-younger Edna Rose Ritchings, a celebrated anniversary in the International Peace Mission movement
Joan Fontaine
May 2 "Rebecca" actress Joan Fontaine (28) weds producer and actor William Dozier (38); divorce in 1951
Stan Laurel
May 6 Comedian Stan Laurel (55) marries for the 5th time actress Ida Kitaeva (47)
Jimmy Carter
Jul 7 Naval cadet and future 39th US President Jimmy Carter (21) weds Rosalynn Smith (18) in Plains, Georgia
Howard Hanson
Jul 24 Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Howard Hanson (49) weds Margaret Elizabeth Nelson at the Chautauqua Institution in New York
- Aug 10 American science-fiction writer and future founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard (35) weds second wife Sara Northrup Hollister (22) in Florida, while still married to his first wife; divorce in 1951
George Balanchine & Maria Tallchief
Aug 16 Georgian-American ballet choreographer George Balanchine (42) weds Native American (Osage) ballerina Maria Tallchief (21); annulled in 1952
Olivia de Havilland
Aug 26 "Gone With The Wind" actress Olivia de Havilland (30) weds screenwriter and novelist Marcus Goodrich; divorce in 1953
Bill Haley
Dec 11 "Bill Haley & His Comets" rock 'n' roll musician Bill Haley (21) weds Dorothy Crowe; divorce in 1952
Jackie Coogan
Dec 26 American actor Jackie Coogan (32) weds American actress Ann McCormack (22); divorce in 1951
Famous Divorces
Bugsy Siegel
Aug 8 Esta Krakower divorces mobster Bugsy Siegel (40) after 17 years of marriage