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BOY MEETS WORLD’s William Daniels and Wife Bonnie Bartlett Share Secret to 70-year Marriage

Photo from William Daniels’ Instagram

BOY MEETS WORLD’s William Daniels and Wife Bonnie Bartlett Share Secret to 70-year Marriage

By Movieguide® Staff

The iconic BOY MEETS WORLD star William Daniels and wife of nearly 70 years, Bonnie Bartlett, shared how they cultivated a lasting marriage.

The 93-year-old actor and Emmy-winning actress will celebrate their 70th anniversary on June 30, 2021.

“I think our relationship is based on mutual respect and I think she is smarter than me, a better actor than me, and so I just hang out, you know, and try to get along,” Daniels told Forbes.

“He doesn’t mean that at all!” Bartlett, 91, joked.

“I’m an actor!” Daniels said. “I’m making it up as I go along.”

Bartlett said that her husband’s sense of humor has helped keep their relationship fresh and exciting even after all these years.

“He makes me laugh,” Bartlett said. “His humor, his sense of humor and his ability during every day to find something funny is really good for me because I’m very intense.”

Along with the humor, the couple also faced trials together. In a 2017 interview, Bartlett recalled her hopelessness after the death of her niece years prior.

“You insisted we come to Hollywood and I didn’t want to,” Bartlett told Daniels in an interview with People magazine. “It was at a very tough time. I’d lost my niece.

“But he really was starting to drink a lot,” she continued. “And he was drinking after the show. Sometimes you didn’t know – I mean I didn’t know if he was going to come home or not. He did always, but he was drinking. And God knows what else he was doing… And he was into that whole, ‘I’m a star’ kind of thing. You know, he got into that.”

Bartlett said she considered leaving after her husband started drinking.

“I thought, ‘I want no part of this,'” Bartlett said. “I was confused because there was no way I wanted to take [our sons] away from him. No way. And so I thought, well – I was pondering it.”

Despite her initial hesitations to move out to Hollywood, the couple relocated to Los Angeles from New York. Bartlett quickly scored a role on LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE.

“Suddenly, working like that and living in a little house in the valley with the boys and finding a nice school for them and everything, I sort of connected with him again,” Bartlett recalled of their marriage. “It took a little while – it took about a year of really hating him.”

Bartlett added: “I’ve always been very glad – that I stayed. And that we have had this long marriage and now I’m totally, I mean, we totally respect and adore each other. We’re together all the time.”

Bartlett also had regular roles on the TV series ST. ELSEWHERE and HOME IMPROVEMENT. Daniels is also known for his roles on ST. ELSEWHERE and on KNIGHT RIDER as David Hasselhoff’s super-intelligent car, K.I.T.T., and for his iconic performances in the movies A THOUSAND CLOWNS, THE GRADUATE, TWO FOR THE ROAD, and 1776.

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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.