Kirk Douglas - Personal Life

Personal Life

Douglas married twice, first to Diana Dill, on November 2, 1943. The couple had two sons, actor Michael Douglas and producer Joel Douglas. They divorced in 1951. He then married German American producer Anne Buydens on May 29, 1954. They had two sons, producer Peter Douglas and actor Eric Douglas. Eric Douglas died July 6, 2004 of a drug overdose.

In February 1991, Douglas survived a helicopter crash in which two people died. This sparked a search for meaning, which led him, after much study, to embrace the Judaism in which he was raised. He documented this spiritual journey in his book Climbing the Mountain: My Search for Meaning (2001). In his earlier autobiography, The Ragman's Son (1988), he stated that "years back, I tried to forget that I was a Jew." However, in his later career, he notes that "coming to grips with what it means to be a Jew has been a theme in my life." In an interview in 2000, he explained this transition:

"Judaism and I parted ways a long time ago, when I was a poor kid growing up in Amsterdam, N.Y. Back then, I was pretty good in cheder, so the Jews of our community thought they would do a wonderful thing and collect enough money to send me to a yeshiva to become a rabbi. Holy Moses! That scared the hell out of me. I didn't want to be a rabbi. I wanted to be an actor. Believe me, the members of the Sons of Israel were persistent. I had nightmares – wearing long payos and a black hat. I had to work very hard to get out of it. But it took me a long time to learn that you don't have to be a rabbi to be a Jew."

Douglas notes also that the underlying theme of some of his films, including The Juggler (1953), Cast a Giant Shadow (1966), and Remembrance of Love (1982), was about "a Jew who doesn't think of himself as one, and eventually finds his Jewishness." Although his children had a non-Jewish mother, Douglas states that they were "aware culturally" of his "deep convictions," and he never tried to influence their own religious decisions. He notes, however, that Michael answered, "I'm a Jew," when once asked about what he was.

While Douglas has chosen to stay out of political affairs, he has on occasion written letters to politicians who were friends. He notes in his memoir, Let's Face It (2007), that he felt compelled to write former president Jimmy Carter in 2006 in order to stress that "Israel is the only successful democracy in the Middle East. . . . has had to endure many wars against overwhelming odds. If Israel loses one war, they lose Israel."

In January 1996, he suffered a severe stroke, partially impairing his ability to speak. On December 8, 2006, Douglas appeared on Entertainment Tonight, where the entire staff wished him a happy 90th birthday the night before. His son Michael and daughter-in-law Catherine Zeta-Jones were among the many celebrities who attended his birthday celebration. On the show, he discussed the books he has written and the death of his son Eric. Douglas celebrated a second Bar-Mitzvah ceremony in 1999 at the age of eighty-three.

A portrait of Douglas, titled "The Great and the Beautiful," which encapsulated his film career, art collection, philanthropy and rehabilitation from the helicopter crash and the stroke, appeared in Palm Springs Life magazine in 1999. The article said "For years, this energetic performer could be seen jogging several miles to get his morning paper, playing tennis with locals or posing for snapshots and signing autographs for star-struck out-of-towners. He has been a veritable one-man tourist promotion over the past four decades, extolling the virtue of the city he loves to virtually anyone who'll listen".

Douglas blogged regularly on his Myspace account but no longer does so. At 95, he is the oldest celebrity blogger.