A Comprehensive Guide to Larry King’s Wives and Kids

Larry King was married eight times to seven women and had five children, Larry Jr., Andy, Chaia, Chance and Cannon — get to know the late TV host’s family

From ladies’ man to family man! As one of the most recognizable names in broadcasting history, Larry King was quite the catch in his heyday, resulting in eight marriages to seven women.

The TV and radio host, who died from sepsis at age 87 in 2021, walked down the aisle for the first time in 1952 with his high school sweetheart, Freda Miller. Their union was annulled the following year.

King had another brief marriage in 1961. Only months after he exchanged vows with Annette Kaye, the former couple divorced. Kaye went on to raise their son, Larry King Jr., as a single mother.

The same year as his marriage to (and separation from) Kaye, the New York City native tied the knot with Alene Akins. He adopted her son from a previous relationship, Andy King, before the pair divorced in 1963.

Larry wed his fourth wife, Mary Francis “Mickey” Sutphin, soon after splitting from Akins, and they were together until 1967. Later that year, he remarried Akins, with whom he welcomed daughter Chaia King in 1969. However, the on-off couple’s second shot at love came to an end in 1972.

Next came Sharon Lepore, with whom Larry said “I do” in 1976. While their union seemed at first to be his strongest yet, it ended in divorce too in 1983.

Despite six failed marriages under his belt, Larry showed no signs of slowing down. He wed Julie Alexander in 1989 after a whirlwind courtship, only to split the following year.

The Peabody Award winner’s longest and most fruitful union began in 1997 when Shawn Southwick became his seventh and final wife. At the time, he was 63, and she was 37. They welcomed sons Chance King and Cannon King in 1999 and 2000, respectively, and celebrated a milestone in 2007: their 10th wedding anniversary.

“[I am] the only [wife] to have lasted into the two digits,” Southwick quipped to the New York Daily News in 2008.

Larry filed for divorce in 2010, but he and Southwick got back together soon after. Then, in 2019, he again submitted paperwork to end their marriage. The case was still ongoing when he died 17 months later, and his widow claimed in court documents obtained by Us Weekly that “reconciliation remained possible” prior to his passing.

Scroll down for a comprehensive guide to the late star’s wives and children!

This story originally appeared on: US Magazine - Author:Nicholas Hautman