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Iconic Vintage Celebrity Weddings Photos That Will Make You Nostalgic

Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton – 1964

It’s time to learn about the man who Elizabeth Taylor married and divorced twice. Richard Burton was a Welsh actor, who Taylor believed was the fifth right man for her. Their relationship began as an extramarital affair while Taylor was married to her fourth husband, and  Burton, too, was married.

The actors were all over the news after the paparazzi captured them on a yacht in Ischia, Italy. Having divorced their partners, they united in matrimony in 1964—a marriage that lasted a decade. Look at her with the non-traditional yellow dress and the flower head-dress! Their second wedding lasted less than a year due to Burton’s unfaithfulness and Taylor’s alcoholism.

Princess Diana & Prince Charles – 1981

Diana, Princess of Wales, was perhaps the most adored member of the royal family. Diana gained the title “Princess of Wales” following her marriage to the first in line to the throne, Charles, Prince of Wales. Often referred to as the “fairytale wedding,” it took place at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Designed by David Emanuel, the Princess’s dress was an ivory silk taffeta lace gown that cost over £150K. With over 600K people lining up on the streets to see the newlywed royals, over 750 million people watched the wedding on television.

Sophia Loren & Carlo Ponti – 1957

Now aged 88, Sophia Loren is one of the last stars still alive from the golden era. She is still an active actress who will soon be starring in the upcoming movie, The Life Ahead. Today, however, we’ll be looking at her life in the past.

Loren met the film producer Carlo Ponti Sr. when she was 16. They married for the first time in Juarez, Mexico, in 1957, but it had legal problems as Carlo hadn’t been divorced from his first wife even though they’d been separated for years. Therefore, the couple had an annulment in 1962, and only after the divorce did they tie the knot again in 1966.

Jayne Mansfield & Mickey Hargitay – 1958

Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay were unquestionably one of the steamiest couples in the ’50s and ’60s. Mansfield was a significant feminine symbol, who was one of the first models to appear in notorious men’s magazines. Hargitay, on the other hand, was Mr. Universe 1955. You can imagine what drew the two closer.

In 1957, Hargitay got down on one knee, blinding Mansfield with an expensive 10-carat diamond ring. Of course, she said yes, and the two exchanged vows at Wayfarers Church (Glass Church) in California in 1958. From the dress to the Champagne, everything was in shades of pink. It was a dreamlike wedding that lasted six years.

Ginger Rogers & Lew Ayres – 1934

Ginger Rogers was a stunning actress from the Golden Age of Hollywood. With that said, you can imagine the number of men that would have given anything to become her suitor. It seems as though a good fraction of them got the chance because she was married five times.

The photo you see above was captured at her second wedding in 1934. Rogers tied the knot with fellow actor Lew Ayres, after meeting him on the set of Don’t Be on Love the previous year. The marriage lasted six years, but bore no children; in fact, Rogers never had a child.

Ingrid Bergman & Petter Lindstrom – 1937

Ingrid Bergman’s first Hollywood movie was Intermezzo: A Love Story, and although her morals in the film led her to call her affair quits, it was not an option in reality. Bergman was married to the Swedish dentist turned neurosurgeon, Petter Lindstrom, when she developed feelings for the director, Roberto Rossellini, during the filming of Stromboli.

Bergman and Rossellini had a child together, which was Lindstrom’s cue for a split. After a 13-year-long marriage, and the birth of a daughter, Lindstrom and Bergman divorced. A few years later, karma caught up to Bergman when Rossellini dumped her for another woman.

Humphrey Bogart & Lauren Bacall – 1945

Actors have hectic lives, and sometimes, the only time they meet other people is on the set. That’s how one of the most famous love stories of the old Hollywood began. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall met on the locations of the film To Have and Have Not.

Even though Bacall was 25 years his junior, the two had chemistry. During this time, Bogart was married to the actress Mayo Methot, but his love for Bacall made him divorce Methot in the blink of an eye. The Bogart-Bacall couple married at Malabar Farm in Ohio in 1945 and had a prosperous marriage with two children until Bogart’s passing in 1957.

Shirley Temple & John Agar – 1945

Shirley Temple was friends with a girl who later became her sister-in-law. The friend had a brother, John Agar, who went as Temple’s plus-one to a party. The rest was history. Temple was only a teenager when the two fell in love and did not waste any time thinking about marrying.

Both of them were actors, and therefore, their wedding ceremony was going to be a grand one. It took place at the Wilshire Methodist Church in Los Angeles on September 19, 1945, with 500 guests witnessing it. Only five years into their marriage, Agar’s addiction to alcohol and the pair’s otherwise busy lives destroyed their marriage.

Judy Garland & Vincente Minnelli – 1945

Frances Ethel Gumm, better known as Judy Garland, was an award-winning actress and singer back in the day. In addition to her screen talents, Garland was known for her many marriages. Vincente Minnelli, a filmmaker, was the second person to put a ring on Garland’s finger.

The two developed a bond on the set of Meet Me in St. Louis and married in 1945. After having a daughter, Liza Minnelli, the couple divorced in 1951. The reasons could have been Garland’s rumored relationship with Sidney Luft, who conveniently became her next husband, and even Minnelli’s personal orientation. However, a definite cause was Garland’s drug addiction.

Bette Davis & William Grant Sherry – 1945

The name Bette Davis was prevalent during the ’30s and ’40s. She was a gorgeous actress, who was also very famous, and that’s why her encounter with William Grant Sherry took an unexpected turn. He was an artist by profession and had no idea who she was, and for some reason, Davis was intrigued by the fact.

Her interest in Sherry resulted in marriage. Their wedding ceremony took place in California, and as presumed, Davis was beautifully dressed in a tweed suit and a hat (even though it was her third wedding). She had her only biological child through this marriage, which lasted five years.

Prince Aly Khan & Rita Hayworth – 1949

Can you believe that Prince Aly Khan, a descendant of Prophet Muhammed, met his second wife at a nightclub? Well, it’s true. His second wife was the famous American actress, who was also identified using the moniker “The Love Goddess,” Rita Hayworth.

After getting married in 1949 at the l’Horizon in France, Hayworth left her successful career behind to live with Prince Aly in Europe. They added a daughter to their family at the end of the same year. During their marriage, Hayworth found proof that her beloved husband was a playboy, and therefore, divorced him. She lived in the US with their daughter following the separation.

Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz – 1944

Love doesn’t always happen at first sight. For instance, for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, love occurred during their second encounter in 1940. They connected so much that they eloped the same year. You probably know the two as the lead stars on I Love Lucy, who also happen to be on-screen spouses.

Their marital life was far from the fairytale that the on-screen couple had. Arnaz’s alleged infidelities and alcoholism led Ball to file for divorce in 1944. The power couple somehow reconciled and had an official ceremony at Our Lady of the Valley Church in Canoga Park, California, in 1949. Eleven years and two children later, they divorced.

Conrad Hilton Jr. & Elizabeth Taylor – 1950

It is a common belief that the first time a person does something, it is special. In Elizabeth Taylor’s case, she was married so many times (eight to be precise) that we doubt if she could even remember her first husband’s name. Let us tell you—it was Conrad Hilton Jr.

Taylor was only 18 when she married Conrad, the heir to the Hilton Hotel chain. The two vowed to love each other forever at the Church of the Good Shepherd, Beverly Hills and had a lavish wedding arranged by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1950. Sadly, Taylor only found out about her husband’s abusiveness, alcoholism, and gambling addiction after the marriage and therefore divorced him in 1951.

Tony Curtis & Janet Leigh – 1951

During the ’50s, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh were Hollywood’s power couple. Due to the pressure from the studios that employed them, Curtis and Leigh eloped on June 4, 1951. They married in front of a local judge in Greenwich, Connecticut (which explains the simple attire), with fellow actor Jerry Lewis as a witness.

Although it was Curtis’s first marriage, Leigh had done it twice before. According to Curtis’s 1993 memoir, he loved her dearly, but only received negligence in return, which subsequently ended their 11-year marriage. The couple was the parents of actresses Kelly and Jamie Lee Curtis.

Frank Sinatra & Ava Gardner – 1951

Frank Sinatra was a hit on gossip magazines and tabloids back in the day. It had to do with his multiple affairs while being an iconic singer. His marriage to Ava Gardner was also an aftermath of an extramarital affair. They said “I do” on November 7, 1951.

Since Gardner, too, was a famous figure in the day, almost every bump and turn in their personal life was publicized. The two abortions that were forced on Gardner by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer possibly fractured their bond because, in 1954, Gardner filed for divorce, which became final in 1957. In her autobiography, she reminisced about Sinatra being the “love of her life.”

Roger Vadim & Brigitte Bardot – 1952

When it came to his wives, Roger Vadim most certainly had a type. Almost all of his wives were famous actresses from various countries. Here, we look at the first out of five, Brigitte Bardot. She is now a retired French actress who is 85 years old.

Bardot had just stepped into adulthood and had just made her film debut when the two married on December 21, 1952. Her family was against their union, which led Bardot to attempt suicide. Somehow, she pulled through and walked down the aisle of the Church of Passy in France. The love that she was ready to die for sadly only lasted five years.

Elizabeth Taylor & Michael Wilding – 1952

Remember the eight marriages of Elizabeth Taylor? Let’s take a look at her second wedding, which was to the English actor Michael Wilding. Taylor was 20 years younger than him, and yet, he did not pass up the chance to wife her.

Held in London, their wedding ceremony was an intimate one. Taylor’s attire was very modest, but the full white collar gave it that touch of glamour. The couple had two sons together but parted ways in 1957. Their divorce may have been a consequence of Wilding summoning exotic dancers to their home while Taylor was away at work.

Princess Elizabeth & Philip Mountbatten – 1947

Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten had their royal wedding in 1947. Today, nearly 73 years later, they are alive and well, and most importantly, still married and even have great-grandchildren. They were second cousins once removed, who fell in love when they were very young.

Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, got married at Westminster Abbey in London on November 20, 1947, with 2,000 guests present. BBC Radio broadcasted the ceremony, and it reportedly reached over 200 million people around the globe. Interestingly, due to the post-war state, Princess Elizabeth’s dress materials were acquired using rationing coupons. She is now the reigning Queen of the United Kingdom.

Audrey Hepburn & Mel Ferrer – 1954

The Breakfast at Tiffany’s star Audrey Hepburn was one of the most beautiful actresses in history. She was every man’s dream girl back then, but only two men were lucky enough to become her husband. The first of the two was fellow actor Mel Ferrer, who she met at a cocktail party.

Eight months after appearing on Ondine, the two secretly tied the knot in Burgenstock, Switzerland. Hepburn flaunted a high-neck gown with a collar, elbow-length gloves, and a flower crown for the ceremony. During their 14-year-long marriage, Hepburn had a few miscarriages, which likely took a toll on their bond. They somehow had a son but divorced in 1968.

Joe DiMaggio & Marilyn Monroe – 1954

Marilyn Monroe was perhaps the most striking feminine symbol of the ’50s and ’60s. It was during the heights of her career when she met the Major League Baseball center fielder for the New York Yankees, Joe DiMaggio, who subsequently became Monroe’s second husband.

Monroe and DiMaggio eloped at San Francisco City Hall in 1954. The media somehow succeeded in sneaking a few photographs. The problems began following Monroe’s “skirt scene” on The Seven Year Itch as DiMaggio felt embarrassed. The two divorced nine months after the wedding, with Monroe accusing her husband of mental cruelty and DiMaggio pointing fingers at his wife’s sterility and poor personal hygiene (according to Daily Mail).

Joan Crawford & Alfred Steele – 1955

The legendary actress Joan Crawford and Alfred Steele had their first encounter at a function in 1950. They had a rendezvous in 1954 and were celebrating their union at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas a few months later. Steele was the CEO of the Pepsi-Cola Company at the time.

The day of the wedding was extra special for Steele as it was his first, but Crawford had wed a few times before. However, Steele must have been a special man because following his untimely demise just four years into their life together, Crawford never remarried.

Debbie Reynolds & Eddie Fisher – 1955

Debbie Reynolds and Elizabeth Taylor were good friends until the latter proved to be unworthy of friendship. Reynolds dated the American singer and actor, Eddie Fisher, for 15 months, before tying the knot in Catskills Mountains, New York. They shared two children before their marriage began to shatter.

Taylor, who had just been widowed, found her way to Fisher, creating what would be a love triangle. It became an enormous scandal and a hit for tabloids, and somehow put a full stop on the Reynolds-Fisher marriage. Both Reynolds and Fisher remarried multiple times and co-parented their children.

Rock Hudson & Phyllis Gates – 1955

A heartthrob during Hollywood’s Golden Age, Rock Hudson was an Oscar-winning actor. He was rumored to be gay almost his entire life (it was later confirmed). It was during these rumors that Hudson started dating Phyllis Gates, who was his agent’s secretary.

The couple married in a low-key ceremony in Santa Barbara, California, in November 1955, and honeymooned in Jamaica. Not long after, their relationship began to fall apart after Hudson’s reputed intimate encounter with a man. They separated in 1957 and divorced in the year that followed. Neither Hudson nor Gates married again but lived individually successful lives.

Arthur Miller & Marilyn Monroe – 1956

Soon after Marilyn Monroe cut all ties with Joe DiMaggio, she fell for Arthur Miller. He was an American playwright who had first met Monroe in 1951, during which time they had a fling. The two had been in touch since then, and in 1956, Miller divorced his wife of 16 years to marry Monroe.

They legalized their marriage at the local courthouse in Westchester, New York, and threw a small-scale party. Monroe was like the missing piece of Miller’s family puzzle. She fit right in, but it was short-lived as her drug addiction drew them apart. The couple divorced in 1961, a year before Monroe died of an overdose.

Prince Rainier of Monaco & Grace Kelly – 1956

An American actress who became royalty—yes, we’re referring to Grace Kelly. She met Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, at the Palace of Monaco, and got to know him for a year before getting married in a fancy royal wedding in 1956.

It involved a 16-minute civil ceremony at the Palace Throne Room of Monaco and a religious one at Saint Nicholas Cathedral. Through her elegant dress, Kelly proved to the 3,000 guests that she was born to become a princess. She skipped the tiara and instead styled a beaded Juliet cap with a 90-yard veil. Their love story ended tragically in 1982 when the princess died in a car crash.

Robert Wagner & Natalie Wood – 1957

After seeing Robert Wagner on the screens, Natalie Wood had an innocent crush on him as a child. She probably never thought that her dreams would come true, but since she got into acting, she had the chance to meet and marry him in 1957. The marriage lasted five years, but fear not, because they rekindled their love and remarried in 1972.

Pictured above is their first wedding, where the pretty bride chose to wear a distinctive hooded lace veil. Wagner and Wood had a daughter during their second union. Unfortunately, it came ended in 1981 when Wood drowned and died while partying in a yacht in Catalina Island.

Julie Andrews & Tony Walton – 1959

The famous Disney character Mary Poppins, portrayed by the British actress Julie Andrews, still burns in our minds. She has known Tony Walton, her first husband since they were both teenagers. Believing that they were each other’s soulmates, the two tied the knot on May 10, 1959, in Weybridge, Surrey.

Both Andrews and Walton are still alive and well in their mid-eighties. However, their life together ended with their divorce in 1967, after which they wed other people. Nevertheless, the couple had a daughter named Emma Katherine Walton, who will always remind them of their beautiful days together.

Jacques Charrier & Brigitte Bardot – 1959

As a feminine symbol back in her day, Brigitte Bardot was one playful woman who had multiple affairs during her four marriages. Her relationship with fellow actor Jacques Charrier was not an affair, although, she did marry him as she got pregnant out of wedlock.

The photo above is from their wedding in Louveciennes, France, in 1959. Even though it’s monochromatic, try to picture Bardot in a hot pink and white gingham dress. Charrier was the only man who gave her a child. However, we doubt a child was of much importance to her because she barely had any contact with her son after the couple’s divorce in 1962.

Princess Margaret & Antony Armstrong-Jones – 1960

A few years after Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, another royal wedding became the buzz of the media. Princess Margaret, the Queen’s only sibling, wed at the Westminster Abbey on May 6, 1960. Antony Armstrong-Jones was the first “commoner” in over four centuries to take the hand of a king’s daughter.

With 2,000 attendees, it was the first royal wedding to be broadcasted on television, and over 300 million spectators worldwide followed it. Princess Margaret paired her Norman Hartnell-designed silk organza dress with the Poltimore tiara. The 1st Earl of Snowdon (Armstrong-Jones) and the Princess had two children and were married for nearly two decades before their divorce.

Ginger Rogers & William Marshall – 1961

Ginger Rogers’s marriage to William Marshall was her fifth and last one. He was probably her last hope before she gave up on the idea of love altogether. Marshall was a singer, film director, and producer, who was six years younger than Rogers.

They united in matrimony in 1961, and as you can see, Rogers wore a wide-collared jacket and with gloves. To accessorize, she wore a net fascinator hat, a pearl choker, and held a single flower bouquet. After eight years, their marriage ended due to complications from their joint film production company’s bankruptcy and Marshall’s struggles with alcoholism. Both of them never remarried.

Lucille Ball & Gary Morton – 1961

Actresses Lucille Bell and Paula Stewart were good friends for life. It was via that friendship that Bell got to know Gary Morton, who soon became her second husband. He was a stand-up comedian by profession, and despite being 13 years Bell’s junior, he had great chemistry with her.

On November 19, 1961, the Bell-Morton wedding ceremony took place at the Marble Collegiate Church in New York City. It was an intimate event with only family and 40 friends of the couple in attendance. Morton helped Bell’s career and kept his promise of “death do us part,” until Bell’s passing in April 1989.

Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton – 1964

It’s time to learn about the man who Elizabeth Taylor married and divorced twice. Richard Burton was a Welsh actor, who Taylor believed was the fifth right man for her. Their relationship began as an extramarital affair while Taylor was married to her fourth husband, and  Burton, too, was married.

The actors were all over the news after the paparazzi captured them on a yacht in Ischia, Italy. Having divorced their partners, they united in matrimony in 1964—a marriage that lasted a decade. Look at her with the non-traditional yellow dress and the flower head-dress! Their second wedding lasted less than a year due to Burton’s unfaithfulness and Taylor’s alcoholism.

Judy Garland & Mark Herron – 1965

Among the five men whom Judy Garland married, Mark Herron was the fourth. He was an actor by profession, but during the time they decided to marry, he was also the tour manager of Garland’s 1964 Australia tour. According to him, they had married in a freighter during the tour, but since Garland’s divorce from her third husband was not final, it wasn’t a legal union.

Once they returned home to America, the couple tied the knot in a Las Vegas chapel and later treated their guests at the sophisticated Sahara Hotel. It was an extremely short-lived marriage, which ended due to charges of domestic violence.

Frank Sinatra & Mia Farrow – 1966

After Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner called it quits, he dated other women. In fact, he almost married Lauren Bacall and Juliet Prowse but broke off the engagements beforehand. Sinatra’s next marriage (to Mia Farrow) did not happen until 1966.

Even though it was Sinatra’s third wedding, the day was special for Farrow as it was her first walk down the aisle, which makes sense as she was thirty years his junior. With big hopes for the future, the 21-year-old actress married Sinatra at Jack Entratter’s house in Las Vegas. The couple barely got through two years, which, according to Farrow, was due to their large gap in age.

Jane Fonda & Roger Vadim – 1965

As we go through the list, it appears that being married multiple times is almost a trend in show business. It sounds expensive, but they have plenty of money to spend on lavish parties. Jane Fonda was Roger Vadim’s third wife, although he was her first husband.

The Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas witnessed the wedding of the power couple on August 14, 1965. However, it was only a small ceremony that followed the news of their eloping in a French courthouse (Saint-Ouen Marchefroy to be precise). It was a deceitful marriage that lasted eight years. The star, Vanessa Vadim, was the only good outcome of the Fonda-Vadim union.

Elvis Presley & Priscilla Presley – 1967

Priscilla Beaulieu’s name will go down in history as the only woman who got to call Elvis Presley her husband. To say that their marriage was flawed would be an understatement. It only lasted six years but saw the birth of a daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, who later married Michael Jackson.

The wedding of the King of Rock and Roll that took place at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas only had 14 guests. It was an intimate ceremony, but looking at the photos, you can tell that Priscilla was one angelic bride in her pearl and lace gown.

Sharon Tate & Roman Polanski – 1968

Sharon Tate was a pretty, young, and rising actress and model, who could have reached the heights of Hollywood. During the filming of The Fearless Vampire Killers, she fell in love with its director, Roman Polanski. On January 20, 1968, the pair tied the knot in London and had a reception later.

As you can see, Tate was a gorgeous bride, who Polanski undoubtedly was proud to call his wife. Later in 1968, the couple was expecting their first child. However, to everyone’s horror, Tate was brutally murdered in August of 1969, when she was 8.5 months pregnant.

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