Photo: David Livingston/Getty
Mark Harmonand Pam Dawber have a Hollywood marriage with true staying power.
Harmon and Dawber’s marriage has definitely defied the Hollywood odds as they are still going strong today — more than 35 years later.
“I’m proud to be married, andI’m proud of who I’m married to,” he told PEOPLE in 2019. “I’m just so proud of her.”
So, who is theSt. Elsewherestar’s wife of over three decades? Read on to learn more about Pam Dawber and her long-lasting relationship with Mark Harmon.
She’s an actress
Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection
Dawber shot to fame as the human romantic interest ofRobin Williams' alien character onMork & Mindy.The sitcom ran for 95 episodes from 1978 to 1982.
She and Harmon keep their relationship private
She and Harmon share two sons
Albert L. Ortega/Getty
Shortly after they tied the knot in 1987,the couple started their family. Harmon and Dawber’s older son, Sean, was born in 1988, while their younger son, Ty, was born in 1992.
Both Sean and Ty have followed in their famous parents' footsteps, pursuing careers in the entertainment industry. Sean is an actor who has appeared asthe son of Harmon’s characteronNCIS,while Ty works in Hollywood as a screenwriter.
She has famous in-laws
Ron Wolfson/WireImage
Harmon’slate sister Kristinwas previously married to singer Ricky Nelson (son of Ozzie and Harriet Nelson from the hit ’50s sitcomThe Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet) and appeared on the family’s television show many times.
The actor’s parents were also well known. His father was Heisman trophy-winning football player and broadcasting iconTom Harmonand his mother was actress Elyse Knox.
She and Harmon took in their nephew during a tough family time
Both Kristin and Ricky struggled withsubstance abuse, and they eventually divorced. In 1985, Ricky died in a plane crash and Kristin entered rehab at Harmon’s urging. When she returned from the treatment facility, Harmon and Dawber took Kristin to court toseek custody of her youngest son Sam, who was 12 years old at the time. The couple were granted temporary custody.
However, after a bitter trial, the family decided to settle the matter privately. “We don’t want to go any further with this,” Harmon told Kristin’s lawyer at the time. “Too much blood has been spilled.”
She and Harmon celebrate their differences
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Harmon and Dawber have very different personalities, as he explained to PEOPLE in 2019. However, theirdifferences only strengthen their relationship.
The actor used his role in the 1987 movieSummer Schoolas an example. “I wanted to do it just because I was excited to work with [director]Carl Reiner,” he said. “That was a game changer for me, like, ‘He thinks I can do this?!’ and that meant a lot. But Pam said, ‘Don’t do that. Don’t do this movie.’ We don’t generally like the same thing, and that’s been healthy for us, actually.”
When asked what other secrets the couple have for a long-lasting marriage, the actor said, “We were both in our thirties when we got married, so hopefully the stupid stuff we did earlier … That’s probably the closest I have to what the key is.”
She appeared on a few episodes ofNCIS
Cliff Lipson/CBS
On Harmon’s last season beforehe retired fromNCISafter 18 seasons,Dawberjoined her husbandon the hit CBS show for a story arc as journalist Marcie Warren. The actress’s four episodes marked the first time the couple appeared together on the show.
source: people.com
