Remembering Anne Buydens (born Hannelore Marx; April 23, 1919 – April 29, 2021) was a German-born American philanthropist, producer, and occasional actress. She was the wife of actor Kirk Douglas, to whom she had been married for 65 years at the time of his death in 2020. She was a member of the International Best Dressed List from 1970 to 2021.
She was born Hannelore Marx in Hanover, Germany on April 23, 1919,she was the daughter of a textile merchant imported silk for making parachutes; her mother was a socialite.
When her parents were divorced, she was sent to a boarding school in Switzerland, where she learned English, French and Italian. She married the Belgian Albert Buydens, but during World War II, they fled to Paris. She had jobs such as making German subtitles for films. In 1948, she was hired to produce an NBC program, Paris Cavalcade of Fashion.
She married 38-year-old actor Kirk Douglas on 29 May 1954. The couple had two sons, Peter (born November 23, 1955) and Eric (June 21, 1958 – July 6, 2004).She became a United States citizen in 1959. Buydens converted to Judaism when she renewed her wedding vows with Douglas in 2004. She and her husband both became centenarians. Buydens died on April 29, 2021, six days after her 102nd birthday, at the longtime Beverly Hills home she shared with Douglas.
Anne Douglas, the widow of Kirk Douglas and stepmother of Michael Douglas, died Thursday in California. She was 102.
Douglas died at her home in Beverly Hills, according to an obituary provided by spokeswoman Marcia Newberger. No cause of death was given.
Kirk Douglas, the Hollywood legend who starred in “Spartacus,” “Lust for Life” and dozens of other films, died in February 2020 at 103.
He married Anne Buydens in 1954 after they met in Paris while he was filming “Act of Love” and she was doing publicity. They had two sons, Peter, a producer, and Eric, an actor.
"I often wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn't married Anne. I might not have survived without her business acumen and her finely honed instincts," Kirk Douglas once said.
In 2017, the couple published “Kirk and Anne: Letters of Love, Laughter, and a Lifetime in Hollywood.”
Michael Douglas said his stepmother “will always be in our hearts.”
"She brought out the best in all of us, especially our father. Dad would never have had the career he did without Anne’s support and partnership," the actor said in a statement.
Michael said his stepmother "will always be in our hearts."
"She brought out the best in all of us, especially our father," the actor said in a statement to the Associated Press. "Dad would never have had the career he did without Anne’s support and partnership."
Kirk admitted so himself. He once said, "I often wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn’t married Anne. I might not have survived without her business acumen and her finely-honed instincts.
Remembering Anne Buydens (born Hannelore Marx; April 23, 1919 – April 29, 2021) was a German-born American philanthropist, producer, and occasional actress. She was the wife of actor Kirk Douglas, to whom she had been married for 65 years at the time of his death in 2020. She was a member of the International Best Dressed List from 1970 to 2021.
She was born Hannelore Marx in Hanover, Germany on April 23, 1919,she was the daughter of a textile merchant imported silk for making parachutes; her mother was a socialite.
When her parents were divorced, she was sent to a boarding school in Switzerland, where she learned English, French and Italian. She married the Belgian Albert Buydens, but during World War II, they fled to Paris. She had jobs such as making German subtitles for films. In 1948, she was hired to produce an NBC program, Paris Cavalcade of Fashion.
She married 38-year-old actor Kirk Douglas on 29 May 1954. The couple had two sons, Peter (born November 23, 1955) and Eric (June 21, 1958 – July 6, 2004).She became a United States citizen in 1959. Buydens converted to Judaism when she renewed her wedding vows with Douglas in 2004. She and her husband both became centenarians. Buydens died on April 29, 2021, six days after her 102nd birthday, at the longtime Beverly Hills home she shared with Douglas.
Anne Douglas, the widow of Kirk Douglas and stepmother of Michael Douglas, died Thursday in California. She was 102.
Douglas died at her home in Beverly Hills, according to an obituary provided by spokeswoman Marcia Newberger. No cause of death was given.
Kirk Douglas, the Hollywood legend who starred in “Spartacus,” “Lust for Life” and dozens of other films, died in February 2020 at 103.
He married Anne Buydens in 1954 after they met in Paris while he was filming “Act of Love” and she was doing publicity. They had two sons, Peter, a producer, and Eric, an actor.
"I often wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn't married Anne. I might not have survived without her business acumen and her finely honed instincts," Kirk Douglas once said.
In 2017, the couple published “Kirk and Anne: Letters of Love, Laughter, and a Lifetime in Hollywood.”
Michael Douglas said his stepmother “will always be in our hearts.”
"She brought out the best in all of us, especially our father. Dad would never have had the career he did without Anne’s support and partnership," the actor said in a statement.
Michael said his stepmother "will always be in our hearts."
"She brought out the best in all of us, especially our father," the actor said in a statement to the Associated Press. "Dad would never have had the career he did without Anne’s support and partnership."
Kirk admitted so himself. He once said, "I often wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn’t married Anne. I might not have survived without her business acumen and her finely-honed instincts.
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