(20 September 1936 - 24 June 1970) (divorced) (2 children)
Gleason had been seeing a lot of Genevieve Halford, a dancer; both were working in vaudeville when they met. Genevieve wanted marriage, while Gleason was not ready to settle down. She told him that they would either get married or she would begin seeing other men; when Gleason went onstage one evening at the Club Miami in Newark, New Jersey, Genevieve was seated in the front row with a date. At the end of his show, Gleason went to the table and proposed to Genevieve in front of her date. They were married on September 20, 1936.
Genevieve expected a normal husband who would be home when not at work; Gleason fell back into spending his nights out. Separated for the first time in 1941 and reconciled in 1948, the couple had two daughters (Geraldine and Linda). Gleason's daughter Linda was married to actor-playwright Jason Miller; their son (and Gleason's grandson) is actor Jason Patric. Gleason and his wife informally separated again in 1951. In early 1954, the comedian suffered a broken leg and ankle on-air during his television show. His injuries sidelined him for a few weeks, and Gleason's friends filled in for him while he recuperated. Gleason's injury dealt a permanent blow to his already-troubled marriage. While they were still separated when Gleason was hospitalized, Genevieve came to visit and found he already had a visitor: dancer Marilyn Taylor from his television show. The women confronted each other, and Genevieve filed for a legal separation in April 1954; they were divorced in 1970.
Gleason met his second wife, Beverly McKittrick (a secretary), at a country club in 1968. Ten days after his divorce from Genevieve was final.