The Divorce of Zeppo and Barbara

Zeppo and Barbara
On the day of their Las Vegas wedding, Sept. 18, 1959

In an earlier post, Zeppo Marx: FAQ, I indicated that Zeppo and his second wife Barbara, who later married Frank Sinatra, were divorced in 1972 or 1973. This was the best I could do at the time, based on information on the internet. Now, I can state unequivocally that the couple separated in 1972 and divorced in 1973. From the Press-Telegram (Long Beach, California), Wednesday, May 2, 1973:

Zeppo Marx wife wins divorce

Mrs. Zeppo Marx, wife of the youngest of the Marx brothers comedy team, has been granted a dissolution of her marriage to the 72-year-old comedian.

Superior Court Judge Frank Moore awarded Barbara Marx $1500 a month for 19 years in granting the dissolution Tuesday in Palm Springs. The woman filed for dissolution of the 14-year-old marriage last December after a five-week separation from her husband.

Zeppo, whose real name is Herbert, succeeded brother Gummo as a member of the famed comedy team of Groucho, Harpo, and Chico. He played mainly romantic roles in film and stage shows of the 1920s and early 1930s.

The vaudeville stage and screen star became an actors' agent in 1933. Zeppo was divorced from Marion Marx in 1954.

I wonder if Zeppo had to continue alimony payments after Barbara married Sinatra.