Meet The 13 Celebs Who Married Their Family Members

Marrying your first cousin is legal in 25 states in the United States, back in the day it was even commonplace. In this modern day and age, it carries a stigma to have a romantic relationship with a close relative, but these celebs chose to buck that trend.

Jerry Lee Lewis

Jerry Lee Lewis, the accomplished musician who rocked the world with “Great Balls of Fire” married his 13 year old cousin in 1958. The marriage would last 13 years and Lewis has been married four more times since then.

Thomas Jefferson

The beloved Founding Father married his third cousin, Martha Wayles Skelton, and had six children together, two of which survived to adulthood. The ten years that they were married were the happiest in Thomas Jefferson’s life. Martha made Thomas promise to never re-marry.

Edgar Allan Poe

Poe has never been known for not being creepy. The fact that he married his first cousin, Virginia Clemm, when she was thirteen does not help with the “creep” factor. Add to it that he nicknamed her “sissy” and “sis” and his poetry makes a lot more sense.

 

Queen Elizabeth II

Okay, so royalty always marries their cousins, right? Sort of, but Queen Elizabeth is related to her husband, Prince Philip, as both second cousins through King Christian IX of Denmark and third cousins through Queen Victoria of England. There might have been some concern with the health of their children if you just saw Prince Charles, but the rest of them seemed to have turned out alright.

Rudy Giuliani

Ask people about Rudy Giuliani and they will know him either as “the guy that hates homeless people” or as “the guy who hosted SNL and appeared on Seinfeld”. Other, smarter people know him as “the guy who unknowingly married his second cousin and childhood friend”.

Jesse James

JesseJames is known as one of the last great American outlaws. Committing train robberies and hiding in caves. He also married his cousin, Zerelda Mimms, who was (creepily) named after Jesse’s mother.

Albert Einstein

Einstein was so smart that his name became a synonym for someone who is really smart. Well, in addition to being really really smart, Einstein married his first (and second) cousin, Elsa Lowenthal. Good for him?

Kevin Bacon Kevin

“I’m cooking” Bacon found out in recent years that he is a distant (very very distant) 9th cousin with his wife Kyra Sedgewick. Just an example of how distant this relationship is, President Barack Obama more closely related to Brad Pitt, Dick Cheney, AND George W. Bush, than Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgewick.

Johan Sebastian

Bach While not a “modern” celeb, Bach was the hottest thing in Baroque music at one point in his lifetime. He was also the hottest thing out there with his second cousin Maria Barbara Bach, whom he married in 1707.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

The 32nd President of the United States, good ‘ol FDR married his 5th cousin Eleanor Roosevelt. FDR’s parents were also 6th cousins. Gotta keep up with the Roosevelts.

Charles Darwin

Best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory (and his love for finches and tortoises), Charles Darwin married his cousin Emma Wedgewood in 1839. Seems like the father of natural selection would understand some of the dangers of marrying a cousin.

Christopher Robin Christopher

Robin Milne, the inspiration of “Christopher Robin” in Winnie the Pooh, married his first cousin Lesley de Selincourt. He spent most of his life avoiding the fame that came with being the inspiration for Winnie the Pooh.

John F. Fitzgerald Fitzgerald

was a Massachusetts congressman and early supporter of the Boston Red Sox. He also married his second cousin Mary Josephine “Josie” Hannon. He also helped his grandson, future president John F. Kennedy, win his first congressional race.

culled from Answer.com

Meet The 13 Celebs Who Married Their Family Members