John Goodman celebrates 33 years of marriage to wife Anna who saved him from alcoholism
NEW ORLEANS, LOUSIANA: One of the most loved actors in Hollywood, John Goodman from the hit sitcom 'Roseanne' celebrated his 33rd anniversary with his wife Anna Beth Hartzog on Thursday, October 27. The couple has been happily married for over three decades and proves the famous phrase: Behind every great man there is a great woman.
However, their years-long love has gone through severe hardships and according to the 70-year-old actor, it is his wife who deserves the credit for strengthening their bond. Goodman not only acknowledges his wife for inspiring him to quit drinking but also for pulling him out of a dark phase in life which led to significant weight loss.
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The romantic pair met each other while filming the 1988 film 'Everybody’s All-American'. However, it was during a Halloween party when the prolific actor was approached by his now wife. "I went to this Halloween party, and she walked up to me and said, ‘Hi.’ I couldn’t figure out why anyone that pretty was talking to me," he told Elle.
He confessed to Seth Meyers that the couple did not start dating immediately as Anna thought Goodman was a zombie. The actor then stalked his co-star until they eventually started mingling. The pair tied the knot in 1989 in New Orleans and welcomed their daughter Molly Evangeline Goodman in 1990.
Now, while the actor was achieving astonishing heights in the television industry due to his sitcom 'Roseanne', the fame surely took a toll as he began heavily drinking on the show's set. The actor initially thought he was able to hide his alcoholism. However, things soon went out of hand. "I got complacent and ungrateful. And after nine years—eight years, I wanted to leave the show. I handled it like I did everything else, by sittin’ on a bar stool. And that made it worse… My speech would be slurred. I was still drinking, but I was still shaking. I had the clarity of thought that I needed to be hospitalized," he told The Sun.
The actor recalls having lost 100 pounds during those tough times. This is when his wife Anna sent the actor to rehab. "I called my wife, which was like turning myself into the Gestapo. And she made some phone calls; we got me into a treatment center, and I detoxed there and decided I liked the feeling," he told the new outlet.
After a life-changing journey at the treatment center, Goodman has reportedly been sober since 2007. "Then this time I wanted to do it slowly, move, exercise. I’m getting to the age where I can’t afford to sit still anymore. And it gives me the energy to work, cause work is very draining," he continued.
Goodman thanks his wife for being there for him as well as raising his daughter. "She turned out great. But she had her mother and her grandmother to teach her manners," he shared on The off-camera show.