DAILY DIRT: Not all celebrity marriages are short-lived

Hats off to Dolly and Carl, Barry and Linda and more … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 953 of The Daily Dirt.

1. Much of the news we hear about celebrity couples involves divorce, right?

That’s why today we are acknowledging those “stars” who have worked their way through the good, bad and ugly of marriage. It’s refreshing to know that for every Kim Kardashian (who has had one more husband than the Cleveland Guardians have world championships. She’s also had more Cleveland Cavaliers as well … probably), there are celebrity couples like the following:

• Dolly Parton and Carl Dean, 57 years: We never hear much about “Carl”. That’s probably the key to the success of this famous marriage.
• Barry Gibb and Linda Gray, 53 years: The last remaining Gibb brother has long had a reputation as a philanthropist and loving husband. That “53 years” says a lot.
• Michael and Shakira Caine, 50 years: Caine’s real name is Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, Jr. He took the “Caine” name from the film “The Caine Mutiny”.
• Samuel L. and LaTanya Jackson, 43 years: Just a guess here, but I doubt if LaTanya swears as much as her husband..
• Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach, 42 years: Bach was the Bond girl in “The Spy Who Loved Me” in 1977. 
• Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, 40 years: They’ve been in a relationship since Valentine’s Day 1983.
• Denzel and Pauletta Washington, 40 years: Denzel has always been known for his humility and grounded attitude. This is more proof, I would say.
• Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, 35 years: And here I thought the only thing Hanks had a deep love for was baseball.
• Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick: 35 years: It’s hard to believe Bacon is 65 years old. I still think of him in “Footloose”.
• Sting and Trudi Styler, 31 years: Sting’s real name is Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner.

2. Did you know (Part 17) …

• That there is an ant species only found in New York City that have been named ManhattAnts.
• That Detroit (Mich.) has the highest crime rate among U.S. cities, according to the FBI Unified Crime Report. Rounding out the top five are Memphis (Tenn.), Birmingham (Ala.), Baltimore, and St. Louis. 
• That Jerry “The King” Lawler and “The Honky Tonk Man” were cousins. If you’re not a pro wrestling fan, this probably doesn’t mean much to you.
• That Jack Marshall, who created the theme song for “The Munsters,” is the father of the man (Frank Marshall) who produced the “Indiana Jones” movies and “Back to the Future”.
• That Howard Dwight Smith, the man who designed famed Ohio State University football stadium, was the grandfather of actress Beverly D’Angelo of the “Vacation” movies.

3. Fifty years ago today, these were the top 10 songs in the U.S.:

• 1. “TSOP,” by MFSB: A “Soul Train” classic.
• 2. “Bennie and the Jets,” by Elton John: Elton has some great songs in his catalogue. This is not one of them.
• 3. “You’re The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me,” by Gladys Knight and the Pips: One of those songs that would … never … end.
• 4. “The Loco Motion,” by Grand Funk: Grand Funk’s version was much better than the original by Little Eva.
• 5. “Oh My My,” by Ringo Starr: The only good thing I can say about this song is it was easy to sing along with when you heard it on the radio.
• 6. “Hooked On A Feeling,” by Blue Swede: The second-best song in this top 10.
• 7. “Come and Get Your Love,” by Redbone: The best song in this top 10.
• 8. “Dancing Machine,” by the Jackson 5ive: This was the point when every Jackson 5ive song started to sound alike.
• 9. “I Have To Say I Love You In A Song,” by Jim Croce: Croce was not in the spotlight for long
• 10. “Lookin’ For A Love,” by Bobby Womack: Definitely the best ever from Womack.

Steve Thought O’ The Day — It is estimated there are 27,000 trees cut down each day to meet the demands of the U.S. toilet paper industry.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He consulted for the couples in many of those long-term marriages as “Stevie Love”.