Larry King’s wife Shawn said she will not fight the legendary television host’s divorce filing because he is a “dying man.” The 85-year-old King reportedly filed for divorce from his seventh wife on Tuesday after almost 22 years of marriage. King was most recently hospitalized in late April.
Sources who spoke with Shawn told TMZ Wednesday she was told by doctors that King is “dying.” She has had several “issues” with King in recent years, but his recent hospitalizations over the past six months have become a “bigger issue.” She claims doctors told her King “doesn’t have much longer to live.”
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King filed for divorce Tuesday after their two children, Chance and Cannon, pressured him to file for divorce. A source close to Shawn told TMZ only one of their children pressured him.
According to TMZ, Shawn asked King to make changes in his will. Sources close to King told the site Shawn wants more money and their children to have less. Sources on Shawn’s side denied that, claiming their estate planning lawyer told the couple to update their documents when they thought King only had a few days to live.
King was hospitalized on April 23. At the time, TMZ reported he had a heart attack, but King’s representative denied that, saying he had a scheduled angioplasty and was taken to the hospital early after he experienced angina.
“His doctor successfully performed the angioplasty and inserted stents to reopen the previous bypass from 1987. He has been recuperating in the hospital and is scheduled to be released soon. His doctors expect him to make a full recovery,” the rep said. “To be clear, and contrary to published reports, his doctors say he did not have a heart attack and he did not go into cardiac arrest. Larry is in good spirits and thanks everyone for their concern. He’s expected to be back to work on his shows, Larry King Now and PoliticKING with Larry King soon.”
King has had several health issues over the decades after suffering a major heart attack in 1987 that required quintuple-bypass surgery. He was also diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. In 2017, he said he needed two procedures after doctors diagnosed him with lung cancer.
King has been married eight times. At 19, he married his high school sweetheart Freda Miller in 1952, but the marriage was annulled. He was also married to Annette Kaye (1961), Alene Akins (1961-1963), Mickey Sutphin (1963-1967), Akins (1967-1972) and Julie Alexander (1989-1992). He has a son, Larry Jr., from his marriage to Kaye. King also adopted Akins’ son Andy during their first marriage. King’s marriage to Shawn was his longest-lasting.
King’s broadcasting career began in the late 1950s. He famously hosted Larry King Live from 1985 to 2010 for CNN and most recently hosted Larry King Now and PoliticKING with Larry King for Hulu and RT America.
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