How Kenny Rogers Ended Up With One Of Hollywood's Costliest Divorces

Rogers and his now ex-wife met before he skyrocketed to global fame. Yet, Gordon's support remained unchanged.

They married a year later, right before he made it big. But he struggled to find his footing after the collapse of The First Edition in the '70s.

What Happened

He was in his 40s and his prospects of launching a solo career in Nashville at the time was bleak. The future looked uncertain, but Gordon "stood behind" him nonetheless.

• While Rogers' net worth when he died was an estimated $250 million, that wasn't always his reality.

• When Kenny Rogers and the First Edition disbanded in 1976, he found himself $60,000 in debt.

• "Marianne really did deserve the 60 million because she is a great girl and we had a perfect marriage for 15 years," he told The Irish Independent in 2006.

Key Details

By doing so, Rogers recognized she played a big role in his success. Kenny Rogers never had any problems with Marianne Gordon.

• Before the 1977 hit "Lucille" kicked off his highly lucrative solo career, Rogers already had two decades of success in the music industry.

• Instead, their split was a result of changing lifestyles that resulted from the birth of their son, Christopher, in 1981.

• But it wasn't just the distance that caused issues in his marriages.

Why It Matters

Up until then, Gordon would accompany Rogers on the road. That stopped when she became a mother, and they began to grow apart.

• Rogers long recognized that his career aspirations got in the way of his personal life.

• "We just said, 'Life is short, we deserve to be happy, let's find something else to do with our lives,'" he revealed.

What Reports Say

Coverage of the story so far points to:

• Continued reporting by Yahoo as more details emerge