Patrick Duffy Considered Himself Still Married after Death of Wife Who Betrayed Her 1st Husband for Him

Patrick Duffy struggled to move on from his late wife, having shared a beautiful journey with her and their children. This is the story of the two soulmates, their life together, and their tragic ending.

Trouper Patrick Duffy is widely known for his previous role as Bobby Ewing in the revolutionary soap opera "Dallas." But, this wasn't his only gig; one job transformed his life forever.

The actor was once a narrator in a dance troupe's school performances. He spent time on the tour bus with ballerinas. One dancer, in particular, caught his eye -- just a quick inkling of the amazing journey to come.

Her name was Carlyn Rosser, and he was besotted with her. The actor stated that he had never seen such a gorgeous woman. Speaking about their meeting her in his own words, Duffy remembered:

"I was an immature college graduate touring as narrator with this dance production, and she was a beautiful ballerina 10 years older."

Although they had practically just met, the television star implied that it was already obvious that their connection was not a fling. Rather, Duffy expressed, it was "for life."

PATRICK'S LOVE WAS MARRIED AND HAD TO TELL HER HUSBAND ABOUT THE BETRAYAL

While the pair's love story was one of beauty, sadly, another person was hurt in the process. His future wife Rosser had to tell her then-husband about her newfound love. Duffy said:

"She had the hardest job. She had to tell her husband. And they were happily married. It wasn't, you know, a bad relationship. He was a good man, and he is a good man."

The ballerina had been married to her now-ex-husband for over a decade. Duffy understood that her husband felt duped. But, he found it necessary for him and Rosser to move forward with their relationship. The two got married in 1974 and had two sons together -- Padraic and Conor.

Talking about their marriage and relationship, Padraic said he has always been grateful for Rosser's role in converting him to Buddhism. But, he admitted that his initial decision to do so was not borne from the purest of intentions, stating:

"I only converted because I wanted to sleep with her. And now I do it because it's such a part of my life."

He claimed that this philosophy has helped him deal with difficult periods in his life, such as his father's death. Duffy said that Buddhism does not make him numb to pain, but it helps him avoid suffering.

DUFFY MAKES HIS BALLERINA CRY

Although Duffy and his wife had a strong and trusting bond, this didn't make them immune to hurting one another, even if it was unintentional.

Finally, their online conversations blossomed into a real-time romantic relationship.

This happened on one of their "Dallas Nights," where the couple and their kids would eat ice cream and watch the soap opera together.

On this particular evening, a sex scene with one of Duffy's co-stars came up, and tears began to form in his wife's eyes. Duffy asked what was wrong, pointing out Rosser had witnessed similar scenes of him before. She replied:

"I just saw a look on your face I thought you only had with me."

Duffy said his heart was shattered by how he had hurt his spouse. He thought back to that scene, realizing that he wasn't connected to it at all.

CARLYN'S SUDDEN DEATH AFFECTED PATRICK'S LIFE

But, his heart was genuinely torn to pieces when the love of his life died unexpectedly in 2017 at 77 years old. Two years on and he still considered himself a married man, expressing :

"I can hear her. I can see her...I feel close to her all the time [but] what I miss most is her touch."

He and his sons supported each other through the grieving process. But, Duffy could see that it was slightly easier for him to face the passing of Rosser -- he is much older and more experienced in tragedy than his kids.

Although extremely painful to have gone through, Duffy emphasized that he has no regrets about the amazing path he shared with his late wife.

The actor said he could turn anything negative that happens in his life, anything he has done wrong, into something valuable.

You May Also Like: Judi Dench Met David Mills after Being a Widow for 9 Years — She Never Expected to Find Love Again

FINDING LOVE AGAIN

Although Duffy could have remained stuck in his grief, he eventually moved on. In 2020, it became public knowledge that he and Linda Purl, "Happy Days" actress, were dating. Speaking about their relationship, he expressed:

"I never thought for a minute this would happen again. I never thought I'd feel this way again."

Before they became a couple, he was comfortable as a widower. Duffy had no idea that he would fall for his acquaintance Purl. They hadn't spoken in a long time but reconnected via a group text chain during the pandemic.

TRUE LOVE IN ACTION

There were a few people in the group but eventually, everyone left, and it was just them. Finally, their online conversations blossomed into a real-time romantic relationship.

Duffy believes in his heart that his late wife would be nothing but extremely happy to learn that he had once again found love.

In fact, he believes that she most likely would want him to find someone to make him happy. In his own words, Duffy expressed:

"I feel quite honestly that it is keeping with the desires of my wife, the fact that we are intended to be happy."

That is what true love is -- wanting happiness for the other person, no matter if you are the one making them feel that way or not.

THE FRESH PRINCE OF CONTROVERSY

Duffy's story shows that relationships are beautifully messy -- from by-chance meetings, happiness, grief, and so much more.

Because of the recent incident between Will Smith and Chris Rock, one messy and controversial couple in the spotlight right now is Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith.

The duo have been married since the late '90s and have two children: their son, Jaden, and their daughter, Willow.

Since the 2022 Academy Awards ceremony incident, many people have researched the pair. Some of what they found wasn't all that nice.

In one old dug-up video, Jada admitted on "Red Table Talk" that she didn't want to marry Will. She said she only married him because she was pregnant with their son. This gossip is only the tip of what netizens are finding via their desktops.

Let's hope that if Will and Jada's marriage is genuinely suffering, they, at some point, can find themselves in the space and type of love that Duffy and his late wife occupied.