There are conflicting accounts as to when Robert and Jennifer's marriage began to unravel. Vincent Price claims that it began to happen during the filming of Bernadette.  Whatever the case, their relationship grew very tense by the time The Song of Bernadette had wrapped in July of 1943. Jennifer and Robert were then both assigned to Since You Went Away where filming their love scenes was most difficult. By October, they had separated. The Song Of Bernadette opened in December of 1943 and Jennifer was an overnight star. Robert Walker too had gained star status with the film Bataan.

Walker and Jones began divorce proceedings in March of 1944 and Robert Walker did not cope with it well. He began to drink and his volatile temper got him into trouble with the police on several occasions. Despite his promise of a successful film career (he was well liked by the movie going public) he lost all interest in his work.  He remarried in 1948 to Barbara Ford (director John Ford's daughter) but it only lasted six weeks. Later, Walker spent time at Menninger's Clinic for his alcohol problem and he suffered several nervous breakdowns.  He made a memorable comeback in Alfred Hitchcock's Strangers On A Train but he died suddenly in 1951 when doctors gave him sedatives following an emotional outburst.

David Selznick's chief concern now was the career of Jennifer Jones. He wisely chose roles that would portray her in diverse characterizations and as a result she was not typecast. Her roles ranged from sweet and innocents like Bernadette, Jennie, and Miss Dove to sultry vixens like Pearl Chavez and Ruby Gentry. She would portray contemporary women as well as classic literary characters like Madame Bovary and Sister Carrie. Selznick's judgment sometimes faltered. In 1944, Jones was offered the part of the lead role in Laura and Selznick turned it down!

David and Jennifer's relationship intensified over the years but it was not until July 13, 1949 that they were finally married on a yacht off the coast of Italy. They moved into a beautiful home on Tower Road in Beverly Hills that had once belonged to John Gilbert. On August 12, 1954, Jennifer gave birth to their first child, Mary Jennifer. Her first pregnancy with Selznick had ended in a miscarriage in 1951.

On stage in Serena Blandish (August 1948)

Jennifer's career hit a slump in the late 40s and early 50s when her films did not do well at the box office (although these are some of her best films) but she rebounded in the mid 50s with Love Is A Many Splendored Thing and Good Morning, Miss Dove and she was very popular with the public.  However, Selznick's overblown production of A Farewell To Arms was a disaster and did little to benefit Jennifer's career. She was off the screen for three years following A Farewell To Arms and returned in 1961 in Tender Is The Night which was also poorly received.

Selznick's health began to deteriorate (he had a bad heart) and he died on June 22, 1965. Jennifer was devastated but quickly accepted a film role in a low budget production called The Idol in order to keep herself occupied. She was a very lonely woman who had lost the driving force behind her life and career. When she learned that her close friend Charles Bickford had died, she took an overdose of pills and was found unconscious on Malibu Beach.  She later claimed that the incident had been an accident but it was evident that the 60's were very troubled times for Jennifer.

Continue on to Patron Of The Arts (The Norton Simon Years)