John Lithgow and his wife, Mary Yeager, have successfully transformed the actor’s work trips into delightful vacations. With Yeager’s recent retirement from her long-standing position as a professor of business and economic history at UCLA, she now has more flexibility to accompany her husband, who is 79, on his overseas filming adventures.
“We’ve devised a fantastic system where she arrives in all these exotic places just as I have about two weeks left on my project,” Lithgow shared with PEOPLE, referring to his recent filming of Conclave in Italy.
Lithgow stars in the play Giant in London, exploring Roald Dahl’s experience with antisemitism
“By that point, I’m more settled in and no longer a bundle of nerves. After finishing my work, we then escape for a holiday together,” said the six-time Emmy winner, celebrated for roles in Third Rock from the Sun, Dexter, The Crown, and more. “It’s been absolutely wonderful.”
Recently, Lithgow has been based in London while starring in Giant, a play that delves into the antisemitism faced by Roald Dahl, the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. “It’s an incredible play,” Lithgow expressed.
His experience has been further enriched by family visits; his daughter Phoebe came to see him, and Mary was able to stay with him throughout his run, which concludes in mid-November.
Lithgow and Yeager’s paths crossed in 1980 when a mutual friend set them up. “She knew about our lunch date, but no one informed me. I showed up sweaty in borrowed tennis gear, while she looked stunning.
It was love at first sight,” Lithgow recounted to The Guardian. “Professors and actors aren’t meant to marry because our lifestyles are so incompatible,” Lithgow remarked, yet he and Yeager wed in 1981.
Initially, they settled in Los Angeles for Yeager’s career, but Lithgow’s acting work often took him away. “I’m embarking on amazing projects with wonderful new friends, which is exhilarating and invigorates me,” he explained to The Guardian. “However, there are times when we’re apart, and that’s challenging.”
For his latest film, Conclave, a gripping drama about Cardinals selecting a new Supreme Pontiff following the pope’s death, Lithgow spent two months in Rome, enjoying the city alongside co-stars Stanley Tucci and Ralph Fiennes.
“Walking the streets of Rome with Stanley made me feel like a complete nobody,” Lithgow joked, referencing Tucci’s popular food and travel series, Searching for Italy, on CNN. “Ralph and I felt like mere extras in Gandhi—we attracted absolutely no attention! So, you just have to accept that bitter truth,” he added.
