Getty Lyle Waggoner and his wife Sharon Kennedy.
Actor and sculptor Lyle Waggoner died on March 17 at his home. The actor was best known for his roles on The Carol Burnett Show and the Wonder Woman TV series. He was 84 years old.
His cause of death has not been revealed, simply that he was battling an illness. The heartthrob actor from the 1960s and 1970s and the first man to be featured on Playgirl magazine’s centerfold is survived by his wife, Sharon Kennedy, and their two sons.
Here’s what you need to know about Lyle Waggoner’s family:
1. He Married Sharon Kennedy, Who Is Also an Actor, in 1960
Star WaggonsLyle Waggoner and Sharon Kennedy
According to his IMDB profile, he married actress Sharon Kennedy on September 17, 1960. They have homes together in Westlake Village, California, Manzanillo, Mexico and Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Sharon Kennedy is known for her acting roles in Eh Brian! It’s a Whopper in 1984, Tattletales in 1974 and It’s Your Bet in 1969. The two remained married until his death, a marriage that lasted nearly 60 years.
2. They Have Two Sons Together, Jason and Beau Waggoner
Beau Waggoner
Sharon and Lyle have two sons together, Jason and Beau Waggoner.
In a 2016 CNBC profile of the company, Beau said in his interview that “I started 27 years ago with my father. My father didn’t put me into a position, I had to earn the position.” He explained that he started working there by washing trailers and repairing them. At one point, a position was available for sanitation, a position he managed for seven years. He joked that his nickname then was “Ty-D-Beau.”
He told CNBC that he started studying architecture and taught himself design. With time, he became the head of manufacturing.
In Jason’s profile, he shared that he hadn’t always worked with the company. He first worked a career in the oil business and banking. He started working for his father at Star Waggons in 2002. He gave some advice about people working in a family business, saying they should work outside the business first: “It gives you a completely different perspective, and then you can bring things in from the outside that you didn’t have.”
3. Lyle Has Two Grandkids Through His Son Jason and Daughter-in-Law Molly
Jason Waggoner
Lyle has two grandkids through his son Jason and Jason’s wife Molly. The two married in 2006 and they have two kids together. Their first child, Hudson James, was born a year after their wedding when Jason was 38 and Molly was 37. In a People profile, Jason said: “Molly is the love of my life, and now being a parent, it’s just amazing.”
Molly is an author and a blogger, where she shares her insights about her life in Los Angeles and raising their two kids.
4. He Is the Uncle of Brice Kennedy and Angela Kennedy
Lyle’s wife Sharon is the sister of Penny Kennedy, the mother of Angela Kennedy and Brice Kennedy, an indie film actor. Brice Kennedy, born in 1975, appeared in a number of independent films and was also the host of the cable comedy show, The Brice Kennedy Show. Brice also runs an independent production company, New Arena Pictures.
Angela Kennedy, along with her mother Penny, has appeared on the Brice Kennedy Show in 2002 and 2003.
5. The Family Started the “Star Waggons” Business Together
The Star Waggons business was founded in 1979 by Lyle and Sharon “on a family camping trip.” According to the website, they provide “custom location trailers exclusively to the ever-evolving entertainment industry.” It continues, “With over 800 in our fleet of trailers hand built by proud professionals in our 10-acre facility, we lead the industry in providing our clients with a home away from home.”
The website lists Sharon and Lyle as the founders of the business and their sons Jason and Beau are listed as the presidents of Star Waggons. Lyle Waggoner told LA Magazine in a 2013 interview that when his sons took over the business, “I told them, ‘If you want me to hand it down to you, make you partners, then I want you to run it as if I had sold it. Because when I step away, I want to really step away.'”
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