Who are Philip Roth’s ex-wives Claire Bloom and Margaret Martinson, when did they get divorced and did he have any children?
The women in the writer's life provided inspiration for characters in his novels both positive and negative
PHILIP Roth was famed for his observations on life - some of which he gathered from his own relationships with his ex-wives.
Here are the woman who helped the novelist, who has died at the age of 85, explore and unpack the complexities of being a human.
Who are Philip Roth's ex-wives Claire Bloom and Margaret Martinson?
Roth was married twice – to Margaret Martinson from 1959 to 1963.
He was wedded to long-time partner Claire Bloom from 1990 to 1995.
He met Martinson in 1956 and married her three years later.
Roth claims she used someone else’s urine sample to persuade him she was pregnant and trick him into marriage.
They separated in 1963 and she died in a car crash in 1968, something that deeply affected Roth’s work.
Their marriage provided material for several novels.
Martinson inspired “The Monkey” (Mary Jane Reed) in novel Portnoy’s Complaint and Maureen Tarnopol in My Life as a Man.
Roth had a long-term relationship with British actress Claire Bloom whom he married in 1990, making her sign a prenuptial agreement beforehand.
When did they get divorced?
Roth and Bloom’s five-year marriage ended in divorce in 1995.
A year later, she published a bruising memoir, Leaving a Doll's House, in which she portrayed him as depressed, remote, self-centred and verbally abusive.
Roth was Bloom's third husband.
She was previously wed to actor Rod Steiger and producer Hillard Elkins.
Did Roth have children?
Both marriages produced no children, although he did have step-children.
He often said he did not want to have kids.
Roth claimed his first wife, Margaret Martinson, used someone else’s urine sample to persuade him she was pregnant and trick him into marrying her.
Margaret had two children from a previous relationship.
Second wife Claire Bloom had a daughter, Anna Steiger, from her marriage to American actor Rod Steiger.
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