I\u2019ve always admired Ann-Margret \u2014 warm, sweet, and effortlessly classy. Known for her fiery beauty and talent, she stole hearts on and off screen, famously dating Elvis Presley and supporting Vietnam troops when few others did.<\/p>\n
Though her career is iconic \u2014 from Bye Bye Birdie<\/em> to a recent rock album Born to Be Wild<\/em> \u2014 she considers her greatest achievement something more personal: her enduring love with actor Roger Smith.<\/p>\n Despite dating Hollywood stars, it was Roger who truly captured her heart. They met in the \u201960s, bonded over motorcycles, and married in 1967. Though their wedding wasn\u2019t glamorous, their love was real. Roger became her manager, guiding her career and helping her evolve beyond the \u201csex symbol\u201d image into a respected actress, notably in Carnal Knowledge<\/em>.<\/p>\n Their bond was tested \u2014 Ann-Margret battled substance abuse and survived a near-fatal fall in 1972. Roger, who once flew a stolen plane to get her to a hospital, was her rock. Later, when he fell ill with myasthenia gravis and Parkinson\u2019s, she stepped away from her career to care for him.<\/p>\n Though they never had children together, Ann-Margret embraced his three stepchildren and often said her proudest achievement was their marriage. Roger passed in 2017, but their love story remains a Hollywood rarity \u2014 full of devotion, strength, and mutual respect.<\/p>\n One photo from 1985 captures it all: elegance, unity, and the quiet awareness of life\u2019s fragility \u2014 a lasting portrait of two people who built a life, and a legacy, together.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I\u2019ve always admired Ann-Margret \u2014 warm, sweet, and effortlessly classy. Known for her fiery beauty and talent, she stole hearts on and off screen, famously dating Elvis Presley and supporting Vietnam troops when few others did. Though her career is iconic \u2014 from Bye Bye Birdie to a recent rock album Born to Be Wild…<\/p>\n