In the 1970s, charismatic actor James Garner, who died in 2014, and beloved actress Mariette Hartley, now 85, were paired for a series of TV commercials featuring the then-popular Polaroid camera. They played a married couple in the ads, which became so successful, TV viewers thought the two were wed in real life.
A Closer Look
According to This Date In History on Facebook, James Garner and Mariette Hartley starred in over 250 Polaroid commercials from 1977 to the early 1980s.
Many television watchers were so convinced the two actors were a real-life husband and wife, Hartley frequently adorned a T-shirt declaring, “I am NOT James Garner’s wife.”
In 2024, Hartley recalled working with Garner, “I just adored him. He was so easy and lovely and funny…And we just had great fun.”
The two also appeared together in an episode of Garner’s TV detective show, The Rockford Files, titled “Paradise Cove.”
In the segment, she portrayed Althea Morgan, a court-appointed receiver pursuing Rockford. The teleplay included a kiss between Morgan and Rockford, capitalizing on the actors’ TV ad dichotomy.
In real life, Hartlet and Garner were nothing more than dear friends, and both were married to other people.
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- Legendary Actress Tuesday Weld Turns 82: After Troubled Early Days, She Leads A Triumphant Life
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This article originally appeared on Newsbreak.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org
