Patti Kendig is an American dancer and actress who became widely known through her long relationship with television actor Gavin MacLeod. She lived much of her life away from heavy media attention. Her story, however, became closely connected with Hollywood, marriage, faith, and personal change.
She is best known as Gavin MacLeod’s wife. Their relationship had an unusual journey because they married in 1974, divorced in 1982, and found their way back to each other. They remarried in 1985 and remained husband and wife until Gavin died in May 2021.
Beyond their marriage, Patti had experience as a dancer and actress and occasionally appeared at public events with Gavin. Her life also included Christian faith and a quiet public presence. This biography explores her background, career, marriage, divorce, remarriage, family life, and later years.
Quick Bio
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Patti Kendig |
| Also known as | Patti MacLeod |
| Birth name | Patricia Ann Kendig |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Dancer, actress |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Known for | Marriage to Gavin MacLeod |
| Husband | Gavin MacLeod |
| First marriage to Gavin | 1974 |
| Divorce | 1982 |
| Reconnected | 1984 |
| Remarriage | 1985 |
| Children with Gavin | None |
| Widowed | May 29, 2021 |
Who Is Patti Kendig?
Patti Kendig, also known as Patti MacLeod, is an American dancer and actress whose birth name is Patricia Ann Kendig. She became a familiar name mainly because of her relationship with actor Gavin MacLeod.
However, Patti had her own connection with entertainment through dancing and acting. She preferred a quieter life and never developed the same level of public fame as her husband.
Her relationship with Gavin became the central part of her public story. Their marriage survived divorce and years of personal change before they married again, making their relationship an unusual second-chance Hollywood love story.
Patti Kendig’s Early Years and Background
Patti Kendig has kept her childhood and early background away from widespread attention. Details about her exact date of birth and birthplace have remained limited. One account has listed her age as 90, while information about her younger years is scarce.
Her parents, siblings, education, and childhood experiences have also remained outside her public story. Patti appears to have preferred keeping these parts of her life personal.
Before becoming involved with Gavin MacLeod, Patti had reportedly experienced marriage and divorce. She was also described as having children from that earlier relationship, although few details about that family chapter became widely known.
Her Career as a Dancer and Actress
Before becoming widely associated with Gavin MacLeod, Patti Kendig worked as a dancer. Dancing gave her an early connection with entertainment, although detailed records of her professional performances and career path have remained limited.
Patti has also been described as an actress. Her acting work included a small number of television appearances, with reports linking her to an appearance on The Love Boat, the popular television series starring Gavin.
Unlike her husband, Patti did not pursue a highly visible Hollywood career. She generally stayed outside the spotlight and became better known through her personal life than through her entertainment work.
Gavin MacLeod’s Family Before Patti
Before his relationship with Patti Kendig, Gavin MacLeod was married to Joan Rootvik, a Rockette he met while working at Radio City Music Hall. Most accounts place their marriage in 1955, while another date given for their wedding is 1954.
Gavin and Joan eventually ended their marriage in 1972. During their years together, they became parents to four children named Keith, David, Julie, and Meaghan MacLeod.
Those four children remained Gavin’s only children because he and Patti did not have children together. Patti therefore entered a relationship with a man who already had an established family from his earlier marriage.
Patti Kendig’s Early Marriage to Gavin MacLeod
Patti Kendig married Gavin MacLeod in 1974, around two years after Gavin’s marriage to Joan Rootvik ended. By this stage, Gavin already had an established acting career and was becoming an increasingly familiar face on American television.
Their early married life took place alongside Gavin’s demanding career and his struggles with alcohol. Patti described how his personality could change when he drank. Before their marriage, Gavin promised that he would stop drinking because he did not want alcohol to harm their relationship.
The couple remained together while Gavin’s career continued growing, but personal and professional pressures eventually created serious difficulties in their marriage.
What Caused Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod’s Divorce?
Gavin MacLeod’s work became especially demanding during his successful run on The Love Boat. The television series required significant time for filming, travelling, promotional activities, and other professional responsibilities connected with his growing fame.
Gavin later accepted responsibility for difficulties in his marriage. He felt that he had placed his career before Patti and had failed to give their relationship enough time and attention. His earlier struggles with alcohol also formed part of this difficult period.
Their first marriage eventually ended in divorce. Most accounts place the divorce in 1982, although 1981 has also been given. Gavin initially believed their relationship was completely over.
How Patti and Gavin Found Each Other Again
The period after their divorce brought important personal changes. Patti became a born-again Christian during their separation and prayed for reconciliation with Gavin. Faith gradually became an important part of the story that eventually brought them together again.
Gavin experienced his own religious turning point in 1984 when his mother developed a cyst on her brain and required surgery. He prayed to Jesus and promised to make major changes in his life.
On September 15, 1984, Gavin contacted Patti and asked whether they could become friends again. Their conversation opened the door to a reunion, and their relationship slowly began moving toward reconciliation.
Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod’s Second Marriage
After reconnecting, Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod decided to give their relationship another chance. Patti reportedly gave Gavin a Bible that already had his name engraved on it. Gavin also became a born-again Christian as their renewed relationship developed.
The couple remarried in 1985, three years after their first marriage had ended. Their second wedding represented more than a return to their earlier relationship, as both had experienced significant changes during their time apart.
Christian faith became central to their new life together. Gavin described their relationship as a “threefold marriage,” referring to himself, Patti, and Jesus as important parts of their lasting union.
Faith, Recovery, and Their Marriage Story
Faith became one of the strongest themes in Patti and Gavin’s second marriage. Their Christian beliefs shaped how they viewed forgiveness, commitment, personal responsibility, and rebuilding a relationship after serious difficulties.
Recovery was another important part of this chapter. Gavin addressed his alcohol problems and the personal changes that followed. Their reconciliation was therefore connected with a broader change in the way they approached their lives and marriage.
Instead of hiding their difficult past, the couple later used their experience to encourage others. Their story showed how divorce did not become the final chapter of their relationship and how they created another life together.
Their Back on Course Story
Patti and Gavin’s unusual journey became connected with Back On Course: The Remarkable Story of a Divorce That Ended in Remarriage. Published in 1987, the story addressed Gavin’s personal struggles as well as the couple’s divorce, faith, reconciliation, and second marriage.
Their experience also became connected with marriage-focused Christian work. They shared lessons from their own relationship and discussed themes such as forgiveness, commitment, recovery, and rebuilding trust after a marriage had faced serious problems.
The idea of getting “back on course” closely represented their journey. Their first marriage ended, but personal changes allowed them to begin another chapter and remain together for decades.
Family and Children in Patti Kendig’s Marriage
Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod did not have any children together during either of their marriages. Gavin was already a father when he met Patti, as he had four children with his first wife, Joan Rootvik.
His children are Keith, David, Julie, and Meaghan MacLeod. They were part of Gavin’s family life long before his marriage to Patti began in 1974.
Patti had also reportedly been married before her relationship with Gavin. She was described as having children from that earlier marriage. Her relationship with Gavin therefore brought together two people who had already experienced important family chapters before becoming husband and wife.
Patti Kendig’s Public Appearances With Gavin
Although Patti Kendig preferred a relatively private lifestyle, she sometimes accompanied Gavin MacLeod to entertainment events. These appearances offered occasional public views of the couple during their long second marriage.
In 2003, Patti and Gavin attended the TV Land Awards and the Movieguide Awards. They were also photographed at the opening of Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All. The couple later appeared at another TV Land Awards event in 2004.
These appearances never turned Patti into a constant Hollywood personality. She remained much less visible than Gavin and generally avoided building a highly public celebrity identity around their marriage or his successful television career.
Gavin MacLeod’s Death and Patti Becoming a Widow
Gavin MacLeod died on May 29, 2021, at his home in Palm Desert, California. He was 90 years old. His death ended a television career and personal journey that had lasted for many decades.
Patti and Gavin were still married when he died. Their second marriage had lasted about 36 years, far longer than their first marriage before the divorce. Patti therefore became Gavin’s widow after sharing much of his later life.
Their lasting second marriage gave a special meaning to their earlier reconciliation. What began again in 1985 continued until Gavin’s death, completing one of the most unusual chapters of their relationship.
Patti Kendig’s Life in Recent Years
Following Gavin MacLeod’s death, Patti Kendig continued to maintain the private lifestyle that had characterized much of her public life. She has remained outside regular entertainment coverage and has not made her personal activities a major public subject.
Her recent work and day-to-day life have also stayed away from widespread attention. She does not have a widely recognized verified social media presence through which she regularly shares personal updates with the public.
As a result, Patti is now mainly remembered through her entertainment background and her decades-long connection with Gavin. Their marriage, divorce, reconciliation, and remarriage remain central parts of her life story.
Patti Kendig’s Net Worth
Patti Kendig worked as a dancer and actress, but she never built the same highly visible entertainment career as Gavin MacLeod. Her professional work and financial affairs remained largely private throughout her life in and around Hollywood.
No clear personal net worth figure has become a major part of Patti’s public profile. Her life was much more commonly discussed through her marriage and occasional entertainment work than through money, property, or business activities.
Gavin enjoyed a long television career, especially through The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Love Boat. Patti, however, kept her own financial life separate from her public identity.
Patti Kendig’s Own Life and Personal Journey
Patti Kendig is often introduced simply as Gavin MacLeod’s wife, but her story contains more than that connection. She had experience as a dancer and actress and lived through major personal changes before and during their relationship.
Her decision to remarry Gavin also made her an important part of their second-chance story. Their reconciliation required both people to return to a relationship that had already legally ended and build a different marriage together.
Patti later shared a life shaped strongly by Christian faith, forgiveness, and commitment. She remained beside Gavin through their long second marriage while continuing to maintain a quieter identity away from constant Hollywood attention.
Final Thoughts
Patti Kendig’s biography combines entertainment, marriage, divorce, faith, recovery, and reconciliation. She worked as a dancer and actress but became best known as the wife of The Love Boat actor Gavin MacLeod. Their relationship followed a path that few Hollywood marriages experience.
They first married in 1974 and divorced in 1982. After personal and religious changes, they reconnected in 1984 and remarried the following year. Their second marriage then lasted about 36 years.
Gavin died on May 29, 2021, leaving Patti widowed. Their story remains memorable because a relationship that once ended in divorce later became a long-lasting marriage built around faith and renewed commitment.
FAQs About Patti Kendig
Who is Patti Kendig?
Patti Kendig, also known as Patti MacLeod, is an American dancer and actress. She became widely known as the wife of Gavin MacLeod, the actor famous for The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Love Boat.
When did Patti Kendig marry Gavin MacLeod?
Patti Kendig first married Gavin MacLeod in 1974. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1982. After spending time apart and reconnecting in 1984, they decided to marry each other again in 1985.
Why did Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod divorce?
Their marriage faced difficulties as Gavin’s acting career became increasingly demanding. His busy work schedule and alcohol struggles affected their relationship. Gavin later accepted responsibility and said he had placed his career ahead of his marriage.
Did Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod have children?
Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod did not have children together. Gavin had four children named Keith, David, Julie, and Meaghan from his previous marriage to Joan Rootvik, which ended before he married Patti.
How long were Patti Kendig and Gavin MacLeod married?
Patti and Gavin first married in 1974 and divorced in 1982. They remarried in 1985, and their second marriage lasted about 36 years, ending when Gavin died on May 29, 2021.
