Barbra Streisand and James Brolin met in July 1996 and by November 1996 they had moved in together. They've been married 24 years.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on December 24, 2021. It has since been updated.
What makes people fall for each other is quite mysterious, but many people know the exact moment that was the cincher for them. It could be the way someone smiled or a gesture towards someone else or even brutal honesty. For Barbra Streisand, 78, and James Brolin, 80, who have been married for 24 years, it was the latter that brought them together.
Streisand said that when she chose to direct The Mirror Has Two Faces which released in 1996, she did so because the protagonist gets the guy in the end. And, while she had been alone for too long, having divorced her first husband, Elliott Gould, in 1971, she wanted a happy ending.
Streisand told W Magazine that she met Brolin for the first time on July 1, 1996, at a blind date set up by her friend. She had previously met him at a party and expected him to show up in his bushy avatar. "I met him at a dinner and expected a bearded mountain-man type, and he had cut off all his hair and was clean-shaven," she told W magazine. "I asked him, 'Who screwed up your hair?' He later told me that's when he fell in love with me. My fella likes to hear the truth, which is unusual."
Her uncanny pick-up line worked its charm on him and they sat talking until 3 am. Unsure if they should kiss, the couple fumbled on that first date. However, Streisand said it took her "a couple of months" before she knew she met the love of her life. They were in a long-distance relationship during that time as Brolin went to Ireland to direct My Brother's War. They were falling in love over the phone and by November that year, they started living together, as per GoodHouseKeeping.
They married in 1998 at Streisand's estate in Malibu, California and the Yentl actress wore a crystal beaded Donna Karan gown with a 15-foot veil. The romantic couple chose July 1 as their wedding date since it was the second anniversary of their first date.
Brolin was so in love with her that during the wedding speech, he said, "I can't tell you how lucky I am that this would happen to me so late in life." According to People, he said, "Every night is a new adventure. Sleeping is a waste of time. I can't wait to see her again in the morning."
After being married for more than two decades, the actress commented to Extra, "Twenty years in Hollywood is like 50 years in Chicago, I always say." She still tells the truth to people she loves but doesn't want to hurt them. "The Dalai Lama says, 'Give truth with compassion...' I used to use truth as a weapon years ago, actually, 'Well, you look fat 'cause you're fat ... I'm telling you the truth.' Truth with compassion would say it a different way — I don't think you can take each other for granted," she added.
The couple celebrated their 22nd year together on July 1, 2020. In these 20 odd years, their brood has certainly grown. The singer, director, and actress is a grandmom to Brolin's son, Josh Brolin's child. Josh, 52, revealed in 2018 that when his wife, Kathryn Boyd, gave The Prince of Tides star a gift, she lost it. "My wife got her a bracelet that said ‘Grandma’ on it and she started crying," Josh recently said of Streisand to People. "She is one of those … it’s annoying but in a really great way, [with] emails every day and like, ‘Hey, I thought of this name, what do you think of that? … When can I come over and feel the baby?'" remarked the actor.
References:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKokpBR7PK4
https://people.com/archive/cover-story-the-way-they-were-vol-50-no-1/
https://people.com/music/barbra-streisand-james-brolin-20-year-wedding-anniversary/
