with much younger starlets, including Natalie Wood, Barbara Payton, and Sue Lyon. He attracted controversy by dating 16-year-old actress Tuesday Weld when he was 45. Ireland also had an affair with co-star Joan Crawford while on the set of Queen Bee (1955). A decade later, Ireland and Crawford co-starred again in William Castle's movie I Saw What You Did. He was married three times. His first wife, from 1940 to 1949, was Elaine Sheldon, by whom he had two sons, John and Peter. From 1949 to 1957, he was married to actress Joanne Dru (whose younger brother, entertainer Peter Marshall, was originally best known for his comedy act with Ireland's half-brother Tommy Noonan). In July 1956, Dru was admitted to hospital with a black eye which she said was accidental but which commonly was believed to have been caused by Ireland. Ireland later was admitted to hospital for taking an overdose of barbiturates. When the couple divorced in 1957 they had over $50,000 in debts. From 1962 until his death, Ireland was married to Daphne Myrick Cameron, with whom he had a daughter named Daphne and a son named Cameron. He has four grandchildren: Pete, Melissa, Jack and Helios. In his later years, he owned the restaurant Ireland's in Santa Barbara, California. An accomplished chef, he regularly worked in the kitchen and concocted Ireland Stew, combining whatever ingredients were available on a given night. He was also a regular at the restaurant's bar, greeting patrons and buying drinks for friends. The restaurant failed. In May 1977, Ireland declared bankruptcy. On March 21, 1992, Ireland died in Santa Barbara, California of leukemia at the age of 78. He is buried at the Santa Barbara Cemetery. For his contribution to the television industry, he was commemorated with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1610 Vine Street. Filmography References External links 1914 births 1992 deaths Film directors from Vancouver Male actors from Vancouver Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian male stage actors American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors American male stage actors Deaths from leukemia Male Western (genre) film actors Canadian emigrants to the United States Deaths from cancer in California Male Spaghetti Western actors 20th-century American male actors 20th-century Canadian male actors Burials at Santa Barbara Cemetery