Mar 1, 2009, 12:45 GMT
Bette Midler waited 24 years to get her wedding photos back.
10/20/2008 - Bette Midler - Bette Midler waited 24 years to get her wedding photos back. © PRN / PR Photos
The 'Beaches' actress wed husband Martin von Haselberg in a Las Vegas ceremony conducted by an Elvis impersonator in 1984 but they didn't have any photographic evidence from their union until last year.
She said: "We only got our wedding pictures back last year after 24 years. I got a letter from a guy saying, 'I'm closing my chapel and I thought you would like these.'
"He sent us our pictures and we looked like children, even though we were quite old. I was 37, Martin was a couple of years younger, and all his hair is dark, no grey hairs. I'm a redhead. My hair is silver now, but you can't tell. It was frivolous to do it there with an Elvis impersonator but it was a whim."
Bette admits she and Martin - who have one daughter together - have had to work hard at their marriage but have always been determined to make it last.
The 63-year-old star added to Britain's Seven magazine: "There were plenty of times we felt like throwing in the towel because it was so hard, with my working. But we kept putting one foot in front of the other. It was hard. We kept plodding along and each success you have within the framework of the marriage you build on."
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