On This Day, May 13, 1985: Bruce Springsteen married Julianne Phillips

On This Day, May 13, 1985 …

Bruce Springsteen married actress Julianne Phillips at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Lake Oswego, Oregon. The marriage was the first for both, although it did not last.

Songs on Springsteen’s 1987 album Tunnel of Love were inspired by his troubled marriage. During Springsteen’s Tunnel of Love Express tour he reportedly began a relationship with musician Patti Scialfa, who had joined for the tour.

Springsteen later separated from Phillips; Phillips filed for divorce in August 1988, citing irreconcilable differences.

Springsteen went on to wed Scialfa on June 8, 1991, at their home in Los Angeles. They had already welcomed their first child, son Evan, almost a year earlier. They later welcomed two more children: Jessica, born in December 1991, and Samuel, born in January 1994.

Springsteen and Scialfa are still married and she has toured with The E Street Band for years. After missing shows on Springsteen’s 2023 tour, it was revealed Scialfa had been diagnosed in 2018 with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, which has made it hard for her to perform.

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