Why Donna Mills Never Married Her Longtime Partner Larry Gilman
Much like Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, Donna Mills and her partner, Larry Gilman, are a couple who have been together for ages but never married. Mills — who you might know as Abby Cunningham on the hit "Dallas" spin-off "Knots Landing" — has been dating Gilman since 2001. "I met Larry Gilman at age 60. I lucked out. Before him, I kind of went for the bad boys," she told AARP in 2022. Before Gilman, the screen veteran was in a long-term relationship with an advertising executive and Chaka Khan's ex-husband, Richard Holland, from 1979 until the late 1990s. Despite being together for nearly two decades, she and Holland never walked down the aisle, as Mills didn't subscribe to the idea of a traditional marriage.
"That strange thing is, I never did dream about it," Mills said of getting married in her "Intimate Portrait" episode on Lifetime in 1998. "I used to love dolls and everything when I was a kid, but it was never a bride doll or the bride image." She added that she never pictured herself as a bride or a wife. Mills credited her upbringing for shaping her perception of marriage and relationships, saying, "My parents didn't have a particularly good relationship. I saw my [mother] when she was totally dependent on my father. That didn't make her happy." She continued, "I bought into that. That's what I saw. I said, 'Okay, if I want to be really happy, I have to depend on me.'" Years later, Mills' opinion on marriage remains unchanged.
'Why bother?'
In February 2023, Donna Mills spoke with the Daily Mail about her relationship with Larry Gilman and why they still haven't married even after 22 years together. "I'm very independent. I've always made my own money and never had anyone support me," she told the publication, adding she prefers to leave things exactly that way. She also said that she does not see the point in getting married when she and Gilman feel like they already are. "Why bother?" she said. "So, we keep everything separate. We're not married, but it's like we are." The "General Hospital" star echoed a similar sentiment to the Daily Beast in July 2022, saying that to get married will only make things complicated for her and Gilman. "To combine everything at that point is really difficult," Mills explained. "So, we just combined our lives but not our finances and stuff like that."
Reiterating her past statements on not wanting to tie the knot, Mills said it makes her feel safe knowing that she can take care of herself even without a husband. "I've always felt a woman being independent was important," she said. "I want someone to be in my life to love and be with, to be a companion and to go places and all that... but if I have to, [I know] I can take care of myself." Regardless of her stance on marriage, Mills is serious and clearly very smitten about Gilman. "I love him. He's an incredibly kind, funny, wonderful man," she gushed.
Mills says Gilman allows her to have power
Donna Mills has made no secret of her love for her beau Larry Gilman. In 2014, she sat down for an interview on Oprah's "Where Are They Now?" segment, during which she explained what attracted her most to her longtime partner. "The rich guys never appealed to me," Mills said. "Most women would say, 'What, are you crazy?' No, because they would have the power. And I want the power, you know? I'll be very honest about that." With Gilman, Mills said she doesn't have to worry about hurting her boyfriend's ego. "I finally found a man who allows me to have power and my space," she told the interviewer. "[And] that doesn't take away from his [own] power."
Speaking on CBS's "Sunday News" in July to promote her new Lifetime series "Dawn," Mills opened up even more about their relationship. "We're farmers," she told correspondent Tracy Smith. "And to be a farmer is kind of fun." These days, she and Gilman run their own wine business called the Mandeville Vineyards in Malibu, CA, which Gilman — a retired acting coach and director — started on his own in 2013. "He was just determined ... [So] I said, 'Okay, you can do it.' And I got nothing to do with it," she told Spectrum News in 2022. Chatting with Closer Weekly in 2015, Mills said she considers Mandeville perhaps the most romantic gesture Gilman has ever done for her. "Larry planted a vineyard for me last year. He's really such a good guy," she said.