Quincy Jones was married three times in his life and welcomed five of his seven children with his wives, Jeri Caldwell, Ulla Andersson and Peggy Lipton.
The legendary music producer died on Nov. 3 at 91 years old, surrounded by his loved ones. Though Jones was unmarried at the end of his life, he had longterm marriages to three different women throughout his career, starting with his high school sweetheart Jeri Caldwell, whom he married in 1957. The pair welcomed one child together, daughter Jolie, before divorcing in 1966.
After they split, the musician wed Ulla Andersson, a Swedish model and actress, the following year, and went on to welcome two daughters, Martina and Quincy, with her before their divorce in 1974. That same year, Jones married his third wife, The Mod Squad actress Peggy Lipton, with whom he welcomed two more daughters, Rashida and Kidada, before they ultimately split in 1989.
Despite his divorces, Jones remained friendly with his exes, as his daughter Rashida explained to Entertainment Weekly in 2018.
“The thing about my dad’s life is the people that he’s touched, even when things don’t work out and people are hurt, he does seem to keep those people orbiting around,” she said. “Like, our Thanksgiving dinners are still the ex-wives and the ex-girlfriends. For the most part, everybody’s kept the peace, because he keeps it about love, you know?”
Here’s everything to know about Quincy Jones’ wives: Jeri Caldwell, Ulla Andersson and Peggy Lipton.
Jeri Caldwell
Quincy Jones, Jeri JonesCredit: Quincy Jones/Instagram
Jones married his high school sweetheart, Caldwell, in 1957 after they had already been together for some time. The two met while they were both students at Garfield High School in Seattle, Wash., in the 1940s.
In an interview with Oprah, the music producer said Caldwell was one of his first major loves in his life — and the first that he married.
“Jeri hit on me first,” he said. “Back then I was dogging it up, and Jeri and her sister were the hotsy-totsies at school. I noticed that she stopped at the water fountain every day — the dog squad is real good at noticing patterns.”
On Oct. 4, 1953, Jones and Caldwell welcomed their daughter, Jolie Jones Levine. Jolie grew up in the Hollywood industry, dabbling in modeling and acting herself. However, in later years, she opted for a more private lifestyle out of the public eye.
During their relationship, Caldwell and Jones moved to Paris together, and she joined him on his Free & Easy tour. However, by 1966, Jones and Caldwell filed for divorce.
In November 2021, Caldwell died, and Jones posted a touching tribute to his first wife on Instagram.
“As my high school sweetheart, she was my rock, & knew me before anyone else knew my name,” he wrote. “She never ceased to put others before herself. She even sacrificed her status & popularity to be with me (after multiple attempts from her family, friends, high school, & college to stop her from marrying a Black man).”
Ulla Andersson
Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty
After welcoming a daughter, Rachel, with a dancer in July 1963 and splitting from Caldwell, Jones married his second wife, Andersson, who was signed to Ford Modelling Agency and starred in multiple Swedish movies at the time.
Months before they wed, Andersson and Jones welcomed their first daughter together, Martina Jones, on Nov. 1, 1966. Two years later, Andersson gave birth to Jones’ only son, Quincy Delight Jones III, on Dec. 23, 1968.
The couple were together for nearly a decade before their split in 1974, at which time Andersson moved back to Sweden along with her children. Martina followed in her mother’s footsteps as a model before returning to the U.S., while Quincy III split his time between Los Angeles and Sweden.
In his final Instagram post, two days before he died, Jones wished Martina a happy birthday, writing in the caption, “Happy Birthday to my Tina Beena @martinafotos1!! ????. So proud to be yo papa! Big hug, I love you eternally ????????????.”
Peggy Lipton
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty
Jones first met The Mod Squad actress while he was married to Andersson, but the two didn’t start dating until two years later.
“The first time I met Quincy, he was still married,” Lipton said on the 2001 episode of American Masters, Quincy Jones: In the Pocket. “And I just was so drawn to him, you know, never knowing, like, that’s my husband, but feeling very, very drawn to him.”
Jones and Lipton reunited after his split from Andersson and wed in 1974.
Together, the couple welcomed two daughters: Kidada Ann Jones on March 22, 1974, and Rashida Jones on Feb. 25, 1976. Lipton said that after having children, she was happy to resign from her job as an actress and focus on building their family, though she did ultimately go on to have a successful career starring in the show Twin Peaks and the accompanying movie.
“I was happy for it to be over, and it wasn’t the happiest life,” she said in the Quincy Jones: In the Pocket of her work. “I’d led a very lonely life up until I met Quincy.”
However, by 1989, the couple called it quits, with Lipton citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for their divorce in the filing, per the Los Angeles Times. At the time, Rashida was 10, and Kidada was 12.
The two girls were split up between parents, with the former living with Lipton and the latter living with Jones, Rashida told Oprah.com in 2009.
Lipton and Jones maintained a strong co-parenting relationship, however, and worked together to raise their children.
“My parents are so close, and that really makes it easier, because it all comes from a place of love,” Rashida told Entertainment Weekly in 2018. “My mom is so empathetic towards my dad, but it also was incredibly raw for her to go through what she went through and admit that the relationship didn’t work out.”
In 2019, Lipton died from cancer at 72 years old. Jones wrote a touching tribute to his ex-wife on X (formerly Twitter), describing their love as “eternal.”
“There is absolutely no combination of words that can express the sadness I feel after losing my beloved Peggy Lipton,” he wrote. “My wife of 14 years. We shared many, many beautiful memories, and most importantly, we share two incredible daughters… Pie (Kidada) and Doonkie (Rashida).”
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