Did Henry Kissinger Have Children? About the Former Secretary of State's Family
Nov. 30 2023, Published 10:36 a.m. ET
The Gist:
- Henry Kissinger died at the age of 100 after a prolific career in Washington, D.C.
- The former Secretary of State had two children, one of whom is also in the public eye.
- Kissinger was married for many years, but was once called "Playboy of the Western Wing."
A Nobel Peace Prize recipient and the former Secretary of State under President Richard Nixon has died.
Henry Kissinger lived to the ripe old age of 100, but passed away at his Connecticut home just after Thanksgiving weekend 2023. While much is known about his political life, what was the politician's personal life like? Here's what to know about Kissinger's children and whether he ever married.
Henry Kissinger and David Kissinger at graduation from Concord Academy, Mass., June 1,1979
Henry Kissinger had two children.
In addition to being a well-known diplomat, Kissinger was also a father of two and a grandfather of five, per The U.S. Sun.
Elizabeth is the firstborn child of the late former Secretary of State, born in 1959. His son David arrived just a few years later in 1961.
While Kissinger's daughter, who is married and has one child, has preferred to stay out of the public eye, David is the opposite. In addition to speaking out publicly about his father's legacy, even penning a tribute to him for his 100th birthday for The Washington Post, the only son of the at-times controversial figure has had a larger-than-life career of his own.
David is the president of Conaco, Conan O'Brien's film and TV production company. He formerly worked for Disney and Universal TV.
The Hollywood executive has four children with his wife Alex Rockwell.
In part, David said about his dad back in May 2023, "My father’s longevity is especially miraculous when one considers the health regimen he has followed throughout his adult life. The other secret to my father’s endurance is his sense of mission."
"Although he has been caricatured as a cold realist, he is anything but dispassionate," David added.
Henry Kissinger married twice — but was also somewhat of a Washington, D.C. lothario.
Kissinger eventually settled down, but he was once the paramour of Zsa Zsa Gabor, and even became friends with Hugh Hefner.
According to The Washington Post, the diplomat was even nicknamed "Playboy of the Western Wing." Among the celebrities he wined and dined was Candice Bergen, Shirley MacLaine, Marlo Thomas, and Diane Sawyer.
Kissinger even told Time in 1972, “I go out with actresses because I’m not very apt to marry one.”
Instead, he said "I do" to Anneliese Fleischer in 1949, per The U.S. Sun. But that marriage didn't last, with the couple splitting up in 1964, nearly a decade before he would serve as Secretary of State.
However, Fleischer is the mom of his two kids, David and Elizabeth.
Kissinger later wed Nancy Maginnes, who was also active in the political sphere, having served as an aid to New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller. They did not have children together, but remained married from 1974 until the diplomat's death. She is still living at time of writing.
