All About Golden Age Star James Garner’s 2 Children

NEED TO KNOW

• James Garner was the father of two daughters

• The actor married Lois Clarke in 1956, and he became a stepfather to her daughter, Kimberly

• Garner and Clarke went on to welcome another daughter, Greta "Gigi" Garner, in 1958

James Garner was a doting girl dad to two daughters.

The late actor — who was the star of the original Maverick TV show in the 1950s and The Rockford Files in the 1970s and 1980 — married Lois Clarke at the Beverly Hills Courthouse in 1956 after a whirlwind two-week romance.

"I fell in love for the first and last time on Aug. 1, 1956, at an Adlai Stevenson-for-President rally," Garner wrote in his 2011 memoir The Garner Files. "Stevenson lost. I won. That's where I met Lois Clarke."

Clarke was already a mother to Kimberly, whom Garner later adopted. Garner and Clarke welcomed their daughter Greta "Gigi" in 1958. Despite his busy Hollywood career, Garner made it a priority to be present in his daughters' lives.

"He was very much the 'fun dad,' " Gigi told The Edge Magazine in June 2022. "He was the one that got down on the floor and played with the kids. And if I wanted to do something a bit wild — jump off the balcony into the pool, for example — he wouldn't say no. He would just do it first to make sure it was safe enough. ... He was a lot of fun — and very committed to being present."

Here's everything to know about James Garner's children, Kimberly and Greta "Gigi" Garner.

Clarke welcomed Kimberly during a previous marriage

When Garner and Clarke married, she was already a mom to Kimberly, a daughter from her first marriage. At the time, Kimberly was around 8 years old and had suffered a long bout with polio.

Clarke wrote in The Garner Files that she had been fired from her job just before they met because she had taken off so much time from work to be with Kimberly in the hospital.

"Jim didn't have any money, and I didn't have any money, but he'd met Kim, and she liked him. We'd gone to an ice cream parlor, and while Jim was getting the cones I said, 'Kim, what do you think? Should I marry him?' " she wrote. "I always asked Kim about the men I dated ... Kim said, 'Yes, Mom, marry him. He's perfect, and you're perfect together.' "

Garner adopted Kimberly, and he and Clarke welcomed Gigi in 1958.

Having a family made Garner take acting more seriously

In his memoir, Garner wrote that he fell into acting because there wasn't anything he liked better — not because he had an innate passion for it.

"I didn't care about acting, I just wanted to support my family," he said. "I'd gotten married to Lois and had an instant family. Our daughter Kim was just out of the hospital, weak with polio. I had to get serious. The responsibilities of life made me pay attention to what I was doing on the screen."

Garner gave them the childhood he never had

As a father, Garner ensured that his daughters would have the opposite experience he did growing up.

"I started mowing lawns at 8 to help make money," he told the Associated Press in December 1963. "I can't recall a day of my childhood after that when I wasn't clipping hedges, carting away clutter, cleaning garages and woodwork — and hating every minute of it."

At home, he wanted to spare Kimberly and Gigi from that feeling. "I even discourage my two daughters from any money-making chores around the house," he added.

Garner changed his name for his daughter

In The Garner Files, the actor revealed that he never intended to change his given name but was moved to acceptance for the sake of his older daughter.

"I was born James Scott Bumgarner; the studio knocked off the 'Bum,' " he wrote. "I accepted it because of Kim. Her name was Kimberly Clarke. She was known in school as 'Kimberly Clarke,' and 'Kimberly Bumgarner,' and 'Kim Garner.' That's confusing for a little girl, so I changed it legally — to make sure she knew who she was."

Kimberly became a teacher, while Gigi pursued a singing career

The actor was famously private about his family and was often reluctant to reveal details about his daughters in interviews. Kimberly has similarly followed suit, living a private life out of the spotlight.

Not much is known about Kimberly's adult life, but in 1985, Garner revealed to PEOPLE that she had chosen a career in education. Back then, she was teaching in Los Angeles.

In the same PEOPLE interview, Garner said that his younger daughter had chosen a career in music and was living in Nashville. She released a single, Reflections of My Life , in 1983.

"I think she sings pretty good," the actor said.

Gigi appeared in a commercial with Garner

In 1986, Garner did a series of commercials for Mazda, and one of them costarred his daughter Gigi .

"My daughter came out to visit, and the guys at Mazda lent me the 323 for her to drive," he said as Gigi walked outside to admire the car. After extolling the car's virtues, he said, "I'm really glad she's grown up to be sensible and practical, just like her old man."

"Yeah, right, Dad," Gigi replied cheekily as she peeled off. The two long shared a love of thrill-seeking, especially going to car races together.

Gigi started a charity in Garner's honor

In 2019, Gigi founded the James Garner Animal Rescue Fund , a charitable foundation that rescues dogs.

"My dad always had dogs; he loved dogs," she told The Norman Transcript in June 2019. "His dogs were with him all the time. They were a great comfort to him."

"I wanted to start some sort of charitable foundation in my father's honor, and I've been rescuing dogs for 30 years," she added. "And it just dawned on me that this would be a perfect fit."

Gigi tries to focus on at-risk dogs in Oklahoma, which is where Garner grew up. "I want to keep my dad's legacy alive," Gigi said. "I know Oklahoma will not forget him. Oklahomans ... those were his people, that's where he came from, and he never forgot that."

Speaking to Tulsa World in June 2023 , Gigi revealed that she funds the dog rescue charity through selling Garner's memorabilia — and also through her own paintings.

"I'm a painter, and I'm represented by a gallery in Beverly Hills called ACCA Gallery and a major percentage of what I sell from my paintings goes to charity, as well," she said.

Garner discouraged his daughter from seeing his top-grossing movie

Gigi revealed to Tulsa World in 2023 that she had never seen The Notebook, Garner's top-grossing film. She shared that her dad was worried the premise would be too emotional for her.

"My dad didn't want me to see it. ... The 'favor' for the premiere was tissue boxes," she said. "They had boxes of tissues they handed out at the premiere ... When it's your dad, or it's a family member, you are not telling yourself 'It's just a movie, it's just a movie.' You get wrapped up in it. It's probably a good idea that I didn't see it."

Both daughters contributed to The Garner Files

At the end of his memoir, Garner included statements from people close to him like Clarke, his brother, Jack Garner, and both Kimberly and Gigi.

"He is one of these rare people who actually lives by the golden rule, who stands up for the underdog and believes wholeheartedly in the principle of the matter," Gigi wrote.

In her section, Kimberly recalled visiting the Warner Bros. lot with Garner when she was young. "The whole experience made me think I was in a magical place," she said. "I had the sense Jim was showing me off, which made me feel part of a family with him. I was proud of both of us."

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