In 1981, teen heartthrob Parker Stevenson, better known as Frank Hardy from “The Hardy Boys,” first met “Cheers” actress Kirstie Alley in a pub where she had gone with her roommate. Stevenson portrayed Hardy in the television series “The Hardy Boys.”

Even though Stevenson was with someone else when he went to the pub, Alley still managed to dance with him, which was the first step in the development of their relationship.

The actress claims that as soon as she laid eyes on him, she was completely taken aback by her feelings for him. Alley shared with her roommate that she would do anything for him, including “d.dee.” In her words:

“When I saw him, I told my roommate that if it were for him, I would give up my life.”

They dated for a few years, during which time they were both able to see how drastically different their actions were from one another.

Stevenson and Alley chose to wed after living together and dating for a number of years before taking the next step in their relationship, which is when Alley made her impact on his life. She is recognized for persuading Stevenson to abandon his image as a preppy teen idol, which is one of the things she is known for doing.

It took him three years to emerge from the shadow cast by his performance as Frank Hardy in “The Hardy Boys Mysteries.” His breakthrough role was the wicked Aubrey James in “Stroker Ace,” which led to him gaining widespread recognition.

When asked about it, Stevenson once said that his portrayal prompted audience members to hiss at him at the previews, which made him thrilled since it indicated that he had done a good job with the role.

Even though Alley and Stevenson were a wonderful couple, there were a lot of things that the two of them did not have in common, as was said previously.

For example, Alley was a Scientologist, but Stevenson was an Episcopalian who did not actively practice their faith. While Stevenson liked his morning cereals to be moistened with orange juice, Alley liked to start the day with Big Macs and pastries.

Because the actor did not like smoking and she preferred strong alcoholic beverages, and because he preferred beer, Alley was required to smoke outside on the balcony so that he would not be bothered by the smell.

During the time that they were dating, she was the one who brought life to every place she entered, while he was more of a loner who preferred to keep to himself.

In hindsight, the differences they had were numerous; however, it was pretty interesting for them, and Stevenson believed that with such contrasts, he would never have a dull moment in his life. As a result, they decided to elope on December 22, 1983, despite the fact that they had many differences between them. Stevenson said:

“I thought to myself, “This has a lot of potentials.” When I’m with this person, I won’t become bored, and she won’t get bored with me, either.”

Their mutual enjoyment of teasing and competing with one another contributed to what one of their mutual friends, Smith, referred to as the “wonderful beginning” of their relationship.

They even went so far as to leap into a pool while still wearing all of their clothes, and when he questioned them if they were “crazy,” the response they gave him was yes.

Alley was already a married woman when she wed Stevenson. This was her second marriage. Her first marriage, which took place in 1970 to Bob Alley and lasted for seven years until they divorced, was her longest-lasting. She went on to spend many years as a single woman after he left until she eventually met Stevenson in 1981.

When Stevenson made the decision to take things with Alley to the next level, he believed he was ready for the fun and excitement that she would bring into his life. However, this turned out to not be the case.

But of the two of them, the actress was the one who deviated from the norm the most, and this was a significant contrast between the two of them. She attributed her weight gain to the impulsive nature she had as a person. A memory that stuck with Stevenson was the day he stepped into his parents’ house in Encino, California, and saw a chicken sleeping on their bed.

She had maintained that she had no knowledge that he would be home that night, but from his point of view, the animal had no right to be on their bed regardless of whether or not he would be using it that night. She had no idea that he would be there.

Their home in Encino included 32 bedrooms, and it also acted as a sanctuary for Alley’s numerous pets, which included a large number of canines, felines, possums, geese, and a wide variety of other species of animals.

The next day, when her husband came home from work, he found that the chicken had been replaced with a chimpanzee that was playing on their bedposts.

As their marriage progressed, the couple began discussing the possibility of having a family. They had a miscarriage when Alley finally became pregnant, but they were hoping to have a child.

After that, they made the decision to adopt a kid, despite the fact that the actress had publicly said that they would continue to attempt to have a child by natural means. In 1992, they became parents for the first time to a boy they called William, and in 1995, they adopted a baby girl they named Lillie.

She joined the family two years after William did, but by that time, the couple’s marriage was already showing signs of trouble. Disagreement between them reached its peak in late 1996; yet, despite the fact that it resulted in their separation, they did not file for divorce until a few months had elapsed after they had been separated.

They filed their lawsuits independently, but both of them claimed irreconcilable differences in their paperwork. During the time that their legal representatives were engaged in a struggle, Stevenson remained radio quiet, which gave the media carte blanche to speculate about his whereabouts. When finally given the opportunity to comment, Stevenson refuted the assertions that they were homosexual. However, the rumors persisted.

In spite of the stories that were circulating, Stevenson and Alley didn’t have a lot of issues with each other, with the exception of the disparity in their personalities, which is what initially attracted them to one other.

Even Alley acknowledged at one point that there had been no affair throughout their marriage and that the main reason they decided to divorce was that they wanted to pursue other things in life. In her words:

“There was not a single instance of cheating on either side of my marriage…

There was nothing save maybe having different life objectives to consider.”

After they ended their relationship, the two went on with their lives, and Stevenson continued to wish Alley the best of luck since he understood that it was in the best interest of their children for her to be happy.

The actor finally broke his silence on the subject of their divorce, which lasted for two years until it was finally concluded, and he referred to the proceedings as an “ugly” process.

Because it lasted for more than a year and required extensive talks over problems such as who gained custody and who was paying child support, it is not hard to understand why he concluded that because of the length of time the situation lasted. In point of fact, by the time all was said and done, Stevenson and Alley’s relationship was irretrievably broken. He said:

“Even though Kirstie and I aren’t friends anymore, we still have frequent conversations concerning our children. Will we eventually become friends? I really have no idea.”

Even though they continue to share parental responsibilities for their two children after their divorce, Stevenson, and Alley are only seen together in public on a very seldom basis. Some people speculate that this is because their professions have taken them in a variety of directions, but ultimately, only they will know the truth.

Following the dissolution of their marriage, Alley established herself as a very successful performer in the Hollywood industry, whilst Stevenson chose to further his career behind the camera by directing television programs. He devoted more time to improving his photography abilities, which was a talent he had always been enthusiastic about.

When asked about the aspect of it that he enjoys the most, Stevenson once said that it was his means of expression. Since then, he has become an authority on the subject, and it is not uncommon for him to attend conferences where he sells some of his photographs.

The actor is content with his life after the breakup of his marriage to Alley and has moved on with his life. On the other hand, Alley went on with James Wilder in 1997. However, despite the fact that they reached the point in their relationship when they were engaged, the connection was a failure, and it terminated in the same year.

She has said in the past that she had a crush on John Travolta and that it took her a very long time to get over the romantic affinity she had for him. If you were to ask her, she claims that she would have wed him if they hadn’t already been married.

Later on, Alley began having problems with her weight, and she attributed her weight increase to the fact that she was such a spontaneous person.

She once said that she ate a lot because it was difficult for her to make plans when she was always being “wined and dined” at every turn. This was one of the reasons why she ate so much.

Her unhealthy eating habits were fostered by her lifestyle, and despite the fact that she was aware that this behavior was not beneficial for her, she thought it was a good idea to give herself permission to enjoy what she referred to as her “holidays.” At some point in time, she made the decision to begin working toward bringing everything under control; yet, this was not an easy path for her to take.

She persisted despite the fact that her weight alternated between being overweight and being thin up to the year 2018, when she was diagnosed with Lyme illness, which caused her to acquire even more weight.

Thankfully, it did not convince her to quit up since, as far as she can tell, she prefers being on the leaner side, where she has more energy, so she did not let it discourage her.

Even if the great actress and her ex-husband Stevenson may have gone in separate directions in life, the fact that they share children will always be something that brings them together. Their first grandchild, Waylon Tripp Parker, was born in 2016, making them grandparents thanks to their son, William, who had his first kid that year.

Alley was over the moon about the achievement and proclaimed it on Twitter, where she sparked an avalanche of well-intentioned well-wishes from her legion of devoted followers.

Although the breakup of her relationship with Stevenson may have been very painful for both of them, they are both able to acknowledge that some positive things have resulted from it.