Johnny Carson’s Ex Dyan Cannon Has ‘Several’ Friends with Benefits at 88
April 8, 2025, 12:18 PM PDT — Dyan Cannon, the Oscar-nominated actress and former wife of Johnny Carson, is making headlines at 88 with a candid revelation about her love life: she’s enjoying “several” friends with benefits. The Heaven Can Wait star dropped the bombshell at the 10th Annual Hollywood Beauty Awards on Sunday, April 6, in Los Angeles, telling People magazine that while she’s dating “somebody very special,” it’s actually “several special [people]” who keep her company in a no-strings-attached capacity. “I have friends with benefits, yes,” she confirmed with a laugh, adding, “There’s more to come.”
Cannon’s vibrant dating life at 88 has sparked a mix of awe and admiration. Known for her roles in classics like Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice and her groundbreaking Oscar nods for both acting and filmmaking, she’s no stranger to defying norms. Her romance with Carson, the legendary Tonight Show host, dates back to the early 1960s—a “love affair” she’s described as spiritually intimate, though never physical. The pair kept it under wraps, dining in restaurants that shut down just for them, she recalled to People. A recent CBS Sunday Morning special, The Hidden Side of Johnny Carson, reignited interest in their bond, spotlighting a 1985 Tonight Show appearance where Cannon’s infectious giggles flustered the unflappable host. “I rattled him, and I love that,” she said Sunday, relishing the memory.
Beyond Carson, who died in 2005 at 79 from emphysema, Cannon’s romantic resume includes a high-profile marriage to Cary Grant from 1965 to 1968—yielding daughter Jennifer Grant, now 59—and a quieter union with attorney Stanley Fimberg from 1985 to 1991. Her fling with Carson, though brief, left a mark; she told CBS in March he was “warm, open, willing,” a stark contrast to the aloof persona some pinned on him. Now, decades later, Cannon’s embrace of casual companionship at 88 underscores her free-spirited ethos—a trait daughter Jennifer highlighted to Fox News Digital in 2023, contrasting it with Grant’s reserved nature.
Posts on X capture the public’s delight: “Granny is a baddie!” one user exclaimed, while another dubbed her “iconic” for thriving outside traditional expectations. At the Beauty Awards, where she mingled with stars like Judd Apatow, Cannon’s confession dovetailed with reflections on Carson’s lingering spotlight—thanks to that CBS special “running it, running it, running it,” she noted. As Trump’s tariffs tank markets and global headlines churn, Cannon’s zest offers a lighter note: proof that age is no barrier to living boldly, with “several” friends to prove it.
