Secrets rarely stay buried, especially when the person keeping them has some modicum of fame. For Jackie Vernon, best known as the voice actor in the 1969 Christmas Classic 'Frosty The Snowman,' the secret was that he had "multiple secret families" before he married his wife, Hazel.
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The information came to light during the "Nostalgia Tonight With Joe Sibilia" radio show on Nov. 30. It was David Vernon, Jackie and Hazel's son, who made the revelation.
"There was a woman there with a kid who was older than I was," David recalled. "He was probably in his late teens and a little rough around the edges looking. The woman asked to speak to my dad, and I said my dad's on the road and he's not home. Then, I remember she was very firm, she was like, 'Well then, I want to speak to your mother.'"
It was at that moment, as David's mom made her way to the door, that the truth was about to come out.
"So I had to know, I asked my mom, 'Who was that?' And it finally came out that before our family, my dad had been married at least three other times, which I was kind of shocked to find out," David continued.
Jackie Vernon Suffered With Addiction and Depression
During the same interview, David dropped another bombshell, as he revealed that his father suffered with both addiction and depression.
"His addiction was really kind of tranquilizers, Quaaludes and Valium," David shared. "It really took a toll on him, and he had to work very hard to kind of break free from that depression. It was a hard struggle for him, and it was hard for us, seeing him go through that."
After working on a Christmas Classic, Jackie was often seen as a wholesome family man. However, it's clear that he fought his own battles behind closed doors. No one would have expected him to have multiple families, all with children, hidden away in secret. Nor would you expect 'Frosty The Snowman' to have an addiction problem—but we all battle our different demons.
Jackie passed away on Nov. 10, 1987.
He was 63 years old.
