Bob Newhart’s Longtime Wife Inspired ‘Newhart’ Ending

Lauren Novak July 19, 2024

Ginny Newhart (L) and actor Bob Newhart pose at the 2013 Creative Arts Emmy Awards held at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on September 15, 2013 in Los Angeles, California — Mark Davis/Getty Images

Sadly, the world lost another comedic great, Bob Newhart, at the age of 94. He died just a year after his wife of 60 years, Ginnie Newhart. They had four children together and 10 grandchildren. The pair met when they were set up on a blind date by comedian Buddy Hackett. They met up at Hackett’s house, played pool for a double date and the rest is history.

It sounds like Ginnie was also a creative person, as she was the one who dreamed up the iconic ending for Newhart. The 1990 finale of Newhart paid tribute to Bob’s former series The Bob Newhart Show in a very clever way. At the very end of the episode, Bob as Dr. Bob Hartley and Suzanne Pleshette as his wife Emily from The Bob Newhart Show wake up in bed. He tells her that he had a very strange dream that he was an innkeeper in a small town in Vermont and described some of the characters, also mentioning his “beautiful blonde” wife in the dream. The audience ate it up that Newhart had been a dream all along, and it has been called one of the most memorable finales in TV history.

Bob Newhart and Ginny Newhart attend Geffen Playhouse's Annual "Backstage At The Geffen" Gala at Geffen Playhouse on March 22, 2014 in Los Angeles, California

Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Ginnie reportedly had the idea while at a holiday party, and when her husband said that he was thinking of ending the show, she said, “You ought to end it with a dream sequence where you wake up in bed with Suzy.” Bob shared before his death, “People still come up to me and talk about it. It’s held up to other shows as the standard.”

Before the couple passed away, they once shared what they believed helped them to achieve such a long and successful marriage. Bob said, “No matter how intense the argument you’re having, you can find a line, and then you both look at each other and start laughing. It’s over, you know? I think that sense of humor is very important to the longevity of a marriage.”

Newhart from left, Suzanne Pleshette, Bob Newhart, 'The Last Newhart' (series finale), aired May 21, 1990

Gale M. Adler/TV Guide/CBS/Everett Collection

Ginnie added about their kids, “We made our mistakes along with a lot of other parents. But I think that they knew that we loved them. And they mentioned this, that we tried to keep the family together in sometimes very difficult circumstances. And that came first.” May they both rest in peace together.