Tom Selleck And His Wife Jillie Mack Have Been Together For Over Three Decades

Dec 30, 2021 by apost team

Tom Selleck is one of the nation's most beloved stars, whose mark on American culture has seasoned and aged as well as he has. With a career that has spanned decades and notable roles in films and television, Tom has become a Hollywood icon with his charm and immense talent.

From his breakthrough role in "Magnum, PI" and his guest role in "Friends" to his recent series "Blue Bloods," audiences have loved Tom's charm for over four decades. But despite being an acclaimed actor, Tom has made his mark as a kind and humble human.

After he experienced immense success, the star opted for a quiet life away from the limelight. So the veteran actor traded in the glamorous life of the big city for a quiet one on his beautiful 65-acre ranch in Ventura, California. But he didn't turn his back on acting, rather he continued to work but on his own terms.

Another motivation for Tom to live on his ranch was to live a quiet life with his wife, Jillie Mack, and their daughter, Hannah Selleck. In fact, Tom and his wife's story is incredibly romantic.

Already established in his career, Tom was shooting a movie on location in London when he saw Mack, an actress, in the musical "Cats." Enamored with her, Tom went to see the production multiple times before the couple went on their first date. The rest, as they say, is history. Let's take a look at their 34-year marriage and their quiet life together on their remote ranch.   

Though he is a household name, Tom values privacy in his life over everything else. Best known for his role as Thomas Magnum in "Magnum, PI," the Hollywood legend became a dreamboat at the start of the 1980s. His eight-year run on the show established him in Hollywood and opened the door to many other acting opportunities. These included his role as Peter Mitchell, one of the bachelors in "Three Men and a Baby" and its sequel, "Three Men and a Little Lady," as Monica Geller's love interest, Dr. Richard Burke, on the hit television show "Friends" and Matthew Quigley in "Quigley Down Under."

These days, however, he brings the character of Frank Reagen to life in the television series "Blue Bloods." With 12 seasons behind its belt, the show is a bonafide hit with audiences and critics alike. However, Tom needed some convincing to take on the role due to the fact that it was being filmed in New York City. Incredibly happy on his ranch in Ventura, California, Tom wasn't sure if he wanted to take the role as he'd be away from his home and family while filming took place. 

During an interview with Collider back in 2010, Tom admitted to having hesitated to join the cast at first. He said:

“The first question out of my mouth was, ‘Where are you shooting it?’ and then we tried to discuss how that would work." 

When he discovered that it would be an ensemble show, he decided to accept the role of Reagan. He continued:

"It was an ensemble that clearly was going to require talented actors. Having done a lead, as I did in 'Magnum,' being in every shot, I know it's a tough road. 'Magnum' was never canceled."   

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He added in the Collider interview:

"I left it after eight years because I was tired from it, not tired of it. It's always been a consideration, but this really just seemed to fit perfect. The script was terrific. The idea that it was going to shoot in New York caused a family consideration, but it was too good to pass up."

He knew that he would not need to be in New York City more than half the time, and so he didn't pass up the opportunity. And he must be sure glad he didn't. When the show’s pilot aired in 2010, it tested well with audiences, and the show is now in its 12th season with no signs of stopping yet. In an interview with People, Tom said:

“I don’t think there is an endpoint. I think there is a lot of life in the show, as long as you let your characters grow and get older.”

According to him, the life of a show depends on how the characters are written. He admitted that the cast members have a "kinship" with one another, that he loves them all and that they’re all friends. Notably, some of his onscreen family members include Donnie Wahlberg, Will Estes and Bridget Moynahan. He also mentioned that the dinner party scenes in "Blue Bloods" feel like reunions for the cast. He told People in the same interview:

“Our dinner party scenes are like a reunion of friends. Sometimes it’s hard for the directors to get us to concentrate. We do the work, and we do it well, but we’re also screwing around and kidding each other and catching up. What we have is truly a blessing.”   

Like many other shows, "Blue Bloods" has seen numerous ups and downs from the cast members and some great onscreen moments. Nonetheless, the “Magnum, P.I.” star shared that he doesn’t have a particular favorite episode. More precisely, Tom was asked what his favorite episode was in a video shared on the "Blue Bloods" Twitter account. His answer was direct — he said that he doesn’t have a favorite episode. However, he didn’t shy away from sharing his favorite moment from the show.

"Special for me was being able to shoot at the 9/11 Memorial," Tom explained. "We were the first film company to ever be able to do that."

It seems that the star took on the role not only because of the script alone, but because he had some form of guarantee that his family wouldn’t suffer when he became the head of the Reagan family, and clearly that's incredibly important to him. Tom is glad that "Blue Bloods" has enabled him to continue pursuing his acting passion without compromising his private life on his California ranch. In fact, he revealed to People that his ranch has played a huge role in keeping him sane. He told the publication in April 2020:

"My relationships and my ranch keep me sane."

Many celebrities often choose to live in major cities to stay close to their workspaces. Still, Tom's choice to live on a ranch brings him into the small fraternity of Hollywood celebrities that have eschewed swanky apartments for farms and ranches. Other stars with ranches include Chris Pratt, Oprah Winfrey and Russell Crowe, as per Hello Magazine.   

In an interview with Closer Weekly in Dec. 2018, Tom opened up about how living on a farm has improved his life. He said:

"This ranch is a great counterpoint to the acting business, which is an abstraction — you do something, it's up on a piece of film, and everybody argues whether it's good or bad. You dig a hole and plant an oak tree — and I've probably planted a thousand of them — it's real. It's there, and you can watch it grow. It's a lot different from being famous, and it keeps me sane."

The ranch boasts an impressive 65-acre size, with a ranch house that features eight bedrooms and staff accommodations. Architectural Digest reported that the property includes stables, corrals, a tack room, a heliport, a swimming pool, an adjacent cabana, a tennis court, a three-hole putting course and a practice green. Tom bought the properly from late singer and actor Dean Martin in 1988, shortly before his daughter's birth and just after the final season of "Magnum, PI." He told Closer Weekly in the same interview:

"I quit Magnum to have a family ... It took me a long time to get off the train, but I try very hard to have balance, and this ranch has helped me do that." 

When asked if there were any regrets about leaving behind Hollywood for a ranch, Mack, his wife, shared: "This is the best place to raise a child. It was such the wisdom of Tom. He knew he needed to buy back his anonymity, to replenish the soul."   

Along with the anonymity he wanted, the ranch also gave Tom the chance to immerse himself in work that he enjoys doing. He told Closer Weekly:

"I work this ranch every day. I do the grunt jobs because it saves me money. And it's good for my head," he said. "You don't have time to reflect — you just keep moving. I feel very fortunate, and I feel I've earned it." 

While he loves acting, Tom knew that life wasn't only about fame and Hollywood. So after he finished filming "Magnum, PI" he took a long hiatus to lead a quieter life and devote his time to family. With his wife, Tom has a daughter named Hannah, 33, and from his first marriage to Jacqueline Ray, he adopted her son, Kevin Shepard.

The actor spoke to People about his need for a quieter life last year:

"I knew intellectually what it would mean in terms of being a public person, but until you've lived it, there's no way to understand it ... I had a feeling of, 'I don't think I'm cut out for this.'"

His hiatus was initially meant to be only for a year but it lasted much longer when he realized he did not like the work he was being offered following his time on "Magnum, PI". He said:

"I put up with the articles that said he's disappeared, he's done. And you do get done, I'm well aware of that. It was a big lull, but it put a lot of things in perspective," he said.      

After returning to the screen in the mid to late '90s, he found roles that he loved to play and since then he's managed to find a great balance between Hollywood and his personal life. Looking back over his 50-year-long career, Tom told People he is grateful for everything he has been given, both on-screen and off.

"I'm proud of my work, I still love what I do, and I have my family," said Tom. "I've been enormously fortunate."

For him, family seems to come before everything else. He said in the same interview:

"I'm a fairly private person. And I've always treasured the balance between work and time with my family. It's always about them."

Tom and his wife have been married for over three decades now and their love story is incredibly romantic. It all began when Tom was in London in 1983 filming the movie "Lassiter" and one day attended the West End show "Cats." But rather than see it once, Tom kept going back repeatedly.

"He kept telling me how great 'Cats' was," his movie co-star at the time, Jane Seymour, said to People. "I thought it was good, but I couldn't see going back a dozen times." 

It turned out that Tom had an ulterior motive: He wanted to meet the then 25-year-old Mack who was in the company. According to People, her London agent confirmed that the two went out for dinner and things transpired from there. From then on the couple began dating and just a few years later there were wedding bells in the air.   

A People article from 1987 detailed how the couple was married that year in a secret ceremony by a priest who didn't even know he was marrying someone until moments before the event. The wedding's location took place at the Dream Maker in Lake Tahoe, an open-all-hours wedding chapel. The ceremony was planned by Tom's brother and pseudonyms were used for the couple to avoid alerting the press. The ceremony was attended by Tom's parents and brothers. 

Some news of the ceremony eventually leaked, as written about in the People article, which revealed that they chose to have Polaroid pictures taken of their special day in an effort to ensure privacy by avoiding shots from film negatives inevitably leaking to the public. Reverend Immel from the chapel told the magazine:

"They were both nervous, like any other couple about to get married. He was very concerned that the service be heartfelt, very concerned for her that the service be meaningful. He is a very warm, caring man."

The low-key wedding sounds like the perfect antithesis to a very public Hollywood acting career and was the beginning of their quiet marital life together. Just over a year later their daughter was born in Dec. 1988. A professional equestrian who also owns a horse farm, Hannah surely got her love of horses while growing up on her family's quiet ranch. According to People, Tom and his wife said that living in the countryside influenced their daughter's maturity.

It seems like Tom's decision to live on a ranch with his wife and daughter, away from the glare of Hollywood has been beneficial for everyone and they've managed to build a strong family unit together.

Are you a fan of Tom Selleck? Did you know about his marriage to Jillie Mack and how the couple met? What do you think about their decision to raise their daughter on a quiet ranch? Let us know, then pass this on to any fans of the actor that you know!