By admin 
Introduction
Have you ever heard the name Susan Deixler?
Probably not. But you’ve almost certainly heard of Barry Manilow—the chart-dominating superstar of the 1970s whose ballads still echo across concert halls even as he performs well into his 80s.
But this story isn’t about fame, spotlights, or sold-out arenas.
This story belongs to the girl who knew Barry before the world did—his high-school sweetheart and his wife for a brief, turbulent two years: Susan Deixler.
Who Was Susan Deixler?
Born in 1945, Susan grew up on a quiet farm in Tennessee, raised by her parents Al and Nettie Deixler. Little is documented about her early life; she was just an ordinary teenager until fate—and music—brought her into the orbit of a young Barry Manilow.
They met at Eastern District High School in Brooklyn, where Susan was a freshman and Barry was preparing to graduate. He was already consumed by music, but Susan’s presence changed something in him. Friends noticed he was slipping away from his creative obsession, blinded by his affection for her. They warned him it wouldn’t end well.
He didn’t listen.
When Susan graduated in 1964 at age 19, the couple eloped—believing love could outrun everything else that life demanded.
A Marriage That Lasted Two Years
Only a year after the wedding, Barry confessed to Susan that he needed to chase the calling he had never truly abandoned—his dream of becoming a musician. He described it as a “wondrous musical adventure,” but for Susan, it meant losing the husband she had just begun to build a life with.
She agreed to give him the space he needed. But distance grew quickly, then painfully. Within another year, unable to bear the separation, Susan filed for annulment. Their marriage ended almost as quietly as it began.
What makes it even more heartbreaking is that decades later, in his 1987 autobiography, Barry described Susan as “the perfect wife.”
Did They Have Children?
Here’s where things get murky.
It’s confirmed that Susan eventually became the mother of two children—Daniel, who later pursued a music career, and Pauline, who became a lawyer.
What remains unclear is whether the children were biological or adopted.
Conflicting sources suggest:
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she and Barry never had children together,
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she never remarried after the divorce,
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yet she later had two kids.
In short: Susan had two children, but the details of their origins have never been publicly clarified.
Life Beyond the Spotlight
After the divorce, Susan lived intentionally under the radar. She built a quiet, steady life as a nurse and care manager in California while raising her children.
Despite everything, there was no bitterness. In a Mail Online interview, she called their relationship “ancient history” and expressed genuine happiness for Barry’s later life and relationships.
“I’m a private person,” she said. “But I’m happy for him. I really am.”
Net Worth and Later Years
Because of her extremely private lifestyle, it’s difficult to determine Susan’s exact wealth. Some estimates place her net worth around $500,000, reflecting decades of steady work rather than fame or glamour.
Final Thoughts
Susan Deixler’s love story didn’t end in a fairy tale. No one knows why she chose never to marry again. But what is clear is that she built a meaningful life—raising two children and serving others as a respected nurse.
If she truly is enjoying a quiet retirement after everything she lived through, then she deserves every ounce of peace it brings.