Meryl Streep’s relationship with Don Gummer began on an incredibly tough note, as she was mourning the loss of her late boyfriend, John Cazale, who died from cancer in 1978, per People. Cazale, who was also an actor, was romantically involved with Streep for two years. When Cazale’s illness took over, Streep showed her unwavering support for her beau. Understandably, Cazale’s deteriorating health took a massive toll on Streep. In a note to her former drama teacher (via The New York Post), she wrote, “He has very wonderful care and I try not to stand around wringing my hands, but I am worried all the time and pretending to be cheery all the time, which is more exhausting mentally physically emotionally than any work I’ve ever done.”
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Following Cazale’s death, Streep’s brother helped her pack up items from the apartment she shared with her beau. Her brother brought along his friend, Gummer, who then began a romantic relationship with Streep relatively quickly. Six months after Cazale’s passing, Streep and Gummer tied the knot. While Streep seemed to have found new love with Gummer, she was still suffering from her late boyfriend’s tragic death. A year after his passing, the actor told People, “The death is still very much with me. It has forced me to confront my own mortality, and once you do that, you look at things differently.”
