Matthew McConaughey's new autobiography is absolutely wild. Seriously, it's one of the most interesting reads around right now. And this is mostly because Matthew's life is utterly fascinating. He's had quite the life experience. The book, which is based on 36 years od diary entries, contains stories about how he took peyote and hung out in a cage with a fully grown mountain lion, as well as how he told his agent he would no longer do romantic comedies and ended up not working for a year. During that year, Matthew believed that Hollywood would never accept him again. But soon after, he was offered roles in Mud, Magic Mike, Dallas Buyers Club, and True Detective, ultimately changing his role in Hollywood forever.
But as interesting as some of Matthew's wild adventures are, none are more interesting than the insights he gave us into his childhood.
And his childhood was traumatic, to say the least.
While Matthew has described that he never felt his childhood was abusive, various interviewers definitely believe it was. In fact, Howard Stern straight-up told Matthew that he needed extensive psychotherapy. Given that Matthew's parents were physical with each other and him, we'd tend to agree. But nothing about James Donald McConaughey and Mary Kathlene McCabe's relationship was normal. In fact, the two of them were married three times... to each other...
Yes, you read that right...
We'll say it again for impact...
Matthew's Parents Were Married To Eachother Three Times
While promoting his new autobiography "Greenlights" on HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher, Matthew McConaughey was asked about his parents' relationship, which he described in the book as "The Pacific Ocean in a storm."
"Your parents were married three times... to each other!" Bill said, clearly shocked.
This is when Matthew confirmed on television that his parents got married a total of three times and were divorced twice.
It's not completely abnormal for a couple to break-up and get back together again, but going through the trouble to get married three times feels a tad excessive. But there wasn't anything normal about Matthew's family, despite how he told both Bill Maher and Howard Stern that he felt his childhood was positive.
In "Greenlights" Matthew described the dynamic between his parents and why they were divorced twice.
"This is how my parents communicated. This is why Mom handed Dad an invite to their own wedding and said, ‘You got twenty-four hours to decide, lemme know.’ This is why my Mom and Dad were married three times and divorced twice—to each other," he wrote in "Greenlights". "This is why my Dad broke Mom’s middle finger to get it out of his face four separate times. This is how my Mom and Dad loved each other."
This pretty much sums up why Howard Stern told Matthew that he should get some therapy. Especially since Matthew rationalized these moments of physical abuse by saying, "That was when the love was tested most."
However, Matthew has also said that he would never recreate his parents' dynamic in his own marriage, especially with his kids. After all, Matthew and his brothers were beaten by their parents and even encouraged to get into fist-fights with their father.
His Parents' Bedroom Life Was Also Out Of The Ordinary
Even how the pair interacted around Matthew's pregnancy was straight-up strange:
“Mom and Dad had been trying to make a baby for years to no avail, so Mom thought I was a tumor until the fifth month of pregnancy. Dad went to the bar instead of the hospital the day I was born, because he suspected I wasn’t his anyway. But I was.”
James and Mary had successfully had their eldest son and then adopted Matthew's brother Pat. But they struggled to conceive Matthew. However, Matthew said he wouldn't be surprised if he has a few other siblings out there.
During the same interview with Bill Maher, Matthew claimed that his mother's past was quite wild. So much so that she has a story that makes Matthew believe that he's actually related to his real-life best-friend Woody Harrelson. However, that is not one of the stories in Matthew's new book.
Of course, one of the most publicized revelations in "Greenlights", in terms of Matthew's parents, is the fact that James literally died on top of Mary during intercourse.
"I got a call from my Mom. ‘Your dad died.’ My knees buckled. I couldn’t believe it. He was my dad. Nobody or nothing could kill him. Except mom. He’d always told me and my brothers, ‘Boys, when I go, I’m gonna be makin’ love to your mother.’ And that’s what happened. He had a heart attack when he climaxed."
Yep, there was always something going on in the McConaughey household.