Bernstein - Father and Husband
In 1951, Leonard Bernstein married Felicia Montealegre. Felicia was a singer and they had met each other at one of Felicia's musical performances. During their courtship Bernstein went to most of Felicia's performances and she did the same. Everybody thought that their marriage would last forever.
One year later their first daughter, Jamie Anne Maria, was born. In 1955 Jamie's younger brother, Alexander Serge (Leonard) was born. Nina Maria Felicia Bernstein, the youngest of the Bernstein children, was born on February 28, 1962. As a teenager, Alex was reported to have had a strained relationship with his father, however, Nina and he were always good friends.
In the 1970's Felicia received evidence that Leonard had several young, male lovers. She was starting to have thoughts that her husband was going out with somebody else. One day she opened a love letter to Leonard from a man and than on the same day received a phone call in Spanish. Felicia understood Spanish. The man told her that Leonard and his assistant were having a homosexual affair. Felicia didn't know what to do after she had received this call.
Then Leonard met a man, Tom Cothran, at a party in San Francisco in the early 1970's. Cothran was a music director for KKHI, a local classical radio station. As soon as they saw each other they fell instantly in love. Before dinner at the party Cothran and Bernstein talked about philosophy over cocktails. As the party came to an end they were still together. Bernstein said that his love for Cothran restored his happiness.
Although Leonard loved Tom he also loved Felicia. He did not want to hurt Felicia but he was finding it harder and harder to resist the temptation of staying with Tom Cothran.
Leonard wanted to spend time alone with Tom Cothran to see how far the relationship would go. Felicia said to Bernstein that if he did spend time alone with Cothran he wasn't allowed to come home. Bernstein decided to go with Cothran. They spent six weeks in Carmel, on the Pacific Ocean between Los Angeles and San Francisco
After 25 years of marriage, Felicia and Leonard were separated in December of 1976. Leonard had had numerous affiard with othe men for many years and finally left Felicia for another man. However, Felicia and Leonard reconciled only a few months later. Unfortunately their happiness was cut short by the announcement the Felicia was diagnosed with lung cancer. The cause was probably from her thirty years of smoking. In November of 1977, Felicia had an operation to remove the membranous sac around her heart. Leonard not only stuck by her, but he made sure that she was comfortable at all times. Her lung cancer was inoperable; her only hope was chemotherapy. Felicia died on June 16, 1978 of lung cancer, four years after she entered New York Hospital for a mastectomy. When Felicia died on June 16, 1978 Leonard Bernstein believed himself responsible for his wife's death and his sense of guilt never left him.
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