JACKIE GLEASON A LOOK AT HIS BIRTH ORDER

                     

Given the title of “The Great One” by Orson Welles, Jackie Gleason did not disappoint. You could tell just by looking at him that he was a man that loved good food, and the good life.  The stories of his wild partying, drinking, and the company of beautiful women was common knowledge.  We remember him as Ralph Kramden in The Honeymooners, but there were more shows. Cavalcade of Stars, The Jackie Gleason Show, American Scene Magazine, and multiple movies. His role as Minnesota Fats in The Hustler, like his role in The Honeymooners, was not far from his real life’s experience.

Early Life

Herbert Walton Gleason Jr. was born February 26, 1916. His older brother Clement was eleven years older. This eleven-year gap gave both of the boys Double Birth orders, they would each have been treated like Only children. Clement was an Only/One and Jackie an Only/Two.  His mother named him Jackie and when his brother died, he was only three years old. His brother’s death made Jackie an Only child. An Only child’s biggest influence is his parents.  His father left the family when he was nine and he and his mother had to survive with little money. Her Three/Only Double birth order had to imprint some of her traits on Jackie. His mother, Mae Kelly, had a very strong personality; she “henpecked” her husband, possibly leading to him deserting the family.

Jackie’s Birth Order   

Jackie, as an Only child born second, and having a mother that had a Three/Only birth order made him a complicated person.  The Only influence gave him great self-confidence and the ability to over-come his difficult early life.  The Two birth order allowed him to control his own space, “Don’t tell me what to do,” and would not let obstacles stand in his way. The Three trait gave him his interest in music and the preforming arts. Not only would he entertain on stage but would record a number of albums featuring “mood music.” He would enjoy acting and being the life of the party. All this was Jackie!

 

 

Marriages and Family

Jackie married three times, first to Genevieve Halford with whom he had two daughters. Divorced in 1970 he married Beverly Gleason, divorced in 1975 his last marriage was to Marilyn Gleason until his death in 1987. It is interesting to note that Marilyn was eight years younger than her older sister, giving her the Only/Two birth order, the same as Jackie. Can we say, “Love at first sight?” Jackie said of his love for Marilyn, “It had a perfect happy ending and everybody fell in Love.”

 

His Personality

His father left the family when Jackie was nine; he was then kept at home by an overprotective mother. He did not start school until he was eight years old. By the time he was twelve he was hustling pool. He quit school before graduating and became a master of ceremonies at a theater. He also worked as a stunt driver, carnival barker and bartender. Gleason was not an affable drunk but mean-spirited and nasty. A brilliant performer, he was not easy to work with. He had high salary demands and asked for outrageous perquisites. He hated rehearsing and when drinking had abrupt mood swings- charming one minute screaming the next. He was renowned for his total mastery and control over each production detail and insisted on the credit for the show.

 

Jackie’s Quotes

“I have no use for humility, I am a fellow with an exceptional talent. “The worst thing you can do with money is save it.” “I’m no alcoholic.  I am a drunkard. There is a difference. A drunkard doesn’t like to go to meetings.” “How sweet it is.” “One of these days, one of these days, POW right in the kisser.” He might have wanted to send Alice in the Honeymooners …”.to the moon Alice,” but on the riser of the second step from the top at his gravesite is his classic phrase “AND AWAY WE GO”

 

 

For more information on birth order and especially Double Birth Orders, you can find it in my book  Life’s Fingerprint: How Birth Order Affects Your Path Throughout Life by Dr. Robert V.V. Hurst or visit my website at www.mybirthorder.com or www.lifesfingerprint.com

 

Meghan Merkle Suzanna Somers Penny Marshall Dr. Phil Shirley Temple:The Three/Only Double Birth Order Disruptor or Visionary?

          

 

 

 

 

Those of you that have been following and using the concept of Double Birth order no doubt           have found the Three/Only Double birth order as one of the most difficult combinations to   understand.  As the Author of Life’s Fingerprint, I have uncovered the answer to this question.      Why are people that have the Three/Only Double birth order so different from each other?



                                                

How Birth Order Works

The Birth order affect is the interaction with your siblings that determine who you are.  The gender of all siblings has one of the greatest impacts on the variation of birth order personality traits. If you are the youngest girl with only older brothers, you will be very different from the youngest girl with only older sisters. The same would be true for a boy with similar sibling genders

Personality Traits of a Third Born

The third child in a family is usually more sensitive than his older brothers or sisters. He is a master at understanding relationships but keeps his feelings protected from others. He sees life differently. Nature, religion, music; the arts are all his interests. Appearing shy and sweet, he is laughing on the outside, but crying on the inside.

Adding the Only to the Three Birth Order

Each ordinal birth order number shares its own similar characteristics; the Only child does not.  The Only child is an amalgamation of his parent’s birth orders.  This is the reason why all Only’s are very different.  When we add the Only birth order to the number Three you can see why the Three/Only is so different. This is a child where the parent’s play a significant role in molding this child’s personality traits while the older siblings are at school this child is nurtured at home. The parents, in effect, are playing the role of siblings.  Double birth orders occur when four or more years separate siblings from each other. People with Double birth orders add the birth order of their parents into the mix. The greater the years between the second sibling and the Three/Only will determine how much of an influence the parent’s birth orders will have. With a ten-year difference, you would be 95% an only and 5% a Three.   Adding the Only birth order to any ordinal number magnifies the traits, their power, and intensity. This is the concept of Double Birth Order, the Rosetta stone of understanding everyone. When we add this type of “Only” power to an ordinal number, we get an extraordinary individual.

Personality Traits of the Three/Only Double Birth Order

If the number Three birth order is shy, the Three/Only birth order is a social butterfly; they do not hide their feelings. They take all of the number Three personality traits and add power to them.  They can be a crusader for the environment, organizers for demonstrations against the wrongs in society. They can also direct their power toward self-centered interests binging drama into their life and everyone around them. The Drama Queen or King is a label easily achieved.

Two Types of Family Structures Influence the Three Only

Ordinal spacing as a Family Structure

When the Three/Only child is born into a family with two older children less than 4 years apart this child is seen and treated very differently than the two older siblings. This child is sometimes referred to as the mistake, accident, late in life baby, or the family’s attempt for a child of a certain gender. The older siblings see them very differently since they are more powerful with the added Only birth order.  They are sometimes thought to be getting more attention or more freedom as the parents are now older and less controlling. As the siblings get older, the Three/Only sibling may be the one that helps hold the family together when care is needed for aging parents or can drive the sibling wedge further apart. There are eight possible sibling combinations using gender as a variable.

Only spacing as a Family Structure

Today families can plan for the spacing of their children.  If the family elects to space all their children four or more years apart the Three/Only comes into a family with older siblings with whom he may not interact.  Just like the Three/Only’s in the ordinal family structure the gender of the older siblings is important but has a lesser affect because of the greater years between siblings. This family structure is like having three different families. There can also be eight possible additional sibling combinations using gender as a variable.

 

A few examples of these types of Three/Only’s from the two different family structures should help you understand this most complex Double Birth Order.

Families with first two siblings spaced less than 4 years apart.

Walter Liberace #3/0   Brother George #1 Sister Angelina #2

Michael Moore  #3/0   Sister Anne #1 Sister Veronica #2

Suzanna Somers  #3/0  Sister Maureen #1 Brother Dan #2

Meghan Merkle  #3/0   Sister  Samantha #1 Brother Thomas #2          

Megyn Kelly         #3/0   Sister Suzanne #1 Brother Peter #2

Michael Avenetti #3/0 Sister Francene #1 Brother Vincent #2

Note the similarity of the personalities of Suzanna Somers and Meghan Merkle

 

 

Families with all Double Birth Order Siblings spaced 4 or more years apart

Maria Bartiromo     #3/0  Brother Patrick # 1/0  Sister Theresa #2/0

Penny Marshall        #3/0  Brother Gary #1/0 Sister Ronell #2/0

Jamine Lynn Spears #3/0  Brother Bryan # 1/0  Sister Britney #2/0

Dr. Phillip McGraw  #3/0 Sister Deana #1/0 Sister Donna #2/0

Shirley Temple Black #3/0 Brother Jack #1/0 Brother George Jr. #2/0

Note the similarity of personalities of Maria Bartiromo and Penny Marshall. You can also see that Dr. Phil and Shirley Temple were the only one of their gender in their families.

Final Thoughts

We found many factors at play in producing a Three/Only double birth order. The addition of the Only Birth Order adds multiple combinations of their parent’s birth orders into the mix. By looking more closely at the gender of the Three/ Only and the genders in the family we can now see their affect. We must also determine which of the two types of family structures that produced the Three/Only Double birth order. Was it Ordinal spaced or Only spaced?  There are 16 possible gender combinations in these two family structures. All Three/Only’s are on a mission to save the world. The Three/Only in the ordinal family structure seems to use their talent for understanding people in a much more self-serving manner. They become the Drama King or Queen and take center stage. Those in a family of all Double birth orders seem to express their talent and power outward and are less self-centered. No matter what type of Three/Only you are, you will be noticed.

Said by a Three/Only " I wish my siblings would stop calling me "spoiled," just because I'm the youngest in the family. The truth is, my parents just kept having children until they found the one they liked. It's really not my fault."

    

For more information about Birth Order you will find it in my book Life's Fingerprint: How Birth Order Affects Your Path Throughout Life by Dr. Robert V.V. Hurst or visit my websites at www.mybirthorder.com or www.lifesfingerprint.com

Rodney Dangerfield: How Birth Order Affected His Life

 

                                                       Rodney Dangerfield

 

Who doesn’t remember Rodney the comedian that got “no respect” and his rapid-fire-one-liners.  A look at his life will give you a little insight as to how birth order affects our lives. The power of attraction between people is an often studied and misunderstood phenomenon. How we find our friends is another mystery that birth order can answer. Looking at his life you will see how birth order affected all parts of it, as it does for everyone.

Early Years

 Rodney’s early years were not the easiest.  His family was a dysfunctional one as his father was a vaudevillian performer, Phillip Cohen, using the stage name Phil Roy; he would come home twice a year. His mother was from Austria/Hungary and showed Rodney little affection.  She may have transferred her negative feelings for his father, who abandoned the family, to him. She had to support both Rodney and his older sister Marion three years older. Rodney was the second born. His early feelings of rejection may have given him the idea to use “no respect” in his standup act. At age 15, he began to write for stand-up comedians and performed at a resort. He changed his name to Jack Roy at age 19.

First Marriage

He began his career as a comedian preforming at resorts in upstate New York.  He was also doing odd jobs, driving a delivery truck and working as a singing waiter.  In 1951, he met Joyce Indig, a singer they married and raised two children.  Joyce had almost the same birth order as his older sister.  This is one type of “love at first sight” when you meet someone with the same birth order as one of your siblings. Although Joyce was a firstborn like Rodney’s sister, she was nine years older than her younger sister was.  This gave her a Double birth order with characteristics of both an Only and Firstborn. Close but not perfect. They divorced after ten years of marriage.

Second Marriage

The strength of the birth order connection cannot be denied, after one year apart they married again. This marriage lasted seven years until it permanently ended. It was during the time he was married to Joyce that he dropped out of preforming and worked as an aluminum siding salesman.

Return to the Stage

March 1968 he got his big break, The Ed Sullivan Show, he was 47 years old. He performed on this show 17 times. This led to the Dean Martin Show 28 times and Johnny Carson over 70 times.  It is interesting to note that both Dean and Johnny were both second borns. When you meet someone with your same birth order, you have an instant friendship, it showed.  It helps to get a hand up in show business. His success led to 21 movies. Who can forget Caddyshack, Easy Money and Back to School, some of his movies were all Rodney. One of his last movies released after his death, was Angels with Angles in which he played GOD.

Third Marriage

Birth Order works in predicable ways and it has no age barriers. This was true for Rodney and Joan Child. Joan was 30 years younger but it did not seem to matter. She said it was “Love at first sight”; both of them were second borns. This is the second type of “Love at first Sight”; when you meet someone with your same birth order, its magic. It is like looking into a mirror. They had eleven years together before Rodney’s death.

One Liners

This blog cannot be complete without a few of Rodney’s one-liners.  “I have good looking kids. Thank goodness my wife cheats on me.” “I haven’t spoken to my wife in years. I didn’t want to interrupt her.” “I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me.  He said I was being ridiculous.  Everyone hasn’t met me yet.”  “ I told my wife the truth; I told her I was seeing a psychiatrist.  Then she told me the truth; that she was seeing a psychiatrist, two plumbers, and a bartender.” “It’s tough to stay married.  My wife kisses the dog on the lips, yet she won’t drink from my glass.”  “My uncle’s dying wish; He wanted me on his lap.  He was in the electric chair.” “When I was a kid my parents moved a lot, but I always found them.” ”My psychiatrist told me I was crazy and I said I want a second opinion.  He said okay, you’re ugly too.”

His Parting Words

Rodney’s self-deprecating humor tells us we should not take ourselves too seriously. Before his last operation when asked how long he would be in the hospital, he said, “If all goes well, about a week. If not, about an hour and a half.”  He would die six weeks later. When hearing of his death both Johnny Carson and Jay Leno, another second born, referred to Dangerfield as the best stand-up-comedian who ever lived. On the day of his death, the randomly generated Joke of the Day on his website happened to be “I tell ya I get no respect from anyone.  I bought a cemetery plot.  The guy said, “There goes the neighborhood!” This led his wife, Joan, to put this on his headstone, “There goes the neighborhood.”

 

For more information about birth order, you can find it in my book. Life’s Fingerprint: How Birth Order Affects Your Path Throughout Life, by Dr. Robert V. V. Hurst or our website www.lifesfingerprint.com or www.mybirthorder.com