Who Is Billy Crystal's Wife? All About Janice Crystal

Billy Crystal and his wife, Janice, have been married for more than 50 years

Billy Crystal and his wife, Janice Crystal, have been married for more than five decades.

The couple met in New York in the summer of 1966 and married on June 4, 1970 — long before Billy had his big break in When Harry Met Sally.

"[Janice is] everything," the actor told Gayle King during an interview in December 2023. "Her honesty, her strength, her love. [She is] the weight in my shoes in case I tend to drift off."

Janice and Billy share two daughters, Jennifer and Lindsay, and are doting grandparents to four grandchildren.

Related: Billy Crystal Says His Almost 50-Year Marriage 'Just Gets Better and Better'

From meeting as teenagers to celebrating more than 50 years of marriage, here's everything to know about Billy Crystal's wife, Janice.

They’re teenage sweethearts

Billy and Janice met as teenagers living in Long Beach, New York.

After graduating from Long Beach High School in 1965, where he was voted “Most Popular,” Billy attended Marshall University in West Virginia and played baseball there.

During the summer before his sophomore year, Billy got a job at a summer camp, where he met Janice.

“This girl walks by ... and I said, 'I’m gonna marry her.' And I did, four years later,” he shared, recalling the first time he saw Janice on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast.

Meeting Janice influenced Billy’s decision to stay in New York. “I loved her so much right away," he said. “You know, I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a long-distance relationship — they don’t work out."

Billy started his sophomore year as a transfer student at Nassau Community College on Long Island, where he took an acting class that made him feel like he was "home." He eventually transferred to NYU, where he earned a bachelor of fine arts in film.

They got married in 1970

Billy and Janice wed on June 4, 1970. During a May 2021 interview on The Kelly Clarkson Show, Billy offered his advice for a long and happy marriage.

"We laugh, we joke, we still learn from each other," he told host Kelly Clarkson. "We still love being together ... We just have so much fun and keep discovering new things about each other. And I think that's the most important thing is to still always be curious and find out more about each other."

Billy has also credited his parents’ relationship as something he strived to replicate.

"My parents always looked like they loved being together," he told The Sydney Morning Herald in 2016. "That's what I took from them, and that's how my wife and I are. I still feel like we're dating."

They've joked about their lasting Hollywood relationship

As a longstanding couple in Hollywood, Billy and Janice’s relationship is revered by many — and people often ask them about the secrets to making a marriage last.

“What’s the secret to a 50-year marriage? We see other people,” Billy joked in an interview with PEOPLE and his Standing Up, Falling Down costar Ben Schwartz.

“Constantly?” Ben asked, laughing.

“Constantly. I’m insatiable,” Billy responded.

Ben went on to praise Billy for the example he set in his relationship with Janice, saying: “It’s very hard in this industry to, when you get a little hot streak ... Nobody’s gonna tell you to say no,” referring to taking on more than someone can handle.

Ben continued: “But he has found a way to make sure that family is the most important, to give his time to his kids, to his grandkids, to his wife, and that is something that is paramount, that is something I’ve learned from Billy."

“And that’s how it works,” Billy added, smiling.

They share two children

Janice welcomed her first daughter with Billy, Jennifer Crystal Foley, on Jan. 26, 1973.

During his 2021 appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, Billy spoke about how much time he spent at home with Jennifer while she was a baby and how formative it was for their relationship.

“I was Mr. Mom way before it was popular,” he joked, referring to the fact that he became Jennifer’s daytime primary caregiver when Janice went to work.

“I look at it as a real turning point in my life, not only as a father, but a human being,” he continued. “It gave me perspective on what we’re here for, and what you’re responsible for, and to love someone so selflessly and take care of her and make sure that she’s healthy and happy and educated, even in those early days … It forever bonded us.”

The couple welcomed their second daughter, Lindsay Crystal, on Oct. 21, 1977.

“I think my wife and I were good parents because we didn't want to be our kids' friends," Billy told The Guardian in 2013. "We knew we had to be their parents. A lot of parents nowadays try to be friends with their kids, and I don't think that works."

He continued: “Also we listened to them and we were patient; we just always maintained the right amount of authority. I think we laughed a lot and we let them express themselves. We just really loved being parents."

They’re grandparents to four grandchildren

Janice and Billy became grandparents when their daughter, Jennifer, welcomed her first child, Ella Ryan Foley.

“When my daughter Jenny was pregnant with our first grandchild, Ella, it was very profound for me because Jenny is my firstborn daughter,” Billy said, speaking to The Guardian.

“One night, I wrote down all the things I was waiting to do with my little granddaughter, and it became a book, I Already Know I Love You,” he continued, speaking about the 2004 children's book he wrote.

Now, Billy and Janice are grandparents to four grandchildren as Jennifer welcomed her second daughter, Dylan Frances Foley, in 2006, and Lindsay has two sons.

Billy also revealed a funny tidbit about what happened when his grandkids became old enough to learn that he voiced some of their favorite movie characters.

"When they understood that I was Mike Wazowski in Monsters, Inc., I had to talk like him for six months. It drove me crazy," he told The Guardian. "Then they saw The Princess Bride, and I had to be Miracle Max for six months.”

On a more serious note, Billy shared that he teared up when his grandchildren came to see him on Broadway in 2022 when he reprised his role as Buddy in Mr. Saturday Night.

"I'm very proud of the fact that at the age of 74, I made my musical comedy debut in front of my grandchildren opening night," he said during a May 2022 appearance on The View. "That was the greatest thrill of all."

Billy added: “I kept thinking of the fact of where I started and how these kids who have never seen me live before on stage … never saw me perform — especially this character, that embraces my age now, this is who I am — and I kept getting teary."

They celebrated their 50th anniversary in a unique way

Billy and Janice’s 50th anniversary came in 2020, making it less easy to celebrate with COVID-19 pandemic precautions in place. Fortunately, their kids and grandkids had a solution to ensure they still had the opportunity to celebrate the milestone.

Speaking to Jimmy Kimmel in a from-home interview, Billy revealed that his and Janice’s kids and grandkids surprised them with an anniversary dinner.

“They created a little outdoor restaurant for us, and my grandchildren … They were the waiters and waitresses, and they took care of us. And we had this very romantic dinner, just the two of us,” he shared on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.

When asked if he tipped his waiters, Billy said, “No.”

He joked: “Honestly, the service was slow."

She’s worked in film and theater

Janice and Billy shared a love of comedy and theater even before he got his big break as an actor. While she was in her early 20s and they still lived in their hometown of Long Beach, N.Y., Janice worked as an assistant to the dean of theater at a junior college on Long Island.

Janice worked as a producer on the film special Billy Crystal: 700 Sundays, which earned an Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Variety Special in 2014. It was based on Billy's autobiographical book of the same name and the one-man Broadway show (which won a Tony for Best Special Theatrical Event in 2005) following the book’s release.

However, Janice isn’t always behind the scenes. She had a small role in the 2021 film Here Today, which Billy co-wrote, directed and starred in. Janice also spent time on stage, acting in a 1981 production of Cabaret performed in Akron, Ohio, alongside Billy.

She was the earliest supporter of Billy’s comedy career

Billy was working as a substitute teacher at his old high school while waiting for his big break.

Speaking to Clarkson, Billy revealed he could stop teaching and pursue comedy full-time because of his wife’s support at an early stage in his career.

“It was always my dream, and it was what I was working hard at, and I was already a young father–my daughter was already 6 months old,” he shared, noting that the time spent traveling back and forth to the city to perform at comedy clubs took a toll when he was already working.

Janice decided to return to work and have Billy stay home with their daughter, Jennifer, so he could spend his nights performing comedy.

“'Go into the city and become the comedian I know that you can be,' ” Janice told Billy, as he recalled to Kelly. “It was the greatest gift of her selflessness as a young mother with a 6-month-old, to trust me."

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