While married to Palmer, Lewis openly pursued relationships with other women and gave unapologetic interviews about his infidelity, revealing his affairs with Marilyn Monroe and Marlene Dietrich to "People" in 2011. Palmer filed for divorce from Lewis in 1980, after 35 years of marriage, citing Lewis' extravagant spending and infidelity on his part, and it was finalized in 1983. All of Lewis' children and grandchildren from his marriage to Palmer were excluded from inheriting any part of his estate. His eldest son, Gary, publicly called his father a "mean and evil person" and said that Lewis never showed him or his siblings any love or care.