Rose Swisher was the first wife of legendary basketball player the late Bill Russell. She was a model and photographer. Rose Swisher was born on December 27, 1936, and died on September 11, 2014, at 78.
Rose Swisher burst into the spotlight thanks to her ex-husband Bill Russell’s celebrity status, but she disappeared shortly after her marriage ended. Bill Russell rose to fame in the NBA, playing for the Boston Celtics from 1956-1959. This article has interesting details about his first and late wife, Rose Swisher, and their marital life.
Rose Swisher Birthday & Death
Bill Russell’s first wife, Rose Swisher, was born on December 27, 1936, and Rose Swisher obituary took place on September 11, 2014, at 78. Her exact place of birth in the United States is unknown, but she enjoyed all the privileges, rights, and responsibilities of an American citizen. Despite being the wife of one of the NBA’s most respected and famous players, Rose kept a low profile.
Rose Swisher obsession with privacy is why much information about her private life, including her parents, siblings, and other family background information, is not available in the media. Her exact place of birth is still being determined, so it is very difficult to determine where Rose spent her childhood.
However, according to records, Rose Swisher had a degree in nursing from the University of San Francisco. She was a student at the college at about the same time that Bill Russell was there. Meanwhile, Rose Russell is said to have worked as a model and photographer long before she married the late NBA star. However, there are no records of their achievements in either field of activity.
Married For Two Decades
Rose Swisher was Bill Russell’s first wife and spent 17 years married to him. Multiple sources show that Swisher and Russell were college sweethearts when they met at the University of San Francisco. Bill was studying physical education while Rose was studying nursing.
It is confirmed that their love story began in college, but early details of their relationship, such as the exact timing and how they met, have yet to be revealed. However, the pair reportedly dated while in college and finally exchanged vows on December 9, 1956, at a private wedding family and close friends attended.
After their marriage, they spent 17 years together as husband and wife. They lived happily together during this period, and their love seemed perfect. But in 1973, nearly four years after Russell’s professional basketball career ended, a rift began between the two. They gave up and went their separate ways.
Neither of them revealed the real reason for their divorce. However, it is speculated that the divorce was due to the distance between them. After the divorce, Bill Swisher had sole custody and paid child support for himself and his three children.
Rose Swisher Children
Rose Swisher has three children during her 17-year marriage to Bill Russell. She has two sons and one daughter. The late couple gave birth to their first child, son William Fenton Russell, Jr., on November 2, 1957, nearly a year after marriage. Nothing is known about William Jr. other than that he passed away in 2016 at the age of death. She lost her battle with cancer and is 59 years old.
Until his death, he worked for many years as a truck driver for Cox Trucks. Rose and Bill had their second child on July 6, 1959, a son named Jacob H. Russell. Jacob keeps a low profile but reportedly lives in Washington state with his wife, Sarah Max Russell, and their two children.
The late couple gave birth to their last child and only daughter, Karen Russell, on January 20, 1962. Karen is the only one among her siblings who is in the spotlight. She works as a legal and political analyst and is also a blogger. Her work has earned her the privilege of being in the spotlight. Kareen Russell holds a law degree from Harvard Law School and works at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights.
Bill Russell’s First Wife
After her failed marriage to Bill, Rose Swisher moved on with her life, albeit very private, in contrast to the limelight she experienced when she was still married. Because of this, the details of their subsequent relationship have never been made public. Therefore, it is difficult for her to know if she has remarried.
Meanwhile, her marriage to the NBA star was his longest marriage, lasting from 1956 to 1973. Bill Russell was married to three other women, bringing the total number of marriages he had before his death to four. After Rose, her second marriage was to American beauty queen and model Dorothy Anstead, known as Miss USA and Miss Universe, in 1968.
Dorothy and Bill married in 1977 and ended their marriage in 1980. Bill then married his third wife, Marilyn Naught, in 1996. Their marriage lasted 13 years, and Naught died in 2009 after a battle with cancer.
Bill Russell’s fourth and final marriage was to former professional golfer Janine Fiorito. Janine Fiorito was by Bill’s side when he died at his home in Mercer Island, Washington, on July 31, 2022.
Rose Swisher died eight years before her ex-husband. She passed away on September 11, 2014. The cause of her death has not been made public, as she was reticent after divorcing the late NBA star.