Rita Wilson was left speechless when she learned on a 2012 genealogy show that her father, Allan Wilson, had a secret second family.<\/p>\n
During Wednesday\u2019s episode of the \u201cHow to Fail\u201d podcast<\/a>, the actress recalled the \u201cshocking and unusual\u201d circumstances of her father\u2019s first marriage during an English genealogy show called \u201cWho Do You Think You Are?\u201d<\/p>\n Noting that \u201cthose genealogy shows\u201d can \u201cgo back many, many generations,\u201d the \u201cSleepless in Seattle\u201d star, 69, explained that her father Allan \u201cwas married and he had a child\u201d in Bulgaria before moving to the United States.<\/p>\n Rita Wilson shared that she learned her father had a secret family during a past TV appearance. She\u2019s seen above during Wednesday\u2019s episode of the \u201cHow to Fail\u201d podcast. YouTube\/@HowToFailPodcast<\/p>\n \u201cHe was married and he had a child,\u201d she said of her father, Allan Wilson. YouTube\/@HowToFailPodcast<\/p>\n \u201cI said, \u2018Am I going to meet someone? Am I going to meet a family?\u2019\u201d she recalled asking. <\/p>\n Wilson explained that \u201cIt was a little boy,\u201d but shared that producers told her \u201cno,\u201d she would not be meeting a family.<\/p>\n According to the \u201cNow and Then\u201d actress, her father had married a woman, Alice, who died several days after giving birth to a son they named Emil.<\/p>\n Wilson shared that he\u2019d been married to a woman named Alice, who died after giving birth to a son in Bulgaria. Rita is pictured above at the Oscars in March. Getty Images<\/p>\n The infant died four months later from an infection, Rita shared. She\u2019s seen above with husband Tom Hanks in 2024. Variety via Getty Images<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tWant more celebrity and pop culture news?\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with Page Six Daily.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Tragically, Emil also died four months later. Rita shared that she learned the family was \u201cso poor.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was right after the war [in] Bulgaria,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t know how they would have afforded formula or something, but I\u2019m sure they made ways.\u201d<\/p>\n Rita said the months-old infant \u201cdidn\u2019t die from starvation,\u201d but instead perished after suffering an infection. <\/p>\n Rita\u2019s father later tied the knot with her mother, Dorothy Wilson, and together the couple welcomed Rita, Chris, and Lily Wilson. <\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s parents later married, and they welcomed Rita and her two siblings. She\u2019s pictured above with her mother, Dorothy Wilson. FilmMagic<\/p>\n Wilson was born in Hollywood. She married Hanks in 1988 (above.) Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images<\/p>\n