CODY — For decades, former Wyoming U.S. Sen. Alan K. Simpson has relied on a favorite joke at campaign appearances and public events across the state. It never fails to get a laugh.
“My wife, Ann, likes to say that being married to me is a religious experience,” the lanky Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient will say with a sly grin. “She says it’s a living hell.”
The joke does particularly well with crowds in Simpson’s hometown of Cody, because locals know how much the two truly love and cherish each other.
Alan Kooi Simpson of Cody and Susan Ann Schroll of Greybull were married June 21, 1954, just five months after New York Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio and movie star Marilyn Monroe were wed.
But while the Yankee Clipper and Blonde Bombshell were together only nine months, the Simpsons celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary Friday.
Sue Simpson Gallagher recalls her mother always telling her that it was important to marry someone you are attracted to, but also someone you respect.
“It was something she was always really clear on with her children, that not only was she attracted to dad, but that she admired him and respected him, and it was so much of what kept them together,” she said.
Also Matchmakers
The Simpsons, now both 92, played a role in bringing together Anna Sale, a reporter and the creator and host of the “Death, Sex & Money” podcast, and Arthur Middleton, a Buffalo Bill Center of the West trustee and associate professor of wildlife management and policy at the University of California, Berkeley.
In a story made famous on Sale’s podcast, Middleton reached out to Al for help in convincing Sale to reconsider her breakup with him.
Al was set to host a ceremony where Middleton would be presented with an award from the Center of the West for his research, but didn’t really know the gregarious former politician.
Al was reluctant to get involved, but Ann, who has a local reputation as a matchmaker, prodded her husband to action, and they both called Sale on Middleton’s behalf. Their efforts were successful.
Sale recalled how a few years after eventually marrying Middleton, they were considering living in Cody for the summer for the birth of their first child and a few months of maternity leave.
Ann helped them find a place and organized a baby shower, Sale said. She would walk to the Simpsons’ house with her baby and visit with them, getting parenting advice over lemonade with Ann.
“They were easy and informal visits that, in hindsight, were where I learned some of the most important things about being a mother,” Sale said. “You tend to the essentials first, starting with are you hungry?
“You tell people what to do. You have clear standards about the proper ways to do things but forgive easily and try to laugh when things fall short. You ask for help. You listen. You show up. You make being together fun. All of this is essential Ann.”
Ann Simpson credits group marriage counseling organized by her church as “the best thing that ever happened” to her marriage with Alan Simpson. (Courtesy Sue Simpson Gallagher) 
Alan Simpson served in the United States Senate from 1979 until 1997. Simpson and his wife, Ann, celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary this month. (Courtesy Sue Simpson Gallagher) 
Sue Simpson Gallagher and her brothers, Colin and Bill, will host an ice cream social in Cody on June 21 to celebrate the 70th wedding anniversary of their parents, Alan and Ann Simpson. (Ruffin Prevost for Cowboy State Daily) 
Sue Simpson Gallagher says that her mother, Ann Simpson, always advised her to marry someone she respected and admired. (Ruffin Prevost for Cowboy State Daily)
Listen And Care
Sale would go on to write a book, “Let’s Talk About Hard Things,” about having difficult conversations with people you care about. That’s something Ann said has been key to the success of her and Al’s marriage.
After being married for roughly 20 years, the Simpsons attended a marriage therapy group organized by their church minister. The process was daunting at first, with some attendees fearful of opening up in front of other people, Ann said, but it proved extraordinarily helpful.
“That was probably the best thing that ever happened to us,” she said. “We were all so excited with the progress we had made that we drove people crazy because we wanted everybody to do it.”
Ann advises people considering marriage to “get counseling even before you get married,” and that “when you get in a tough spot, don’t try to solve it yourself. Get help from someone qualified.”
Sue Simpson Gallagher said that her parents “sometimes say that the secret to the success of their marriage is that they both tried to control each other, and they both failed.”
“My parents recognize each other's gifts,” she said. “They are appreciative of what they each bring to the table. They don’t try and be everything to each other either. They know how important it is to have friends but to have each other as their greatest champions.”
Celebrate With Ice Cream
Al and Ann Simpson’s three adult children will celebrate the milestone anniversary with an ice cream social from 5-8 p.m. Friday at City Park in downtown Cody. The Hangar Big Band will perform and food trucks will feed guests.
