# Candy Spelling
**Candy Spelling** (born Carole Gene Marer in 1945) is an American author, television producer, and Broadway theater producer, known to wider audiences as the widow of television producer [Aaron Spelling](https://www.edgepedia.org/aaron-spelling) and the mother of actress [Tori Spelling](https://www.edgepedia.org/tori-spelling).[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292) • [2](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tori-spellings-mom-candy-spelling-80-sparks-backlash-with-heavily-edited-cover/) After her husband's death in 2006 she built a second career as a Broadway producer, with credits including the 2010 revival of *Promises, Promises*, *The Color Purple*, *MJ*, *Moulin Rouge! The Musical*, and *Suffs*.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) • [1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1945, Beverly Hills, California[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292) |
| Marriage | Married Aaron Spelling on November 23, 1968; two children, Tori and Randy[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) |
| Broadway debut | *Promises, Promises* revival, opened April 25, 2010[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) • [5](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/promises-promises-485290) |
| Tony Award | *The Color Purple* won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical[2](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tori-spellings-mom-candy-spelling-80-sparks-backlash-with-heavily-edited-cover/) • [3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) |
| Books | *Stories from Candyland* (2009), a New York Times bestseller; *Candy at Last* (2014)[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) |
| Television | Produced and starred in the HGTV specials *Selling Spelling Manor* (2011–2012) and *Beyond Spelling Manor* (2013)[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) |
| Philanthropy | Co-founded the Candy and Aaron Spelling Foundation in 1997[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) |
## Early life and marriage
Spelling was born in [Beverly Hills, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/beverly-hills-california), in 1945.[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292) According to the Handbook of Texas, she was an art student when Aaron Spelling, then emerging from his first marriage, began dating her in 1966; they married on November 23, 1968, and had two children, Tori and Randy, both of whom became actors.[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) Aaron Spelling's productions included *Charlie's Angels*, *Beverly Hills, 90210*, and *The Mod Squad*, and the couple's wealth made them fixtures of Los Angeles society.[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) • [6](https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/candy-spelling-steps-into-reality-tv-broadway-3276956.php)
In 1983 Aaron Spelling bought [Bing Crosby](https://www.edgepedia.org/bing-crosby)'s former Holmby Hills house, demolished it, and rebuilt it as a 123-room, approximately 56,500-square-foot residence known as "The Manor," completed in 1988.[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) In 1997 the couple established the Candy and Aaron Spelling Foundation.[4](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron) Aaron Spelling died in 2006 following complications from a stroke.[2](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tori-spellings-mom-candy-spelling-80-sparks-backlash-with-heavily-edited-cover/)
## Move into producing and writing
Spelling described her years as a producer's wife as those of a self-styled "trophy wife," and after her husband's death she took on public roles of her own: a reality television appearance on E!'s *Bank of Hollywood* and her first Broadway production, the revival of *Promises, Promises*, which opened in April 2010.[6](https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/candy-spelling-steps-into-reality-tv-broadway-3276956.php) She has said that the first time the cast and orchestra came together in rehearsal was the moment that drew her into theater, and that the live, no-second-take nature of Broadway is what keeps her returning to it.[7](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/)
Her producing credits on Broadway followed a steady rhythm through the 2010s: *How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying* (2011), *Nice Work If You Can Get It* (2012), *After Midnight* (2013), *The Color Purple* (2015), *The Iceman Cometh*, *Carousel*, and *Three Tall Women* (all 2018), and *Hillary and Clinton* and *King Lear* (2019).[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) • [1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292) Several productions received multiple Tony nominations and wins; *The Color Purple*, which cast [Cynthia Erivo](https://www.edgepedia.org/cynthia-erivo) in the central role, won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, and the 2018 *Carousel* revival won two [Tony Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-awards).[2](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tori-spellings-mom-candy-spelling-80-sparks-backlash-with-heavily-edited-cover/) • [3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) • [7](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/)
As an author she published the autobiography *Stories from Candyland* in 2009, a New York Times bestseller, followed by the memoir *Candy at Last* in 2014; she has also written for outlets including TMZ and HuffPost.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/) For television she produced and starred in the HGTV specials *Selling Spelling Manor* (2011–2012) and *Beyond Spelling Manor* (2013), which documented her real estate ventures.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/)
## Recent Broadway work
In the 2020s Spelling's credits shifted toward long-running original musicals. She produced *Tina* (2019–2022), *MJ* (from February 2022), *Moulin Rouge! The Musical* (from July 2019, credited as Candy Spelling/Tulchin Bartner, a producing organization whose members are Robert G. Bartner and Norman Tulchin), *Mr. Saturday Night* (2022), *Suffs* and *Hell's Kitchen* (both 2024), *The Great Gatsby* (2024), and *BOOP! The Musical* (2025).[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292) • [8](https://playbill.com/person/candy-spelling-tulchin-bartner) *Suffs*, based on Shaina Taub's book about the women's suffrage movement, opened on Broadway in April 2024 and received six Tony Award nominations.[7](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/) *MJ* made history at the 2022 Tony Awards when Myles Frost, at age 22, became the youngest actor to win the Tony for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance as [Michael Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-jackson).[7](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/)
Town & Country, in a 2023 piece on celebrity Broadway producers, described the producer's traditional role as acting as a project's chief executive, from raising money to creatively shepherding the show, and listed Spelling among the celebrities who have taken on credits for shows such as *MJ The Musical* and *Moulin Rouge!*.[9](https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a46615573/broadway-celebrity-producers-hillary-clinton-angelina-jolie/)
## Other activities
Spelling has served on the boards of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council, the UCLA Health System Board, and American Humane.[10](https://www.broadwayinhollywood.com/assets/doc/Playbill_ColorPurple-7e9698c6ee.pdf) In a 2025 interview she described weekly poker games, a background in crafting and gift wrapping, a former Beverly Hills store, and the Candy Spelling Fantasy Dolls line sold exclusively on QVC.[7](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/)
## References
1. [Candy Spelling – Broadway Cast & Staff, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/candy-spelling-485292)
2. [Tori Spelling's Mom, 80, Sparks Backlash With Heavily Edited Cover, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tori-spellings-mom-candy-spelling-80-sparks-backlash-with-heavily-edited-cover/)
3. [Candy Spelling (Producer) – Broadway & Theatre Credits, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Candy-Spelling/)
4. [Spelling, Aaron, Handbook of Texas Online](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/spelling-aaron)
5. [Promises, Promises – Broadway Musical – 2010 Revival, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/promises-promises-485290)
6. [Candy Spelling steps into reality TV, Broadway, San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/candy-spelling-steps-into-reality-tv-broadway-3276956.php)
7. [COVER STORY: Candy Spelling, Westlake Malibu Lifestyle](https://wmlifestyle.com/cover-story-candy-spelling/)
8. [Candy Spelling/Tulchin Bartner (Producer), Playbill](https://playbill.com/person/candy-spelling-tulchin-bartner)
9. [How Broadway Fell in Love with Celebrity Producers, Town & Country](https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a46615573/broadway-celebrity-producers-hillary-clinton-angelina-jolie/)
10. [The Color Purple Playbill, Broadway in Hollywood](https://www.broadwayinhollywood.com/assets/doc/Playbill_ColorPurple-7e9698c6ee.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Theater and dance › Stage practitioners and craft › Directors, producers, and managers › Theater producers and impresarios*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license