Willie Nelson Reveals His Ex-Wife Once Stabbed Him With A Fork In New Paramount+ Documentary: “We Both Were Drinking A Lot In Those Days”

Willie Nelson‘s new four-part documentary on Paramount+ gives viewers a closer look at the life and family of the 90-year-old country music legend.

Willie Nelson & Family, a documentary series produced by Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan, shows the singer looking back on his decade-long marriage with his first wife, Martha Matthews, whom he married in 1952.

Speaking in the series, Nelson said, “She was a dark-haired beauty, a full-blooded Cherokee. Her eyes set my soul on fire, and her name was Martha Jewel.” But their marriage was fraught with issues, he revealed.

“We had a lot of fun together but we fought, and we both were drinking a lot in those days. One morning we got in this argument, and she picked up this fork and threw it across the table and it stuck in my side. It sounded like a tuning fork,” he said.

In the documentary, Nelson also opened up about suffering from suicidal ideation when he was “drinking more than ever” during their marriage.

“She and I were fighting worse than ever,” he said. “I started drinking more than ever. I would get drunk every night and go home with someone different every night. [I was] slowly self-destructing. I really didn’t care.”

Matthews was the first of Nelson’s four marriages. They later divorced in 1962, but the couple shared three children together. She later passed away in 1989 from liver failure.

The documentary details much of his complicated romantic past. The series revealed that his second wife learned that Nelson was having an affair when she saw his mistress’s hospital bills, revealing that she had given birth to a baby girl.

In the documentary, Nelson confessed he “had a gift for complicating things” when “it came to romance.”

He said, “I’ve always said there’s no such thing as a former wife. Once in your life, a wife never leaves. I regret the pain I caused Connie, and Martha and Shirley before her. I have no excuses. I’d be hard-pressed to define love. I know God’s love is pure, but worldly love is flawed love, and lots of times confused love.” 

Nelson has since been married to Annie D’Angelo, who he married in 1991.

Willie Nelson & Family is now streaming on Paramount+.

If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.