Martin Short was a loving husband to his late wife, Nancy Dolman, and their three children.
The actor, 75, lost his wife to cancer in 2010. Short then mourned their daughter, Katherine, nearly 16 years later, when she died by apparent suicide.
The “Only Murders in the Building” star also dealt with untimely family deaths during his childhood. When he was 12 years old, his older brother David died in a car accident in Montreal, Canada.
He later lost both of his parents in the span of two years. His mother, Olive Hayter, died of cancer in 1968 when he was just 17 years old. Two years later, his father, Charles Patrick Short, died from complications caused by a stroke.
“I think the reason all that didn’t throw me sideways was because I had such a solid foundation,” he told the Guardian in 2012. “Those kinds of situations are horrible but I think that you are either empowered by them or you become a victim of them.”
He also spoke about relating to late-night host Stephen Colbert, who similarly suffered intense family tragedy growing up.
“I remember speaking to my friend the satirist Stephen Colbert a couple of days after a Whitehouse Correspondents’ Dinner where he’d pushed it really, really far with his material in front of George W. Bush, who was not finding it funny at all,” he recalled to the outlet.
“I said, ‘Weren’t you scared?’ and he said, ‘When I was 12, my father and two brothers were killed in a plane crash together. That day I was scared,’” he continued. “And when he told me that story I thought, ‘I know from what you speak.’”
Read on for more about Short and his late wife, as well as their children.
Nancy Dolman
Dolman and Short met in 1972 during a Toronto production of the musical “Godspell.” They got married on Dec. 22, 1980.
The Canadian comedian and actress eventually quit showbiz to raise their three children — Katherine, Olive and Henry — whom they welcomed via adoption.
Dolman and Short were together for 36 years before she died on Aug. 21, 2010, after a battle with ovarian cancer. She was 58 years old.
“Our marriage was a triumph,” he told AARP the magazine in 2019. “So it’s tough. She died in 2010, but I still communicate with her all the time.”
“It’s ‘Hey Nan,’ you know?’ How would she react to this decision or that, especially regarding our three kids.”
He added, “I believe that when people die, they zoom into the people that love them. The idea that it just ends, and don’t speak of them — that’s wrong….to me, she’s still here.”
Katherine Elizabeth Short
Katherine, born on Dec. 3, 1983, was the eldest child of Short and Dolman.
Katherine graduated with her psychology and gender sexuality studies bachelor’s degree from New York University in 2006, per People, and went on to become a social worker.
She accompanied her dad on multiple red carpets over the years, including the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in February 2011.
On Feb. 23, 2026, she died by apparent suicide. She was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound at her Hollywood Hills, Calif., home around 6 p.m. local time, per TMZ.
She was 42 years old.
“It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short,” a rep for Short confirmed to Page Six at the time.
“The Short family is devastated by this loss, and asks for privacy at this time. Katherine was beloved by all and will be remembered for the light and joy she brought into the world.”
Oliver Patrick Short
Oliver, born on April 29, 1986, graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2008 with a degree in film and television production.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Oliver worked as an executive assistant at Warner Bros. before carving out a career in sports broadcasting. He’s worked for Fox Sports, the MLB Network, NBC Sports Group and the NFL TV Network.
Oliver has also stepped out with his father at public events over the years, including attending the Night Of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit in N.Y.C. in August 2009 alongside Katherine.
Henry Hayter Short
Henry was born on Aug. 4, 1989, and graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2012 with a degree in finance.
According to his LinkedIn profile, he held positions at the Royal Bank of Canada as a consultant and an analyst, but now works as a veterinary assistant at Malibu Coast Animal Hospital.
Henry appears to be the most public of his siblings, attending multiple red carpets with his parents.
His latest appearance was at the Take Off, Eh: An All-Star Benefit in July 2017, where he walked the red carpet with his father.
The post Martin Short’s family: Meet the actor’s three children with late wife Nancy Dolman appeared first on Page Six.
