Noelene Edwards is best known as the first wife of Australian actor and comedian Paul Hogan, the man who later became famous around the world as Crocodile Dundee. But Noelene knew Paul long before Hollywood, red carpets, and international fame entered their lives. Their story began when they were very young, included five children, two marriages to each other, and eventually a final separation that attracted huge public attention.
What makes Noelene’s story interesting is that she was there before Paul Hogan became a star. She knew him when he was simply a young Australian man trying to support a growing family. So who is Noelene Edwards, what happened between her and Paul Hogan, and where did life take her afterward?
Quick Bio of Noelene Edwards
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Noelene Edwards |
| Known For | Being Paul Hogan’s first wife |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Birth Year | Commonly reported as 1940 |
| First Husband | Paul Hogan |
| Children | Five |
| Children’s Names | Brett, Todd, Scott, Clay, and Lauren |
| Marriage to Paul Hogan | 1958 |
| First Divorce | 1981 |
| Remarried Paul Hogan | Less than a year later |
| Second Separation | Divorce proceedings began in the 1980s |
| Later Husband | Reg Stretton |
Some details about Noelene’s early life have never been widely documented. Unlike Paul, she did not build a career around television or movies, so much of her private story stayed outside the media.
Who Is Noelene Edwards?
Noelene Edwards became known publicly because of her long relationship with Paul Hogan.
Today, most people hear Hogan’s name and immediately think of Crocodile Dundee. But when Noelene first knew him, none of that fame existed.
There were no movie premieres.
There were no Hollywood photographers.
There was simply a young couple building a family in Australia.
ABC’s Australian Story reported that Hogan had married Noelene while they were still teenagers. By the time he was only 22, the couple already had three boys. A daughter arrived later, and the family lived together in a Housing Commission home in Chullora Heights.
That tells us something important about Noelene’s story.
She did not marry a movie star.
She married Paul Hogan before he became one.
Noelene Edwards and Paul Hogan Met When They Were Young
Paul Hogan’s life looked completely different in his younger years.
Before television made him famous, he worked ordinary jobs. He eventually became known for working as a rigger on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, a physically demanding job that had nothing to do with entertainment.
Hogan has also spoken about meeting Noelene when he was young.
Accounts of their early relationship say their romance began while Hogan was working around a swimming pool. He later remembered himself as a very confident and flirtatious young man.
The two liked each other, started a relationship, and soon decided to marry.
Their wedding took place on June 24, 1958.
Paul was only around 18 or 19 years old.
Imagine being that young and suddenly having a marriage, children, bills, and adult responsibilities.
That was the life Noelene and Paul entered together.
They Became Parents Very Quickly
Family became a huge part of Noelene Edwards’ life.
She and Paul Hogan had five children together:
Brett Hogan, Todd Hogan, Scott Hogan, Clay Hogan, and Lauren Hogan.
Hogan later said he had three sons by the age of 22.
That meant the young couple had to grow up very quickly.
While many people in their early twenties were still deciding what they wanted to do with their lives, Noelene and Paul were already raising several children.
Paul later described enjoying fatherhood and feeling as though he grew up alongside his children.
Noelene was part of that same family journey.
Life Before Paul Hogan Became Famous
One reason Noelene Edwards’ story stands out is because she experienced both versions of Paul Hogan’s life.
First came ordinary family life.
Then came fame.
Paul Hogan did not become an entertainer as a child or teenager. His breakthrough came much later.
In the early 1970s, he appeared on Australian television and quickly caught people’s attention with his humor. ABC reports that he went from working as a Sydney Harbour Bridge rigger to becoming a national celebrity in roughly a year.
That was a huge change.
Think about what that might feel like for a family.
One year, your husband goes to an ordinary job.
Soon afterward, strangers recognize him in public.
Then television shows, advertisements, interviews, and opportunities begin arriving.
Fame can make life exciting, but it can also make normal family life much harder.
How Paul Hogan’s Fame Changed the Family
As Paul’s career grew, the Hogan family was suddenly living under public attention.
Their children felt this change too.
Years later, Paul admitted that becoming famous was difficult for his children. Their lives were changing because their father was becoming one of Australia’s best-known entertainers.
This is an important part of Noelene’s story.
Being married to a famous person can look glamorous from the outside.
But behind the cameras, there may be long working hours, travel, pressure, gossip, and very little privacy.
Noelene had known Paul before any of those things existed.
Now their marriage had to survive a completely different world.
Noelene Edwards and Paul Hogan’s First Divorce
After more than two decades together, Noelene and Paul separated.
Their first divorce came in 1981.
For many couples, divorce would have been the end of the story.
But not for them.
Something unexpected happened.
They decided to try again.
Less than a year after divorcing, Noelene and Paul remarried.
That part of their relationship often surprises people.
Why would two people divorce and then marry each other again?
There is no simple answer.
Long relationships can be complicated. Noelene and Paul already had years of memories together and shared five children. They had built almost their entire adult lives side by side.
Perhaps they hoped another chance could repair what had gone wrong.
For a time, they tried.
Why Did Noelene Edwards and Paul Hogan Divorce Again?
Unfortunately, their second attempt at marriage did not last forever.
Divorce proceedings began again in the mid-1980s. The breakup received heavy media coverage in Australia, and it later became widely described as one of the country’s most famous celebrity divorces.
However, Paul Hogan later pushed back against some of the dramatic stories written about it.
He suggested that the media made the divorce sound more vicious than he believed it actually was.
There had clearly been pain and difficulty, but Hogan later said there was not the kind of extreme public fighting that some stories suggested.
That is worth remembering.
Celebrity divorces are often turned into entertainment.
Real family relationships are usually much more complicated than a headline.
Linda Kozlowski Entered Paul Hogan’s Life
During this period, Paul Hogan’s career was about to become much bigger.
In 1986, Crocodile Dundee arrived.
The movie turned Hogan from an Australian television star into an international celebrity.
He starred alongside American actress Linda Kozlowski.
Their on-screen connection eventually became a real relationship.
After his marriage to Noelene ended, Paul later married Linda in 1990.
Paul and Linda had one son, Chance Hogan.
Their marriage also eventually ended, with the divorce finalized in 2014.
For Noelene, however, Paul’s new chapter meant that a relationship stretching back to their teenage years had truly changed.
Noelene Edwards Was Part of Paul Hogan’s Story Before Crocodile Dundee
When people discuss Paul Hogan, they naturally focus on Crocodile Dundee.
That movie made him famous across the world.
But Noelene’s place in his story began decades earlier.
She knew him when he was working ordinary jobs.
She became a young mother while he was still trying to make a living.
She raised five children with him.
She experienced his unexpected rise on Australian television.
And she lived through the enormous change that came when her husband became famous.
In that sense, Noelene represents a part of Paul Hogan’s life that movie fans rarely see.
She was there before Dundee.
Who Are Noelene Edwards’ Children?
Noelene and Paul Hogan had five children together.
Their family includes Brett, Todd, Scott, Clay, and Lauren Hogan.
Some of the children have remained much more private than their famous father.
Brett Hogan has connections to his father’s movie work and is credited as a writer. Todd Hogan has also appeared publicly when discussing what it was like growing up with a famous father.
ABC’s Australian Story explored how Hogan’s children were affected by his fame. The program showed that becoming part of a celebrity family was not always easy.
That gives Noelene’s story another layer.
She was not simply “Paul Hogan’s wife.”
She was also the mother trying to raise a family while their private lives became increasingly public.
Did Noelene Edwards Remarry?
Yes.
Years after her relationship with Paul Hogan ended, Noelene reportedly married Reg Stretton.
Biographical sources place their wedding in Sydney in March 2000.
This gave Noelene another chapter in her personal life away from her famous former husband.
Information about this marriage is much more limited because Noelene generally remained outside the entertainment world.
And that seems to match much of her life.
Even though she had a connection to one of Australia’s biggest movie stars, Noelene did not spend decades trying to become a celebrity herself.
Why Is So Little Known About Noelene Edwards?
This is probably the biggest question people have when searching for her.
Why is information about Noelene so limited?
The answer is quite simple.
She was never the Hollywood star.
Paul Hogan was.
Most interviews, magazine profiles, television appearances, and biographies naturally focused on him.
Noelene became famous because of the person she married, not because she was trying to build an entertainment career of her own.
As a result, important details such as her education, parents, early career, personal hobbies, and finances have not been reliably documented in major public sources.
And when information is not confirmed, it is better not to invent it.
What Is Noelene Edwards’ Net Worth?
There is no trustworthy public figure for Noelene Edwards’ personal net worth.
Several celebrity websites publish estimates, but these numbers are often not supported by financial records.
That means giving an exact figure would be misleading.
Noelene has lived mainly as a private person, and there is no widely documented public business empire or entertainment career that would allow her wealth to be calculated accurately.
So the simplest answer is:
Noelene Edwards’ exact net worth is not publicly known.
Sometimes “unknown” is more accurate than a made-up number.
What Happened Between Noelene and Paul After Their Divorce?
Their romantic marriage ended, but one thing continued connecting them forever: their family.
They shared five children and later grandchildren.
Reports over the years have suggested that family matters sometimes brought Noelene and Paul back into contact.
That makes sense.
A marriage can finish, but being parents does not disappear simply because divorce papers are signed.
Children, weddings, grandchildren, health problems, and family events can keep two people’s lives connected for many years.
Noelene and Paul had started their family when they were extremely young.
That shared history could never simply vanish.
Where Is Noelene Edwards Now?
Noelene Edwards has largely stayed away from public attention in recent years.
There is very little reliable, recent information about her day-to-day life.
This is important because some websites try to fill missing information with guesses.
A better approach is to respect what is actually known.
Noelene did not choose the same public career as Paul Hogan. After decades of having her name connected to celebrity stories, she appears to have kept much of her later life private.
That privacy is also part of why people remain curious about her.
Is Noelene Edwards Still Famous?
Noelene is not a traditional celebrity.
She did not become famous through movies, music, television, or sport.
Instead, people continue searching for her because of her connection to Paul Hogan.
Fans discover Crocodile Dundee, learn more about Hogan’s life, and eventually ask:
Who was Paul Hogan’s first wife?
That question leads them to Noelene.
And once they learn that the couple married twice and had five children together, the story becomes much more interesting than they expected.
Noelene Edwards’ Life Shows the Other Side of Fame
Celebrity stories often begin when someone becomes famous.
Noelene’s story begins before that.
That difference matters.
She saw Paul Hogan before television knew his name.
She shared the difficult early years of raising children.
She saw him move from ordinary work to national fame.
Then she watched that fame grow into international success.
But success did not guarantee that their marriage would survive.
It is a simple reminder that fame can change almost everything around a family.
Money changes.
People change.
Schedules change.
Privacy disappears.
And sometimes relationships change too.
Interesting Facts About Noelene Edwards
Noelene Edwards married Paul Hogan in 1958 when they were both very young.
She and Hogan became parents early in their marriage, with Paul saying he already had three sons by age 22.
The couple had five children together.
They divorced in 1981 but remarried less than one year later.
Their second marriage also ended.
Noelene knew Paul years before his international breakthrough in Crocodile Dundee.
She later remarried and generally lived a much more private life than her famous former husband.
Final Thoughts
Noelene Edwards may be remembered mainly as Paul Hogan’s first wife, but her story is much bigger than one famous marriage.
She was part of Hogan’s life long before millions of people knew the name Crocodile Dundee. They married while young, raised five children, experienced his surprising rise to fame, divorced, tried marriage again, and eventually went separate ways.
Perhaps that is why people are still interested in Noelene.
Her story shows what existed behind the celebrity image: a young couple, a growing family, years of shared history, difficult choices, and a life that changed when fame suddenly arrived.
Paul Hogan became the international star.
But Noelene Edwards was there for the long journey that came before it.
FAQs About Noelene Edwards
Who is Noelene Edwards?
Noelene Edwards is an Australian woman best known as the first wife of actor and comedian Paul Hogan, star of Crocodile Dundee.
Was Noelene Edwards Paul Hogan’s first wife?
Yes. Noelene was Paul Hogan’s first wife. They originally married in 1958.
How many children did Noelene Edwards and Paul Hogan have?
They had five children together: Brett, Todd, Scott, Clay, and Lauren.
Did Noelene Edwards marry Paul Hogan twice?
Yes. They divorced in 1981 and remarried less than a year later before eventually separating again.
Why is Noelene Edwards famous?
She became publicly known because of her long marriage to Paul Hogan and because she was part of his life before and during his rise to fame.
Did Noelene Edwards remarry?
Yes. Noelene was later reported to have married Reg Stretton in 2000.
What is Noelene Edwards’ net worth?
Her exact net worth is not publicly confirmed. Reliable financial information about her personal wealth is unavailable.
Where is Noelene Edwards today?
She has largely remained outside public attention, and there is limited reliable information about her current private life.
Is Noelene Edwards an actress?
No. Noelene is not known for an acting career. Her public recognition comes mainly from her marriage to Paul Hogan.
Was Noelene with Paul Hogan before he became famous?
Yes. They married in 1958, many years before Hogan became a major television personality and eventually an international movie star.