Barbara Boothe is best known as the third wife of Larry Ellison, the billionaire co-founder of Oracle, but her own story reaches far beyond a short marriage to a technology mogul. She worked at Oracle during its early years, became the mother of Hollywood producers David and Megan Ellison, raised them largely after her divorce, and later built a respected life in the equestrian world through Wild Turkey Farm.
While Larry became one of the richest people in the world, Barbara stayed mostly outside the spotlight. Her children, however, eventually became powerful figures in Hollywood. David founded Skydance and later became chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance, while Megan created Annapurna Pictures and became an Oscar-nominated producer.
What makes Barbara especially interesting is that she did not spend her life simply being known as a billionaire’s former wife. Her strongest independent public identity came through horses, breeding, and Wild Turkey Farm, which she developed into a major sport-horse breeding operation.
Who Is Barbara Boothe?
Barbara Boothe, also known publicly as Barbara Boothe Ellison or Barb Ellison, is an American equestrian breeder and the former wife of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.
She married Larry in 1983.
Their marriage lasted until 1986.
During those years, they became parents to two children, David Ellison and Megan Ellison.
Barbara later became the owner of Wild Turkey Farm, a major Warmblood breeding operation.
The farm’s official biography says Barbara established Wild Turkey Farm in 1989 and eventually developed it into a large breeding program based in Wilsonville, Oregon.
That equestrian career is one of the strongest reasons Barbara should not be described only through Larry Ellison.
Where Was Barbara Boothe Born?
Wild Turkey Farm identifies Barbara as an Oregon native.
However, her exact birth date and year are not firmly established in major public sources.
Several celebrity-style websites publish ages or birth years for her, but those claims are usually not supported by strong original records.
For that reason, giving Barbara a precise age would be misleading.
Her early childhood, parents, siblings, and education are also not extensively documented.
That lack of information fits a pattern seen throughout her life.
Barbara has generally maintained privacy despite being connected to one of America’s wealthiest families.
Did Barbara Boothe Work at Oracle?
Yes.
Before becoming widely known through her marriage to Larry Ellison, Barbara worked at the company that would become Oracle.
Biographical records identify her as a former receptionist at Relational Software Inc., the company later renamed Oracle.
Other reporting has described her as one of Oracle’s earliest employees.
That means Barbara was around the company during a period when Oracle was still a young and relatively small software business rather than the global technology giant it later became.
This is an important part of her story.
She did not meet Larry after Oracle had already created enormous wealth.
She knew him during a much earlier stage of the company’s development.
A natural internal-link opportunity would be Larry Ellison’s life before Oracle became a global technology giant.
When Did Barbara Boothe Marry Larry Ellison?
Barbara and Larry Ellison married in 1983.
She became his third wife.
The marriage lasted approximately three years and ended in 1986.
This was a critical period in Larry’s professional life.
Oracle was expanding rapidly during the 1980s, and his wealth and public profile were beginning to rise.
At the same time, his personal life was changing just as quickly.
Barbara became pregnant with their first child during the early period of the marriage.
Their son David was born in 1983.
Their daughter Megan followed in 1986.
How Many Times Has Larry Ellison Been Married?
Larry Ellison has had several marriages.
Barbara was his third wife.
His first marriage was to Adda Quinn, beginning in 1967.
His second wife was Nancy Wheeler Jenkins.
Then came Barbara Boothe.
Later marriages included romance novelist Melanie Craft and other partners reported in more recent biographical records.
Barbara’s marriage was relatively brief compared with the enormous influence the family created afterward.
The marriage itself ended after only a few years.
But the two children born from it would eventually become important figures in global entertainment.
Why Did Barbara Boothe and Larry Ellison Divorce?
Reliable public sources confirm the divorce but do not provide a detailed, authoritative explanation of exactly why the marriage ended.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Barbara filed for divorce when David was around three years old and Megan was only a few months old.
That places the separation firmly in 1986.
However, it would be wrong to invent a single cause.
Celebrity biographies sometimes try to attribute divorces to ambition, work, personality differences, or other relationships without enough evidence.
The strongest confirmed fact is simply that the marriage ended when their children were still very young.
Who Is David Ellison?
Barbara and Larry’s first child is David Ellison, born in 1983.
David became one of Hollywood’s most powerful producers and media executives.
He founded Skydance Media, which developed major film franchises and productions including Mission: Impossible, Top Gun: Maverick, and other large studio projects.
His influence grew dramatically over time.
After Skydance merged with Paramount in 2025, David became chairman and CEO of the combined Paramount Skydance business.
That made Barbara’s son one of the most influential executives in modern Hollywood.
But his upbringing was quite different from what many people might imagine for the son of a billionaire.
Barbara Raised David With Chores and an Allowance
GQ reported that Barbara tried to give David and Megan a relatively grounded upbringing despite their father’s increasing wealth.
David recalled growing up without fully understanding how extraordinary his father’s financial position was.
Barbara gave the children chores and a small weekly allowance, reportedly around five dollars.
That detail is revealing.
By the time David was a teenager, Larry Ellison was already enormously wealthy.
Yet Barbara appears to have tried to teach the children responsibility rather than allowing them to grow up assuming unlimited money would solve everything.
The Los Angeles Times similarly described Barbara as the more grounding and steady influence during David’s childhood.
Who Is Megan Ellison?
Barbara’s daughter Megan Ellison was born in 1986.
She took a very different path through Hollywood from her brother.
Megan founded Annapurna Pictures and became known for supporting ambitious filmmaker-driven projects rather than focusing only on large commercial franchises.
Her producing credits include films such as Zero Dark Thirty, Her, American Hustle, and Phantom Thread.
She earned multiple Academy Award nominations as a producer.
In 2014, Time included Megan among its 100 most influential people.
She later became a Tony-winning producer through A Strange Loop.
Barbara therefore became the mother of two major Hollywood figures who pursued very different approaches to the same industry.
A useful internal-link opportunity would be Megan Ellison’s rise with Annapurna Pictures and her biggest films.
Were David and Megan Raised by Barbara?
Yes.
After Barbara and Larry divorced, the children were raised primarily by Barbara.
People reported that David and Megan were raised by their mother after the 1986 divorce.
The Los Angeles Times gives more detail.
It says David and Megan grew up with Barbara on a horse farm in Woodside, California, while Larry lived nearby in another large property.
The children still spent time with their father, including during school breaks and travels.
But Barbara appears to have provided much of the day-to-day home environment.
This makes her role especially important in understanding how both children developed.
How Did Barbara Influence Her Children’s Love of Film?
The Los Angeles Times reported that Barbara helped nurture David and Megan’s love of movies while they were growing up.
That is an interesting detail because neither child followed Larry directly into software.
Instead, both entered entertainment.
David became focused on large-scale commercial filmmaking and later studio leadership.
Megan became associated with filmmaker-driven prestige projects.
Different styles, same industry.
Barbara’s influence therefore appears to have extended beyond discipline and household structure.
She also helped create the environment where movies became important to both children.
What Is Wild Turkey Farm?
Wild Turkey Farm is Barbara’s major independent professional project.
She established the farm in 1989, only a few years after her divorce from Larry Ellison.
The farm began in Woodside, California, and later developed into a major breeding operation in Wilsonville, Oregon.
Wild Turkey Farm specializes in Warmblood sport horses.
Its official history describes a large operation involving stallions, broodmares, young horses, and competition animals.
Barbara remains closely involved.
Rather than acting as a distant owner, the farm says she participates in training young horses, breeding decisions, and the planning and management of the facility.
That makes her equestrian work a serious long-term career.
How Did Barbara Get Involved With Horses?
Wild Turkey Farm describes Barbara as having a lifelong love of horses and sport-horse competition.
That passion eventually became much more than recreation.
In 1996, Barbara acquired the Holsteiner stallion LioCalyon, who became central to the growth of her breeding business.
Barbara later said LioCalyon was the horse that truly started her breeding operation and helped put Wild Turkey Farm on the map.
Interestingly, Barbara also said that she had temporarily stepped back from horses while raising her children.
That fits with other reporting showing how heavily focused she was on David and Megan during their early years.
Once they became older, her equestrian career expanded dramatically.
Wild Turkey Farm Became a Major Breeding Operation
Barbara’s farm eventually grew into a respected name within sport-horse breeding.
The official farm biography describes a 220-acre facility and a breeding program involving numerous stallions, broodmares, young horses, and competition animals.
The business focuses particularly on producing horses suitable for high-level competition.
Barbara also works with trainers, veterinarians, breeders, riders, and other equestrian professionals.
This long-term work created an identity completely separate from Larry Ellison’s technology empire.
Oracle may have made the Ellison name famous.
Wild Turkey Farm became Barbara’s own world.
Did Barbara Boothe Win Equestrian Awards?
Yes.
Barbara’s equestrian work has received significant recognition.
In 2019, Barbara and Wild Turkey Farm received the US Equestrian Ellen Scripps Davis Memorial Breeders’ Cup Award.
The award recognizes individuals or breeding programs that consistently produce outstanding performance and show horses.
Barbara credited her team rather than claiming the success alone.
The following year, she received another major honor.
Barbara Received the Owner’s Legacy Award
In 2020, Barbara Boothe Ellison received the Mrs. A.C. Randolph Owner’s Legacy Award from the United States Hunter Jumper Association.
The award recognized her long-term contribution to horses and the sport.
Once again, Barbara publicly emphasized that her achievements were the result of a team involving riders, farm staff, breeders, and others.
These awards are significant because they demonstrate that her involvement with horses is not simply a wealthy person’s hobby.
She became respected within the equestrian industry itself.
Is Barbara Boothe Still Involved With Wild Turkey Farm?
Yes.
Wild Turkey Farm continues to identify Barbara Ellison as the owner and describes her as actively involved in its operations.
The farm’s breeding information also directs breeding inquiries to Barb, reinforcing that she remains directly connected with the business rather than simply lending her name to it.
That continued involvement makes Wild Turkey Farm the clearest answer to the question of what Barbara does outside her famous family connections.
She is an equestrian breeder and farm owner with decades of experience.
Did Barbara Remarry After Larry Ellison?
Reliable mainstream sources do not clearly document a later marriage for Barbara.
She continued to use the surname Ellison professionally in equestrian circles.
For example, Wild Turkey Farm identifies her as Barbara Ellison, while award announcements sometimes use Barbara Boothe Ellison.
That does not necessarily indicate anything about her present marital status.
A person may continue using a former married name for professional or family reasons.
There is not enough strong public evidence to confidently describe a later husband.
What Is Barbara Boothe’s Net Worth?
There is no reliable public figure for Barbara Boothe’s individual net worth.
This is especially important because Larry Ellison became one of the wealthiest people on Earth.
It is tempting for biography websites to assume that Barbara herself must therefore have a particular billionaire or multimillion-dollar fortune.
But that cannot be calculated from Larry’s wealth.
The financial terms of their 1986 divorce are not publicly detailed enough to establish Barbara’s personal assets today.
Her ownership of Wild Turkey Farm clearly represents substantial property and business activity.
But without reliable financial disclosures, an exact net-worth number would be speculation.
Is Barbara Boothe Close to Larry Ellison Today?
There is little strong public reporting about the personal relationship between Barbara and Larry decades after their divorce.
They share two children, which naturally gives them a continuing family connection.
Both David and Megan have relationships with their father and have benefited from his support at different stages of their professional careers.
But Barbara herself has not spent much time publicly discussing Larry.
That is consistent with her general approach.
She seems far more interested in horses, her children, and her own private life than in repeatedly revisiting a marriage that ended four decades ago.
Why Barbara Boothe’s Story Matters More in 2026
Interest in Barbara has increased because of the growing influence of her children.
David is no longer simply a producer.
Following the Skydance-Paramount deal, he became one of the most important media executives in the United States.
Megan remains one of the most distinctive film producers of her generation.
That means the two children Barbara raised are now connected with some of the most important companies and creative decisions in modern entertainment.
As people look backward to understand where David and Megan came from, Barbara’s role becomes more visible.
The billionaire father explains only part of the story.
The mother who raised them on a horse farm explains another.
Final Thoughts
Barbara Boothe is often introduced as Larry Ellison’s third wife, but that description covers only three years of a much longer life.
She worked at the company that would become Oracle during its early period.
She married Larry Ellison in 1983.
Their son David was born that year, and their daughter Megan followed in 1986.
Then the marriage ended.
Barbara filed for divorce when David was still very young and Megan was an infant.
From there, her life took a very different direction from Larry’s.
He continued building Oracle and became one of the wealthiest people in the world.
Barbara raised their children primarily on a horse farm in Woodside, California.
She gave them chores.
She gave them small allowances.
And according to later reporting, she provided much of the grounding influence during their childhood.
Both children eventually entered Hollywood.
David founded Skydance and later became chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance.
Megan founded Annapurna Pictures and became an Academy Award-nominated producer.
Barbara, meanwhile, followed horses.
She founded Wild Turkey Farm in 1989 and gradually developed it into a respected sport-horse breeding operation.
Her acquisition of LioCalyon became a major turning point in the farm’s development.
Her breeding work later earned national recognition, including the Ellen Scripps Davis Memorial Breeders’ Cup Award and the Mrs. A.C. Randolph Owner’s Legacy Award.
That is why Barbara Boothe deserves a biography separate from Larry Ellison.
A three-year marriage connected her to one of the world’s richest men.
But motherhood and horses occupied far more of her life.
Her children became major Hollywood figures.
Her farm became respected in the equestrian world.
And Barbara managed to achieve all of that while maintaining a level of privacy rarely seen around a family with so much money and influence.
For more carefully researched celebrity and family biographies, visit Charles Magazine.
FAQs About Barbara Boothe
Who is Barbara Boothe?
Barbara Boothe is the third former wife of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. She is also the mother of Hollywood producers David Ellison and Megan Ellison and the owner of Wild Turkey Farm.
When did Barbara Boothe marry Larry Ellison?
Barbara and Larry Ellison married in 1983 and divorced in 1986.
Did Barbara Boothe work at Oracle?
Yes. She worked at the company during its early years and is commonly identified as a former receptionist at Relational Software Inc., which later became Oracle.
How many children do Barbara Boothe and Larry Ellison have?
They have two children, David Ellison and Megan Ellison. Both became successful film producers and entertainment executives.
What does Barbara Boothe do now?
Barbara is the owner of Wild Turkey Farm, a Warmblood breeding operation that she founded in 1989. She remains closely involved with horse breeding and farm operations.
Where did Barbara raise David and Megan Ellison?
After her divorce, Barbara raised the children largely on a horse farm in Woodside, California.
What is Barbara Boothe’s net worth?
Her individual net worth has not been reliably disclosed. Larry Ellison’s enormous fortune should not be treated as Barbara’s personal net worth, and exact estimates published without financial evidence are speculative.
