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Evelyn Paulin and Ed Doyle met at Oak Grove, a former Naperville dance hall, on New Year's Eve, 1935. Evelyn was checking coats. Ed was checking her out.

''I thought she was a nice-looking gal, and my buddy said, 'Eddie, I got just the girl for you,' and that's how he introduced me to her. That was it.''

Evelyn recalls meeting the young man, whom she would later call her husband.

''I thought he was cute -- but not much of a dancer,'' she joked.

Evelyn said she danced so much that night, she never checked coats again at Oak Grove. Instead, she returned to the dance hall many weekends to dance and see friends, including Ed Doyle.

Last week, Ed and Evelyn Doyle celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.

After seven decades, Evelyn has some straightforward advice: ''Have your argument and get over it.''

Their married life has been rich with blessings, including three children, 11 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

The couple, who consider each other their ''best friend,'' said marriage is about compromise and communication, and having a sense of humor.

''I enjoy her, and she enjoys me,'' Ed said. ''She complains once in a while, but not too much.''

''I was always happy to have a husband [whom] I loved, a house and children,'' Evelyn said. ''And he even improved as a dancer.

''On our 60th anniversary, a priest came over to our house and asked Eddie if we wanted to renew our vows,'' Evelyn said. ''Eddie said we didn't have to because we didn't break them. I think that's the secret.''

After their Oak Grove meeting, Evelyn asked Ed on a date. The relationship flourished over the years.

It was 1940, and the world was at war.

''I told her, I am going to be drafted, and I want to marry you when I get back,'' Ed said. ''Evelyn said she would rather marry me before [I left], and that's what we did.''

On Nov. 30, 1940, they wed in Chicago, and the couple moved to Naperville. They had a daughter, Renee, in 1942, and six months later, Ed was drafted.

''I was in the Army, stationed just outside of Paris during World War II,'' Ed said. ''I was there for nearly three years.''

That was the longest time they would spend apart. When he returned from Europe, they had another daughter, Joyce, and a son, Ed Jr., and raised them in the same Naperville home. The couple still lives there.

Ed Doyle Jr. said his parents' marriage is about ''old-fashioned values and commitment.

''My sisters and I know; we have all seen it while growing up,'' the son said. ''They are best friends.''