Family Law

Divorce Can Be Difficult, Even for Professional Broadcasters

By Ben Stevens

I explain to my clients that a divorce is like a death – the death of a relationship.  As such, everyone deals with it in different ways, with some quickly accepting its reality, while others struggle to accept what is happening.

Some might think that a professional broadcaster, someone who talks for a living, would be more comfortable than the average man while testifying at his divorce hearing.  However, as evidenced in CBS sportscaster Jim Nantz's recent divorce, that is not always the case.

Clutching a pair of reading glasses in his hands, the 50-year-old Nantz teared up at times as he described his wife's foibles that he claims led up to the breakdown of their marriage.

"In 2004, I got the Man of the Year award from the New York Athletic Club. Rudy Giuliani had been the previous year's winner and it really meant a lot to me," he said, his eyes welling with tears. "My mother flew in from Houston, but Lorrie wasn't there." Nantz said he was given an oil portrait of himself at the dinner, but Lorrie wouldn't let him hang it in their Westport home. It ended up in a warehouse," he lamented.

The trial over, Lorrie Nantz stood in the lobby of the courthouse sobbing. Stepping from the elevator, her husband saw her standing there alone and walked over and put his arms around her. Together they stood, arms wrapped around each other, sobbing.

When a couple has been married for a long time, like the Nantzs' 26 years, they usually care deeply for each other, even if they can no longer live together and continue their marriage.  I have seen many divorced couples hug when they left the Courtroom and their case was concluded.  Sometimes, it's helpful for those going through a divorce to remember moments like these.

Source:  "Play-by-Play Gets Tearful in CBS Sportscaster's Divorce Trial" by Daniel Tepfer, published in The Advocate.

Full post as published by SC Family Law Blog on October 20, 2009 (boomark / email).