''Because Mommy Works'' is a 1994 television film directed by

Robert Markowitz Robert Markowitz (born February 7, 1935, in Irvington, New Jersey, Irvington, New Jersey) is an American film and television director. He directed episodes of ''Serpico (TV series), Serpico'' (1976), ''Delvecchio (TV series), Delvecchio'' (1976- ...

. It is about a woman named Abby (

Anne Archer Anne Archer (born August 24, 1947) is an American actress. Archer was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971, and in the year following, appeared in her feature-film debut '' The Honkers'' (1972). She had supporting roles in '' Cancel My Reservation'' ...

) who fights with Ted Forman ( John Heard) for the custody of their son Willie Forman (Casey Wurzbach). The action takes place in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Premise

The film confronts the issue of women being denied custody rights during divorce partly or solely because they work at jobs outside the home, allegedly making them less available as maternal caregivers. It focuses in particular on the added custodial challenge that working women face if their former husband has remarried a woman who does not have a job. The film was inspired by a true story that appeared in ''

McCall's Magazine ''McCall's'' was a monthly United States, American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. The publication ...

'' in 1992, "Why a Good Mother Lost Custody of her Child" by author Cameron Stauth. The article was about a custody case in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, ...

, that involved a female teacher who lost custody of her young son, primarily because her husband had remarried a woman who did not work outside the home. Stauth co-produced the film with Anne Archer, and it was written by writer/director Lynn Mamet, sister of writer/director David Mamet. The issue of working mothers being penalized in custody cases is still being debated in the courts, and is the subject of heated debate among women's rights advocates.''The Custody Wars'', Mary Ann Mason, Chapter: "Are Mothers Losing the Custody Wars?" published by Berkeley Law, University of California, 1999.

Cast

as Abby * John Heard as Ted Forman * Casey Wurzbach as Willie Forman *

Ashley Crow Ashley Diane Crow (born August 25, 1960) is an American actress. She is best known for her role of Sandra Bennet on the television show ''Heroes''. Life and career Crow was born in Birmingham, Alabama. She moved to Mountain Brook, Alabama at t ...

as Claire Forman *

Tom Amandes Thomas Amandes (born March 9, 1959) is an American actor. His best-known role to date is that of Eliot Ness in the 1990s television series ''The Untouchables''; he also played Geena Davis' boyfriend in '' The Long Kiss Goodnight'', and Abraham ...

as Eric Donovan *

Jenny Gago Jenny Gago is an American actress best known as Maria in ''Knots Landing'' (1984-1986), Maria in '' My Family'' (1995), Anaya in '' The Agency'' (2002-2003), and Det. Ochoa in '' Southland'' (2011). Life Gago earned a degree in Theatre Arts f ...

as Dr. Rita Hernandez

References

External links

* 1994 films 1994 drama films 1994 television films American drama television films Films directed by Robert Markowitz Films set in California 1990s American films {{1990s-US-drama-film-stub