Divorce American Style
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''Divorce American Style'' is a 1967 American
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...
comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
directed by Bud Yorkin and starring
Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. Dick Van Dyke on screen and stage, His work spans screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Dick Van Dyke, his awards includ ...
,
Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer and entrepreneur. Her acting career spanned almost 70 years. Reynolds performed on stage and television and in films into her 80s. She was nom ...
,
Jason Robards Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he gained a reputation as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill. Robards received numerous accola ...
,
Jean Simmons Jean Merilyn Simmons (31 January 1929 – 22 January 2010) was a British actress and singer. One of J. Arthur Rank's "well-spoken young starlets", she appeared predominantly in films, beginning with those made in Britain during and after the ...
, and Van Johnson.
Norman Lear Norman Milton Lear (July 27, 1922December 5, 2023) was an American screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear created and produced numerous popular 1970s sitcoms, including ''All in the Family'' (1 ...
produced the film and wrote the screenplay, based on a story by Robert Kaufman. It focuses on a married couple who opt for
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...
when
counseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of c ...
fails to help them resolve their various problems, and the problems presented to divorced people by
alimony Alimony, also called aliment (Scotland), maintenance (England, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Canada, New Zealand), spousal support (U.S., Canada) and spouse maintenance (Australia), is a legal obligation on a person to provide ...
. The title is an homage to '' Divorce Italian Style'' (1961). Some of the film's plot, such as the maritial separation, the attempt to remarry of one the divorcing spouses and the wife being presuaded to call off the divorce, also resembles the 1964 Andy Griffith Show episode with a similar title. "Divorce, Mountain Style."


Plot

After 17 years of marriage, affluent Los Angeles suburban couple Richard Harmon (Van Dyke) and his wife Barbara (Reynolds) seem to have it all, but they are constantly bickering. When they discover they can no longer communicate properly, they make an effort to salvage their relationship through counseling, but after catching each other emptying their joint bank accounts (at the urging of friends), they file for divorce. After his take-home income has been cut dramatically by high alimony, Richard finds himself living in a small apartment, driving a VW Beetle and trying to survive on $87.30 a week (when a
McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
hamburger dinner cost him 67 cents). Richard meets a recently divorced man, Nelson Downes (Robards), who introduces him to ex-wife Nancy (Simmons). Nelson wants to marry off Nancy to be free of his alimony burden, so he can marry his pregnant fiancée. Nancy also wishes to marry because she is lonely. To end Richard's alimony woes, Nelson and Nancy plot to set up Barbara with a
millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. Many national currencies have, or ...
auto dealer, Big Al Yearling (Johnson), and the two begin a relationship. On the night before the Harmon divorce becomes final, all three couples meet to celebrate the success of their plans. At a nightclub, the real-life hypnotist Pat Collins pulls Barbara from the audience and puts her into a trance. After inducing her into performing a mock striptease, she instructs Barbara to kiss her true love. Barbara plants one on Richard, and they realize they love each other too much to go through with the divorce. An undeterred Nelson immediately tries to get Nancy interested in Big Al.


Cast


Reception

The film earned an estimated $5,150,000 in North American rentals in 1967.


Critical response

In his review in the ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...
'',
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
called the film "a member of that rare species, the
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
comedy with teeth in it" and added, "Bud Yorkin has directed with wit and style, and the cast, which seems unlikely on paper, comes across splendidly on the screen . . . The charm of this film is in its low-key approach. The plot isn't milked for humor or pathos: Both emerge naturally from familiar situations." '' Variety'' observed, "Comedy and
satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposin ...
, not feverish
melodrama A melodrama is a Drama, dramatic work in which plot, typically sensationalized for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodrama is "an exaggerated version of drama". Melodramas typically concentrate on ...
, are the best weapons with which to harpoon social mores. An outstanding example is ''Divorce American Style'' . . . which pokes incisive, sometimes chilling, fun at US marriage-divorce problems." ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' film critic
Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though some ...
disliked the film, saying, "it is rather depressing, saddening, and annoying, largely because it does labor to turn a solemn subject into a great big American-boob joke." Crowther criticized Van Dyke's performance, remarking, "He is too much of a giggler, too much of a dyed-in-the-wool television comedian for this serio-comic husband role." A 2012 review in '' Time Out'' cited "Two or three very funny scenes . . . and a first-rate batch of supporting performances."''Time Out New York'' review
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Accolades

Norman Lear and Robert Kaufman were nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...
, but lost to William Rose for ''
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' is a 1967 American romantic comedy drama film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer, and written by William Rose. It stars Spencer Tracy (in his final role), Sidney Poitier, and Katharine Hepburn, and feat ...
''. Lear also was nominated for the
Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility Th ...
for Best Written American Comedy.


Novelization

About two months prior to the release of the film—as was customary of the era—a paperback novelization of the screenplay was published; in this case by Popular Library, commissioning editor Patrick O'Connor. The author was Jackson (in later years aka Jack) Donahue. Donahue started his career as a police reporter and went on to become managing editor of several major newspapers. He had already written a number of well-regarded novels (among them ''The Confessor'' and ''Erase My Name'') by the time he took on the adaptation of ''Divorce American Style''. He would also write several works of non-fiction, including co-authorship of
Leon Jaworski Leonidas "Leon" Jaworski (September 19, 1905 – December 9, 1982) was an American attorney and law professor who served as the second special prosecutor during the Watergate scandal. He was appointed to that position on November 1, 1973, soon aft ...
's
Watergate The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon. The scandal began in 1972 and ultimately led to Nixon's resignation in 1974, in August of that year. It revol ...
memoir, '' The Right and the Power''.


See also

* List of American films of 1967


References


External links

* * * {{Norman Lear 1967 films 1967 comedy films 1960s American films 1960s English-language films 1960s satirical films American comedy films American satirical films Columbia Pictures films Films about divorce Films directed by Bud Yorkin Films produced by Norman Lear Films scored by Dave Grusin Films set in Los Angeles Films with screenplays by Norman Lear