It is easy to get bogged down in the emotional morass that is divorce. Only the most callous amongst us avoid feeling some negativity about the break-up. Maybe you wanted the relationship to work so badly that giving up on it feels like defeat; maybe you truly want to be with your spouse, but the feeling is not reciprocated; or maybe there is merely a sense of resentment at having to be put through the process of retaining a divorce lawyer, going to court, and missing work. Whatever the reason, these feelings are natural, and you should not feel bad for feeling them.
Another perfectly natural reaction to the divorce is the financial straits into which you may have been thrust. There are many facets of divorce that have to do with money and other material wealth. Asset division, spousal maintenance, and child support are matters that require much patience and accurate valuation. However, if you believe that this is only a problem suffered by the middle- or lower-classes, think again. Even world-renowned actors and comedians need to pay, and sometimes it is less than pretty.
John Cleese and His Most Recent Divorce
The world knows John Cleese foremost as a comedian. A graduate of Cambridge, he got his start with Footlights, Cambridge’s comedy troupe, and later earned world fame as a member of Monty Python. He has since been in numerous films, television programs, and various other media. Surely this level of fame on stage and screen would earn a man enough to live like a king for life. Apparently, however, this does not include a life with an everlasting marriage.
As Cleese told Australia’s Sunday Morning Herald, his divorce from his third wife, Alyce Faye Eichelberger, was incredibly expensive. “I will have paid my ex-wife, I think it is $23 or $24 million. That’s an awful lot of money,” Cleese stated. He paid her so much money that he launched a comedy tour in 2012 that, with his trademark British wit, Cleese dubbed “The Alimony Tour.”
Dave Foley and His Difficulties with Canadian Family Law
From one legendary sketch comedy veteran to another, we now look at Dave Foley. A founding member of the seminal Canadian troupe the Kids in the Hall, Foley has been a staple of both Canadian and American television, starring in Celebrity Poker Showdown and Newsradio. It was during his run on Newsradio that he divorced his then-wife Tabatha Southey.
However, according to Foley in this interview with CNN, the income he was earning then was used as a guideline for the amount of money he should pay for child support. That comes out to over $17,000 a month, which became difficult to maintain once Newsradio was canceled. Foley now fears returning to his native Canada, lest he is arrested for failure to pay his support.
Contact a Family Law Attorney
Money is often at the crux of divorce proceedings. Spouses need maintenance, and children need support. If circumstances change, so must the payments. An experienced family law and divorce attorney can help you adjust your payments so that you can lead as normal a life as possible. Contact STG Divorce Law for a consultation today.
