Splitsville News

Connecticut is a small state; it’s ranked 48th in the U.S. in terms of the area it covers.  However, it seems to have more than its fair share of dramatic divorces.  (I’ve written about some others, and I’m tempted to create a Connecticut tag for entries because I know there will be more.)  This particular story describes the circumstances surrounding ESPN sportscaster Steve Phillips’ wife’s decision to end their marriage.  To say that the decision arose from an affair is a bit of an understatement.

Mr. Phillips has admitted to having an affair with an assistant at ESPN.  He ended it and she didn’t take the news well.  Social tip:  Don’t call the wife of your lover and say, as Brooke Hundley did, that “[w]e both can’t have him”.  It’s awkward.  Driving tip:  Don’t go to the house of the lover who spurned you and get so flustered that you smash your car into a stone column.  It makes it easy for the wife to find the note you left in your car about the affair.

To say that the marriage has “broken down irretrievably”–the legal standard for divorce in Connecticut–is also a bit of an understatement.  Philips has previously admitted to having another extramarital affair.  Legal tip:  Don’t have sex with a team employee, as Phillips did as manager of the New York Mets, because that can lead to sexual harassment charges.  Even settling out of court is expensive.

My hope for this couple is that these events mark the high water of their public drama.  If human nature is any indicator, that might be optimistic.  If past divorce news out of Connecticut is any indicator, “optimistic” may be an understatement.