IrishTex
10-22-2009, 10:12 PM
CBS sportscaster, wife testify in Bridgeport
By Daniel Tepfer
Staff writer
BRIDGEPORT -- Watching the Jim Nantz divorce trial was like seeing a car crash -- you just couldn't look away.
Nantz, the premier sportscaster for CBS television, was embroiled last week in a divorce trial in a small fifth floor Main Street courtroom with his wife of 26 years, Lorrie. And while the rules of civility and Superior Court Judge Howard Owens prevented it from becoming a knock down drag out fight, there have been plenty of moments of drama.
On the trial's first day the 6-foot, 3-inch, square-jawed Nantz sat down in the makeshift witness stand, an office chair placed on a small wooden platform.
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.
Although in court papers Nantz is claiming only that the marriage broke down irretrievably, in court he maintained that the marriage ended as a result of his wife's lack of support for his career and her excessive spending. He is attempting to protect much of his $7 million plus a year earnings.
His wife is seeking alimony for herself and child support for their 15-year-old daughter, Caroline, in excess of $1.5 million a year. She also wants to keep their six bedroom, six bathroom house on Imperial Avenue in Westport.
In addition to his $3.9 million annual salary from CBS, Nantz also makes $4 million in deferred compensation, which includes money
he gets as the "voice" of Titleist golf products. The couple also own a condominium at a Utah ski resort.
Testimony in the trial concluded Friday afternoon. Judge Owens will file a written decision on who gets what and how much. But in court he promised both parties, "No one is leaving this courtroom with zero."
While on the witness stand, Nantz admitted he has a 29-year-old girlfriend who he met while promoting his book, "Always By My Side," which he wrote about his now deceased father, that was published in May 2008. However, he contended he only started dating his girlfriend because the marriage had "died" more than 10 years ago.
That apparently was news to Mrs. Nantz,who later testified she was still going to marriage counseling until 2008, trying to save their marriage, when Nantz told her he wanted a divorce.
Nantz testified that early in their marriage his wife would accompany him to all the major sporting events he worked around the country. But that ended and he complained she showed no support for his career.
"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.
In 2007, Nantz became the first television broadcaster to host a Super Bowl, the NCAA men's basketball championship and the Master's golf tournament in the same year.
"It was the triple crown. People told me I should write down my remembrances of the events, it was that big, but Lorrie didn't care," he said.
When Nantz began writing the book about his father, who died after suffering Alzheimer's disease, he said his wife forbid him to write it in the house. "She didn't want to know anything about it. I ended up writing it in an office at Wingfoot."
In 2007, Nantz said he was offered $7 million to host the CBS Early Show, but turned it down because his wife opposed it.
He testified that while he was traveling around the country broadcasting sporting events, his wife was home spending vast sums of money. In nine years, she spent nearly $1 million at Ed Mitchell, a high-end clothing and jewelry store in Westport.
Her full head of blond hair cascading over her designer coat, Lorrie Nantz took the stand Wednesday afternoon.
A former marketing director for Dr. Robert Jarvik, developer of the artificial heart, she quit working in 1988. Even after she gave birth to their daughter, she said she continued to travel around the country with her husband.
"Jim often boasted that Caroline had more frequent flyer miles than most adults," she said. However, when their daughter turned 2 and began preschool, Lorrie Nantz said she decided her traveling days were over.
Although the couple have a full-time housekeeper/nanny, Lorrie Nantz said she wanted to care for their daughter.
Lorrie Nantz testified she still attended some major events with her husband. The couple, social friends of former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, often went to the White House while Bush was president. Her lawyers showed the judge a photograph of the Nantz with the Bushes and Queen Elizabeth II.
And Lorrie Nantz admitted she often went shopping at Ed Mitchell, which is about a mile from their home. She has two accounts there, one in the couple's name and one under her maiden name, which she said she assumed her husband knew about.
Just last month she purchased a $12,000 necklace at the store. But she admitted she couldn't recall what it looked like. "I think it has some sort of stone," she testified.
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.
Source (http://www.connpost.com/ci_13585978)
By Daniel Tepfer
Staff writer
BRIDGEPORT -- Watching the Jim Nantz divorce trial was like seeing a car crash -- you just couldn't look away.
Nantz, the premier sportscaster for CBS television, was embroiled last week in a divorce trial in a small fifth floor Main Street courtroom with his wife of 26 years, Lorrie. And while the rules of civility and Superior Court Judge Howard Owens prevented it from becoming a knock down drag out fight, there have been plenty of moments of drama.
On the trial's first day the 6-foot, 3-inch, square-jawed Nantz sat down in the makeshift witness stand, an office chair placed on a small wooden platform.
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.
Although in court papers Nantz is claiming only that the marriage broke down irretrievably, in court he maintained that the marriage ended as a result of his wife's lack of support for his career and her excessive spending. He is attempting to protect much of his $7 million plus a year earnings.
His wife is seeking alimony for herself and child support for their 15-year-old daughter, Caroline, in excess of $1.5 million a year. She also wants to keep their six bedroom, six bathroom house on Imperial Avenue in Westport.
In addition to his $3.9 million annual salary from CBS, Nantz also makes $4 million in deferred compensation, which includes money
he gets as the "voice" of Titleist golf products. The couple also own a condominium at a Utah ski resort.
Testimony in the trial concluded Friday afternoon. Judge Owens will file a written decision on who gets what and how much. But in court he promised both parties, "No one is leaving this courtroom with zero."
While on the witness stand, Nantz admitted he has a 29-year-old girlfriend who he met while promoting his book, "Always By My Side," which he wrote about his now deceased father, that was published in May 2008. However, he contended he only started dating his girlfriend because the marriage had "died" more than 10 years ago.
That apparently was news to Mrs. Nantz,who later testified she was still going to marriage counseling until 2008, trying to save their marriage, when Nantz told her he wanted a divorce.
Nantz testified that early in their marriage his wife would accompany him to all the major sporting events he worked around the country. But that ended and he complained she showed no support for his career.
"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.
In 2007, Nantz became the first television broadcaster to host a Super Bowl, the NCAA men's basketball championship and the Master's golf tournament in the same year.
"It was the triple crown. People told me I should write down my remembrances of the events, it was that big, but Lorrie didn't care," he said.
When Nantz began writing the book about his father, who died after suffering Alzheimer's disease, he said his wife forbid him to write it in the house. "She didn't want to know anything about it. I ended up writing it in an office at Wingfoot."
In 2007, Nantz said he was offered $7 million to host the CBS Early Show, but turned it down because his wife opposed it.
He testified that while he was traveling around the country broadcasting sporting events, his wife was home spending vast sums of money. In nine years, she spent nearly $1 million at Ed Mitchell, a high-end clothing and jewelry store in Westport.
Her full head of blond hair cascading over her designer coat, Lorrie Nantz took the stand Wednesday afternoon.
A former marketing director for Dr. Robert Jarvik, developer of the artificial heart, she quit working in 1988. Even after she gave birth to their daughter, she said she continued to travel around the country with her husband.
"Jim often boasted that Caroline had more frequent flyer miles than most adults," she said. However, when their daughter turned 2 and began preschool, Lorrie Nantz said she decided her traveling days were over.
Although the couple have a full-time housekeeper/nanny, Lorrie Nantz said she wanted to care for their daughter.
Lorrie Nantz testified she still attended some major events with her husband. The couple, social friends of former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, often went to the White House while Bush was president. Her lawyers showed the judge a photograph of the Nantz with the Bushes and Queen Elizabeth II.
And Lorrie Nantz admitted she often went shopping at Ed Mitchell, which is about a mile from their home. She has two accounts there, one in the couple's name and one under her maiden name, which she said she assumed her husband knew about.
Just last month she purchased a $12,000 necklace at the store. But she admitted she couldn't recall what it looked like. "I think it has some sort of stone," she testified.
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.
Source (http://www.connpost.com/ci_13585978)