Celebrity marriages endure additional stress

Fame, temptation, demands: Tom and Nicole join sad club

In this story: Celebrity distractions Successful marriages overlooked? RELATED STORIES, SITES

By Thurston Hatcher
CNN.com Writer

(CNN) -- First it was Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid, and the thorny issue of fidelity. Then Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin called it quits, citing irreconcilable differences.

And now it's Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. The ultimate Hollywood glamour couple is splitting up after a 10-year marriage.

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The life and times of Tom and Nicole

As most who have been there can attest, marriage requires a lot of heavy lifting. And while studies suggest nearly half of all marriages end in divorce, it seems the marital odds may be stacked even higher against famous couples.

"There are issues that every couple will have to face, by the nature of being in a relationship, and they are intensified and exaggerated," said Suzanne Lopez, a Los Angeles, California, psychotherapist who counsels celebrities.

"It's like being put in a petri dish and under a microscope and having the heat turned on underneath you."

Celebrity distractions

A spokeswoman for Kidman and Cruise announced their separation Monday, claiming their respective careers kept them apart too long and too often to maintain a marriage.

"Whether you're a celebrity or not, if your husband's a CEO and has to spend six months away and you don't get to see him, it creates great stress and strain on a relationship," Lopez said. "And then they're in the public eye, and people are watching every move they make, which creates an additional kind of stress."

Other distractions come with fame, too.

"You're not perceived as a person, you're perceived as a commodity, so absolutely there are temptations, because people are wanting to be close to a perception of power and fame, so women will be trying to seduce your husband, and men will be trying to seduce your wife," said Lopez.

Successful marriages overlooked?

Lopez, author of "Get Smart With Your Heart: The Intelligent Woman's Guide to Love, Lust and Lasting Relationships," notes that failed marriages are often the ones we hear about. Enduring Hollywood relationships - - Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward notwithstanding -- don't tend to grab headlines.

"I think that there are people in the business who have long-term successful relationships, and they work really hard at them, just like there are people in everyday life who have successful relationships and they work really hard at them," she said.

Citing 'divergent careers,' Cruise, Kidman split
February 5, 2001
Meg Ryan, Dennis Quaid split
June 29, 2000
'Til 1995 do they part: Hollywood marriages on the skids
December 27, 1995

Suzanne Lopez: Get Smart With Your Heart

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