Rock Hudson marry her. Among the actors in this amusing film are Ginger Rogers, Marilyn Monroe, and Eve Arden. The opposite of unintentional cohabitation without benefit of clergy is unintentional bigamy, and Hollywood has also treated that subject, often using as raw material the Enoch Arden theme. The serious side of the Enoch Arden story is explored in the Return of Martin Guerre and Sommersby . When They Split Up Comedies about divorce rarely end with the actual divorce of the squabbling couple, undoubtedly due to the Hayes Code which decreed morality in Hollywood feature films.
Dramas usually end with great unhappiness for all concerned.
Similarly, in 1951's Let's Make it Legal Claudette Colbert and Macdonald Carey are a divorcing couple who think better of the idea, particularly since neither wants to see the other in a new relationship. Divorce Breaking up is always hard to do, and Hollywood mimics all the ways we've thought of to do it, and comes up with a few we haven't, or shouldn't. Another common reason for ending a marriage is desire for financial gain, which can sometimes be, well, murder, if divorce is not an option. When he kills off his cartoon hero's wife and his real life wife disappears after a spat, he's tried for murder. In a memorable scene he convinces the all male jury to acquit him by appealling to their longing for bachelorhood.