Divorce Court is an originally dramatized court show, but later and presently an arbitration-based reality court show. The program is nontraditional within the judicial genre as it solely revolves around the disputes of divorcing couples. It is currently presided over by former Cleveland Heights Municipal Court Judge Lynn Toler. The current version of Divorce Court is produced by Monet Lane Prods. and distributed by 20th Television, both are the production and syndication arms of 20th Century Fox.
Divorce Court is the longest-running program in the legal courtroom genre, and of the shows currently airing in the genre, is the oldest. It has been revived more than any other court show: the series has lived three lives in syndication: from 1957 to 1969, from 1985 to 1992, and currently since 1999. It has had four different judges, reigning in four different eras of the show. Unlike the previous versions, which portrayed standard court cases with opening and closing arguments and attorneys representing the litigants, the current version sees litigants defending themselves, which is similar to most present-day court shows.
The earliest run was dramatized and scripted. It had a total of twelve seasons, lasting from 1957 to 1969. During that run, Voltaire Perkins played the role of the judge, with Colin Male playing the role of courtroom announcer. The show's 13th season and second run debuted over a decade later in the spring of 1985. This version was also scripted. William B. Keene played the role of the judge (Judge Keene was the presiding judge at the murder trial of Charles Manson from December 1969 to April 1970, when he was replaced due to a motion of prejudice filed by Manson). Former game show host Jim Peck played the role of courtroom reporter and announcer, but was later replaced by former Scarecrow and Mrs. King star Martha Smith near the end of the run. That run lasted for seven seasons until 1992, for a total of 19 seasons overall. After that, the show was once again cancelled, with reruns airing on the USA Network during the early 1990s.
The 20th season, beginning the third and present run of Divorce Court, debuted in 1999. By its 1999 resurrection, court shows across the board had made a transition to a format involving former judges legitimately arbitrating over actual small claims cases (a trend first introduced by The People's Court and heavily popularized by the ratings success of Judge Judy). Following along with its counterparts, Divorce Court took up this trend in its third run. Its third run was first arbitrated over by Judge Mablean Ephriam (first African American female television jurist) from 1999 to 2006, followed by Judge Lynn Toler, from September 2006 to the present.
Divorce Court has been renewed through the 2013–14 season, which will be the show's 34th season. On September 3, 2012, the show's current run entered its 14th season, making for a grand total of 33 seasons.
Famous quotes containing the words divorce and/or court:
“Counsel men to discipline their children, but not to divorce their wives.”
—Chinese proverb.
“Follow a shaddow, it still flies you;
Seeme to flye it, it will pursue:
So court a mistris, shee denyes you;
Let her alone, shee will court you.
Say, are not women truely, then,
Stil’d but the shaddowes of us men?
At morne, and even, shades are longest;
At noone, they are or short, or none:
So men at weakest, they are strongest,
But grant us perfect, they’re not knowne.
Say, are not women truely, then,
Stil’d but the shaddowes of us men?”
—Ben Jonson (1572–1637)