January 4, 2010: Out with the old, in with the new

2009 saw numerous celebrities call their relationships quits.

by Jeffrey Cottrill

The world of show business is continually rife with high-profile divorces and breakups among the stars, and last year was no exception. Here's a roundup of some of the entertainment, sports, and even politics and royalty stars who split up from their partners in 2009:

January

• Patricia Arquette filed for divorce from The Punisher's Thomas Jane
• Jennifer Love Hewitt broke off her engagement from Ross McCall
• Madonna and Guy Ritchie finalized their divorce
• Amy Winehouse's husband filed for divorce
• Britain's Prince Harry broke up with his girlfriend

February

• Chris Brown was charged with assaulting Rihanna
• Magician Criss Angel broke up with model Holly Madison

March

• Anne Heche's divorce became final
• Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer split up
• CSI star Marg Helgenberger filed for divorce from actor and SAG president Alan Rosenberg
• Utah Jazz basketball star Carlos Boozer filed for divorce

April

• Lindsay Lohan decided she wanted "a break" from Samantha Ronson
• Mel Gibson and his wife filed for divorce from each other
• Kelis filed from divorce from Nas
• Sean Penn filed for divorce from Robin Wright-Penn

May

• Penn changed his mind about the divorce

June

• Barry Bonds' wife filed for legal separation (she later changed her mind)
• Emilie de Ravin of Lost fame separated from her husband
• Malcolm in the Middle's Jane Kaczmarek's divorce was finalized
• Usher filed for divorce
• Jon and Kate Gosselin revealed their pending divorce on their TV show
• Billy Joel separated from Katie Lee

July

• Amy Winehouse and husband got a "quickie" divorce
• LeAnn Rimes separated from her husband
• Hulk Hogan settled his divorce from Linda Bollea

August

• Tracy Morgan of 30 Rock filed for divorce
• Phantom of the Opera's Emmy Rossum separated from her secret husband
• Sean Penn and Robin Wright-Penn decided to divorce after all
• John Cleese's divorce became official
• Hugh Hefner's estranged wife filed for divorce

September

• ESPN baseball analyst Steve Phillips' wife filed for divorce
• Avril Lavigne separated from Deryck Whibley
• Rossum's husband filed for divorce

October

• Tennis star Chris Evert and golf star Greg Norman separated
• Corey Feldman's wife and Surreal Life costar filed for divorce
• Los Angeles Dodgers owners Jamie and Frank McCourt began divorce proceedings
  

November

• Usher's divorce was finalized
• Shaq filed for a legal separation
• James Van Der Beek of Dawson's Creek filed for divorce
• James Caan filed for divorce

December

• Legendary songwriter Paul Anka filed for divorce
• The Gosselins' divorce was finalized
• Former Divorce Magazine columnist Ivana Trump filed for divorce
• Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins announced they had split up over the summer
• Ex-presidential advisor Karl Rove's divorce became official

• Your Divorce: Mistakes Are Life Lessons
• The Divorce Process: Part I -- Filing the divorce papers
• Your Ex: Who's in Control -- You or Them?

More articles     Find a lawyer      Divorce FAQs       Divorce newsletter

Tuesday, May 15
at 8 pm to 8:30 EST
Out With the Tragedy: Turning Divorce into a meaningful experience
with Allison Pescosolido and Andra Brosh, founders of Divorce Detox
Learn More

Listen to podcasts of previous TeleSeminars.