Is anyone watching Dirty John tonight? Betty Broderick's story

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Betty had an inflated sense of working hard. I guess for the time yeah she probably felt like she “worked hard” those early years but she was a sahm who worked part time jobs or if she worked full time a d had two kids so what? She was so upset that she “supported” Dan but meh, in today’s world what she did was so minimal.

And they were married for 14 years which is long but not that long. Maybe if it had been 20 or 25 years then I could understand.

She loved her lifestyle and the life she had created and she didn’t want to give it up. She couldn’t imagine moving on when it would have been so incredibly easy for her. She could have remarried some other rich guy and Dan would very likely have given her full custody and generous child support just so he could get on with his next phase of life. She was so incredibly short sighted!

Wow, way to minimize her contributions to the family. They were together for 18 years--close enough to 20 for you?

By all accounts she was an excellent mother to four children, all of whom did sports, music lessons and various other extracurriculars. She attended all their events and handled all aspects of their care. Dan was at work of course, rarely if ever present, including on family vacations which she usually handled solo. She entertained his clients and colleagues and basically devoted her life to their family, managing the household and supporting his career. He never had to cook, clean, or be involved in the kids' lives in any meaningful way. Do you really think she didn't work at least 40 hours a week doing all this? She was an asset in every way, other than getting older. And where is the evidence Dan was willing to give her full custody and equitable financial support?

No she continued to claim they were married even after they were separated and then divorced. Separated after 14 years of marriage, divorced final after 16 years.

And so what? Lots of moms today do all she did PLUS work a full time demanding job. She didn't do anything that spectacular. She didn't work full time and support Dan because it wasn't the norm and daycare was hard to find. She felt she "worked hard" in comparison to other sahm moms back then because she had to get a job outside the home which wasn't common and she was raised to believe that was not what she would need to do.

She was dumb. She could have had a repeat of her life with the next guy. She was attractive and guys liked her and Dan would have been happy for her to take the kids because he wanted to start over again. The one or two shrinks she saw should have just given her anti anxiety meds. She would have been better off.

The death of her baby was truly horrible. I am so sad that she didn't get a chance to name him and bury him. But back then they probably gave Dan the advice to just move on quickly and not think about it so that she would not be upset. That's how it was dealt with. It was terrible. He probably did think he was doing the right thing after all doctors were advising him to do it.

He owed her half of everything he earned during the marriage as a lump sum, plus child support and alimony until she could get a job or remarried. But that’s not what he did. He took everything, even her kids, and financially abused and controlled her through legal means. Keeping her wedding china, their furniture, which I am sure she picked out, in the home that he set up with his affair partner turned wife. What purpose could doing things like that serve except to torture and humiliate her? If he really wanted to just move on, he wouldn’t have done any of that.

Murder is never right, but we didn’t lose any good people in this situation. I do feel sorry for their kids.

The more I read about the case, the more all people involved seem horrible but Betty was definitely provoked. He did keep all the furniture she picked out, hid a ton of other joint assets, Linda wouldn't return her wedding china despite having selected her own, Linda bought the exact same "Mrs. Daniel Broderick III" stationary Betty had used for years, and even slept under the quilt Betty had purchased for her marital bed. Dan kept Betty's belongings in his garage and would occasionally dole out an item. He love the abusive control. It was sick!

I'm not sure any woman would have kept her cool under the circumstances, especially when he made sure she received the most paltry divorce settlement possible. 33K, are you kidding me? He made nearly 1.4 million in 1986 and maintained control over all of their joint assets including a massive amount of money he had hidden. In light of all of this, her request of 1/5 of his monthly income for ten years was really not unreasonable.

Also, how many of you know Dan ensured the divorce files were sealed and then they somehow, mysteriously, disappeared. Why do you think that is, hmm?

The files would have documented some of the financial shenanigans and also the times he lied to her about court dates, which resulted in at least one major ruling in his favor due to her no-show. There was a reason the divorce judge was invited to his second wedding(!) Of course her state of denial then decision to represent herself were foolish.

His proposal was to pay her 9K/month for one year, then 5K/month for five years, and that was it. And her legal fees had to be deducted from the 33K, so her settlement was a measly 28K. The man was a stone cold narcissist with no regard for the mother of his children, while he continued living very high on the hog with her young replacement. Of course she was enraged. The judge apparently did sympathize with her and awarded her the 16K/month against Dan's wishes, but Betty felt she hadn't gotten her fair share in terms of a settlement and also had no confidence the alimony would hold. At that point of course she should have accepted it and just worked towards getting her kids back (even Dan conceded they wanted to live with her), but she was pretty damaged by that point and just couldn't let it go. I still think if he had treated her with more dignity, he'd be alive today.

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure any woman would have kept her cool under the circumstances, especially when he made sure she received the most paltry divorce settlement possible. 33K, are you kidding me? He made nearly 1.4 million in 1986 and maintained control over all of their joint assets including a massive amount of money he had hidden. In light of all of this, her request of 1/5 of his monthly income for ten years was really not unreasonable.

Also, how many of you know Dan ensured the divorce files were sealed and then they somehow, mysteriously, disappeared. Why do you think that is, hmm?

This comment made me remember a divorce story I was adjacent to a loooong time ago - like 30 years ago. I was a waitress at Chili's in my hometown and at that time, Chili's was pretty new and really popular. Anyway, I worked with this woman whose husband had filed for divorce. They had two or three kids and she had been a SAHM. I think she had a teaching degree, but this was before any type of spousal support was recognized in Texas so she needed a job immediately. I remember her saying that at first she was embarrassed when people she had known from the country club, her kids' schools, etc. saw her waitressing to make ends meet, but she soon got over it and just told them what was going on. She was pretty angry. It didn't really resonate with me at the time, but in hindsight it really does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I honestly think Betty caused them more anguish than the other way round with the vitriol and property damage. Breaking and entering is not cool. Part of me wonders why Dan never invested in a proper security system. Was it just not a thing in 1989?

Well, if you keep her out of the house then you couldn't point to all the terrible things she did, now could you?

Bingo!

And all of the things she did, provoked by his abuse, provided him with HUGE narcissistic supply. He thrived on it, he loved it. I'm sure the day she ran her car into the front door of his house gave him a big high. He loved being the puppet master and relished in the reactions he got from her.

Agree that he loved the drama. He was still trying to be competitive and win. He cannot win if she goes quietly into the night without a fight. Then he's giving away his money and kids for a low drama paralegal. He enjoyed the battle. A security system would have put an end to a lot and taken away his power. Even his deductions, letters, out going phone message, down to the way he would go from calling her Bets, to Elizabeth Anne depending on his mood. He could have filed for divorce, walked out and never talked to her unless it was through his lawyer. He knew that, and he chose to piss her off, chose to embarrass her, chose to play mind games.

They don't really talk about Linda much, but I'm sure that's because she's not a likable character. No matter what she was the other woman, younger, blonder, skinnier. She could have served the homeless every night and it wasn't going to be redeemable in the press or on a show. I'm sure Dan was also playing mind games with her. She would have figured it out if they ever started their own family, and she decided to stay at home. They just didn't get that far in their relationship.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Betty had an inflated sense of working hard. I guess for the time yeah she probably felt like she “worked hard” those early years but she was a sahm who worked part time jobs or if she worked full time a d had two kids so what? She was so upset that she “supported” Dan but meh, in today’s world what she did was so minimal.

And they were married for 14 years which is long but not that long. Maybe if it had been 20 or 25 years then I could understand.

She loved her lifestyle and the life she had created and she didn’t want to give it up. She couldn’t imagine moving on when it would have been so incredibly easy for her. She could have remarried some other rich guy and Dan would very likely have given her full custody and generous child support just so he could get on with his next phase of life. She was so incredibly short sighted!

Wow, way to minimize her contributions to the family. They were together for 18 years--close enough to 20 for you?

By all accounts she was an excellent mother to four children, all of whom did sports, music lessons and various other extracurriculars. She attended all their events and handled all aspects of their care. Dan was at work of course, rarely if ever present, including on family vacations which she usually handled solo. She entertained his clients and colleagues and basically devoted her life to their family, managing the household and supporting his career. He never had to cook, clean, or be involved in the kids' lives in any meaningful way. Do you really think she didn't work at least 40 hours a week doing all this? She was an asset in every way, other than getting older. And where is the evidence Dan was willing to give her full custody and equitable financial support?

No she continued to claim they were married even after they were separated and then divorced. Separated after 14 years of marriage, divorced final after 16 years.

And so what? Lots of moms today do all she did PLUS work a full time demanding job. She didn't do anything that spectacular. She didn't work full time and support Dan because it wasn't the norm and daycare was hard to find. She felt she "worked hard" in comparison to other sahm moms back then because she had to get a job outside the home which wasn't common and she was raised to believe that was not what she would need to do.

She was dumb. She could have had a repeat of her life with the next guy. She was attractive and guys liked her and Dan would have been happy for her to take the kids because he wanted to start over again. The one or two shrinks she saw should have just given her anti anxiety meds. She would have been better off.

The death of her baby was truly horrible. I am so sad that she didn't get a chance to name him and bury him. But back then they probably gave Dan the advice to just move on quickly and not think about it so that she would not be upset. That's how it was dealt with. It was terrible. He probably did think he was doing the right thing after all doctors were advising him to do it.

He owed her half of everything he earned during the marriage as a lump sum, plus child support and alimony until she could get a job or remarried. But that’s not what he did. He took everything, even her kids, and financially abused and controlled her through legal means. Keeping her wedding china, their furniture, which I am sure she picked out, in the home that he set up with his affair partner turned wife. What purpose could doing things like that serve except to torture and humiliate her? If he really wanted to just move on, he wouldn’t have done any of that.

Murder is never right, but we didn’t lose any good people in this situation. I do feel sorry for their kids.

I've read the books and court transcripts. He and Linda were truly rotten people, no Betty shouldn't have murdered them but good riddance anyways.
I couldn't believe how the media claims she received a nice home when he actually owned it and her monthly payment went right back to him. Or Linda made sure to have her voice on the kids answering machine. If Dan had been smart he would have simply given her the Coral Reef home and made sure she was set up well. Dan and Linda were also the perpetrators in this story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both had personality disorders, but his behavior seemed downright sociopathic.

https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/inside-the-psychological-battleground-that-pushed-san-diego-socialite-betty-broderick-to-commit-murder

Interesting that she keeps being denied parole.

I believe one of the requirements is to show remorse. She is not sorry at all. I knew a lady that had written her and she sent me a few of her letters. Very nice writing, and it was obvious she was well educated. Only once she mention Dan. She compared what she and Dan shared was something akin to creating Apple in your garage. Not sure exactly what she meant. Maybe once they were rich and famous it could no longer be controlled. Became too big, but she seemed to have a life in prison...or accepted it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Betty had an inflated sense of working hard. I guess for the time yeah she probably felt like she “worked hard” those early years but she was a sahm who worked part time jobs or if she worked full time a d had two kids so what? She was so upset that she “supported” Dan but meh, in today’s world what she did was so minimal.

And they were married for 14 years which is long but not that long. Maybe if it had been 20 or 25 years then I could understand.

She loved her lifestyle and the life she had created and she didn’t want to give it up. She couldn’t imagine moving on when it would have been so incredibly easy for her. She could have remarried some other rich guy and Dan would very likely have given her full custody and generous child support just so he could get on with his next phase of life. She was so incredibly short sighted!

Wow, way to minimize her contributions to the family. They were together for 18 years--close enough to 20 for you?

By all accounts she was an excellent mother to four children, all of whom did sports, music lessons and various other extracurriculars. She attended all their events and handled all aspects of their care. Dan was at work of course, rarely if ever present, including on family vacations which she usually handled solo. She entertained his clients and colleagues and basically devoted her life to their family, managing the household and supporting his career. He never had to cook, clean, or be involved in the kids' lives in any meaningful way. Do you really think she didn't work at least 40 hours a week doing all this? She was an asset in every way, other than getting older. And where is the evidence Dan was willing to give her full custody and equitable financial support?

No she continued to claim they were married even after they were separated and then divorced. Separated after 14 years of marriage, divorced final after 16 years.

And so what? Lots of moms today do all she did PLUS work a full time demanding job. She didn't do anything that spectacular. She didn't work full time and support Dan because it wasn't the norm and daycare was hard to find. She felt she "worked hard" in comparison to other sahm moms back then because she had to get a job outside the home which wasn't common and she was raised to believe that was not what she would need to do.

She was dumb. She could have had a repeat of her life with the next guy. She was attractive and guys liked her and Dan would have been happy for her to take the kids because he wanted to start over again. The one or two shrinks she saw should have just given her anti anxiety meds. She would have been better off.

The death of her baby was truly horrible. I am so sad that she didn't get a chance to name him and bury him. But back then they probably gave Dan the advice to just move on quickly and not think about it so that she would not be upset. That's how it was dealt with. It was terrible. He probably did think he was doing the right thing after all doctors were advising him to do it.

He owed her half of everything he earned during the marriage as a lump sum, plus child support and alimony until she could get a job or remarried. But that’s not what he did. He took everything, even her kids, and financially abused and controlled her through legal means. Keeping her wedding china, their furniture, which I am sure she picked out, in the home that he set up with his affair partner turned wife. What purpose could doing things like that serve except to torture and humiliate her? If he really wanted to just move on, he wouldn’t have done any of that.

Murder is never right, but we didn’t lose any good people in this situation. I do feel sorry for their kids.

The more I read about the case, the more all people involved seem horrible but Betty was definitely provoked. He did keep all the furniture she picked out, hid a ton of other joint assets, Linda wouldn't return her wedding china despite having selected her own, Linda bought the exact same "Mrs. Daniel Broderick III" stationary Betty had used for years, and even slept under the quilt Betty had purchased for her marital bed. Dan kept Betty's belongings in his garage and would occasionally dole out an item. He love the abusive control. It was sick!

I'm not sure any woman would have kept her cool under the circumstances, especially when he made sure she received the most paltry divorce settlement possible. 33K, are you kidding me? He made nearly 1.4 million in 1986 and maintained control over all of their joint assets including a massive amount of money he had hidden. In light of all of this, her request of 1/5 of his monthly income for ten years was really not unreasonable.

Also, how many of you know Dan ensured the divorce files were sealed and then they somehow, mysteriously, disappeared. Why do you think that is, hmm?

The files would have documented some of the financial shenanigans and also the times he lied to her about court dates, which resulted in at least one major ruling in his favor due to her no-show. There was a reason the divorce judge was invited to his second wedding(!) Of course her state of denial then decision to represent herself were foolish.

His proposal was to pay her 9K/month for one year, then 5K/month for five years, and that was it. And her legal fees had to be deducted from the 33K, so her settlement was a measly 28K. The man was a stone cold narcissist with no regard for the mother of his children, while he continued living very high on the hog with her young replacement. Of course she was enraged. The judge apparently did sympathize with her and awarded her the 16K/month against Dan's wishes, but Betty felt she hadn't gotten her fair share in terms of a settlement and also had no confidence the alimony would hold. At that point of course she should have accepted it and just worked towards getting her kids back (even Dan conceded they wanted to live with her), but she was pretty damaged by that point and just couldn't let it go. I still think if he had treated her with more dignity, he'd be alive today.

ita

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both had personality disorders, but his behavior seemed downright sociopathic.

https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/inside-the-psychological-battleground-that-pushed-san-diego-socialite-betty-broderick-to-commit-murder

Interesting that she keeps being denied parole.

I believe one of the requirements is to show remorse. She is not sorry at all. I knew a lady that had written her and she sent me a few of her letters. Very nice writing, and it was obvious she was well educated. Only once she mention Dan. She compared what she and Dan shared was something akin to creating Apple in your garage. Not sure exactly what she meant. Maybe once they were rich and famous it could no longer be controlled. Became too big, but she seemed to have a life in prison...or accepted it.

What she meant is that she and Dan were full partners in building a highly successful life together, and she was right. Like he could have accomplished a fraction of what he did without her holding down home and hearth with all those kids (nine pregnancies because he did not believe in birth control!) and being a professional asset on the moneyed social circuit.

[Anonymous]

I wish they would have cast a better likeness of Betty. Amanda Peet did an incredible job bringing the crazy for sure but she looks nothing like the real Betty.

Not sure who I would want to see though. Someone who would be willing to put on 20 pounds to match Betty and better emphasize that Linda was a younger and thinner version of Betty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both had personality disorders, but his behavior seemed downright sociopathic.

https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/inside-the-psychological-battleground-that-pushed-san-diego-socialite-betty-broderick-to-commit-murder

Interesting that she keeps being denied parole.

I believe one of the requirements is to show remorse. She is not sorry at all. I knew a lady that had written her and she sent me a few of her letters. Very nice writing, and it was obvious she was well educated. Only once she mention Dan. She compared what she and Dan shared was something akin to creating Apple in your garage. Not sure exactly what she meant. Maybe once they were rich and famous it could no longer be controlled. Became too big, but she seemed to have a life in prison...or accepted it.

What she meant is that she and Dan were full partners in building a highly successful life together, and she was right. Like he could have accomplished a fraction of what he did without her holding down home and hearth with all those kids (nine pregnancies because he did not believe in birth control!) and being a professional asset on the moneyed social circuit.

Part of what was so galling for Betty was that she was the partner in the building phase, with as many lean years as good years, and then the young twit swoops in to enjoy the rewards without having done any of the hard work. And she and Dan were so callous, vicious even, toward the disposable "old and fat" wife. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wish they would have cast a better likeness of Betty. Amanda Peet did an incredible job bringing the crazy for sure but she looks nothing like the real Betty.

Not sure who I would want to see though. Someone who would be willing to put on 20 pounds to match Betty and better emphasize that Linda was a younger and thinner version of Betty.

I think they could have done a better job with the hair, but maybe Peet wasn't willing to bleach her hair (why not a wig then?) or gain weight. Although Betty was no longer super slim like Peet at the time of the affair, she really didn't gain a significant amount of weight until after the divorce. I think she mentioned she had been a size 6. Anyway, Betty was still very attractive (more so than Linda imo) and I think the age difference was the most important point.

[Anonymous]

I bet Betty slept good for the first time in five years the next night. Jail bed considered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I bet Betty slept good for the first time in five years the next night. Jail bed considered.

I think she may have even said that she could finally sleep when they were no longer in her head. So sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish they would have cast a better likeness of Betty. Amanda Peet did an incredible job bringing the crazy for sure but she looks nothing like the real Betty.

Not sure who I would want to see though. Someone who would be willing to put on 20 pounds to match Betty and better emphasize that Linda was a younger and thinner version of Betty.

I think they could have done a better job with the hair, but maybe Peet wasn't willing to bleach her hair (why not a wig then?) or gain weight. Although Betty was no longer super slim like Peet at the time of the affair, she really didn't gain a significant amount of weight until after the divorce. I think she mentioned she had been a size 6. Anyway, Betty was still very attractive (more so than Linda imo) and I think the age difference was the most important point.

Yes the DJ actress was WAY better looking than Linda was.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both had personality disorders, but his behavior seemed downright sociopathic.

https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/inside-the-psychological-battleground-that-pushed-san-diego-socialite-betty-broderick-to-commit-murder

Interesting that she keeps being denied parole.

I believe one of the requirements is to show remorse. She is not sorry at all. I knew a lady that had written her and she sent me a few of her letters. Very nice writing, and it was obvious she was well educated. Only once she mention Dan. She compared what she and Dan shared was something akin to creating Apple in your garage. Not sure exactly what she meant. Maybe once they were rich and famous it could no longer be controlled. Became too big, but she seemed to have a life in prison...or accepted it.

What she meant is that she and Dan were full partners in building a highly successful life together, and she was right. Like he could have accomplished a fraction of what he did without her holding down home and hearth with all those kids (nine pregnancies because he did not believe in birth control!) and being a professional asset on the moneyed social circuit.

Part of what was so galling for Betty was that she was the partner in the building phase, with as many lean years as good years, and then the young twit swoops in to enjoy the rewards without having done any of the hard work. And she and Dan were so callous, vicious even, toward the disposable "old and fat" wife. Ugh.

Betty did benefit from Dan’s career. She only had a degree in English Lit. Do you think she would have been able to blow $8K on a dress if she had been on her own? No, so stop pretending like Dan was a taker when Betty wasn’t indulgent as well. She had housekeeping help and being room mom isn’t hard hard work. She just couldn’t deal with being a divorcee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Betty had an inflated sense of working hard. I guess for the time yeah she probably felt like she “worked hard” those early years but she was a sahm who worked part time jobs or if she worked full time a d had two kids so what? She was so upset that she “supported” Dan but meh, in today’s world what she did was so minimal.

And they were married for 14 years which is long but not that long. Maybe if it had been 20 or 25 years then I could understand.

She loved her lifestyle and the life she had created and she didn’t want to give it up. She couldn’t imagine moving on when it would have been so incredibly easy for her. She could have remarried some other rich guy and Dan would very likely have given her full custody and generous child support just so he could get on with his next phase of life. She was so incredibly short sighted!

Wow, way to minimize her contributions to the family. They were together for 18 years--close enough to 20 for you?

By all accounts she was an excellent mother to four children, all of whom did sports, music lessons and various other extracurriculars. She attended all their events and handled all aspects of their care. Dan was at work of course, rarely if ever present, including on family vacations which she usually handled solo. She entertained his clients and colleagues and basically devoted her life to their family, managing the household and supporting his career. He never had to cook, clean, or be involved in the kids' lives in any meaningful way. Do you really think she didn't work at least 40 hours a week doing all this? She was an asset in every way, other than getting older. And where is the evidence Dan was willing to give her full custody and equitable financial support?

No she continued to claim they were married even after they were separated and then divorced. Separated after 14 years of marriage, divorced final after 16 years.

And so what? Lots of moms today do all she did PLUS work a full time demanding job. She didn't do anything that spectacular. She didn't work full time and support Dan because it wasn't the norm and daycare was hard to find. She felt she "worked hard" in comparison to other sahm moms back then because she had to get a job outside the home which wasn't common and she was raised to believe that was not what she would need to do.

She was dumb. She could have had a repeat of her life with the next guy. She was attractive and guys liked her and Dan would have been happy for her to take the kids because he wanted to start over again. The one or two shrinks she saw should have just given her anti anxiety meds. She would have been better off.

The death of her baby was truly horrible. I am so sad that she didn't get a chance to name him and bury him. But back then they probably gave Dan the advice to just move on quickly and not think about it so that she would not be upset. That's how it was dealt with. It was terrible. He probably did think he was doing the right thing after all doctors were advising him to do it.

He owed her half of everything he earned during the marriage as a lump sum, plus child support and alimony until she could get a job or remarried. But that’s not what he did. He took everything, even her kids, and financially abused and controlled her through legal means. Keeping her wedding china, their furniture, which I am sure she picked out, in the home that he set up with his affair partner turned wife. What purpose could doing things like that serve except to torture and humiliate her? If he really wanted to just move on, he wouldn’t have done any of that.

Murder is never right, but we didn’t lose any good people in this situation. I do feel sorry for their kids.

The more I read about the case, the more all people involved seem horrible but Betty was definitely provoked. He did keep all the furniture she picked out, hid a ton of other joint assets, Linda wouldn't return her wedding china despite having selected her own, Linda bought the exact same "Mrs. Daniel Broderick III" stationary Betty had used for years, and even slept under the quilt Betty had purchased for her marital bed. Dan kept Betty's belongings in his garage and would occasionally dole out an item. He love the abusive control. It was sick!

I'm not sure any woman would have kept her cool under the circumstances, especially when he made sure she received the most paltry divorce settlement possible. 33K, are you kidding me? He made nearly 1.4 million in 1986 and maintained control over all of their joint assets including a massive amount of money he had hidden. In light of all of this, her request of 1/5 of his monthly income for ten years was really not unreasonable.

Also, how many of you know Dan ensured the divorce files were sealed and then they somehow, mysteriously, disappeared. Why do you think that is, hmm?

The files would have documented some of the financial shenanigans and also the times he lied to her about court dates, which resulted in at least one major ruling in his favor due to her no-show. There was a reason the divorce judge was invited to his second wedding(!) Of course her state of denial then decision to represent herself were foolish.

His proposal was to pay her 9K/month for one year, then 5K/month for five years, and that was it. And her legal fees had to be deducted from the 33K, so her settlement was a measly 28K. The man was a stone cold narcissist with no regard for the mother of his children, while he continued living very high on the hog with her young replacement. Of course she was enraged. The judge apparently did sympathize with her and awarded her the 16K/month against Dan's wishes, but Betty felt she hadn't gotten her fair share in terms of a settlement and also had no confidence the alimony would hold. At that point of course she should have accepted it and just worked towards getting her kids back (even Dan conceded they wanted to live with her), but she was pretty damaged by that point and just couldn't let it go. I still think if he had treated her with more dignity, he'd be alive today.

They continually poked and taunted the bear, psychologically abused her and appeared to get off on it. They called her bluff and it was a fatal mistake.

Don’t mess with crazy.