Brinkley Breaks Free (Take Four)

After front-page coverage in the NYTimes Sunday Styles section, not to mention almost two years on the brutal front lines of the legal battlefield, Christie Brinkley and Peter Cook have finally settled the terms of their divorce.

Peter Cook got his teenaged assistant. Christie gets custody of the kids, and better yet, the Hamptons real estate. With a measly check written out to her now fourth ex-husband for $2.1 million, she can wipe her hands clean of her 12-year marriage. If only we could all claim that kind of closure.

We might soon be seeking it. Bloomberg news reported today that 48 percent of marriages in the U.S. will end in divorce if current marriage and divorce rates continue in the future, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.