Norman Mailer: Works and Days

In a Merry Marriage-Go-Round, Norman Mailer Plans a Double Wedding

A People Weekly report on Mailer's November marital shuffle - the divorce from Beverly Bentley, the brief marriage to and divorce from Carol Stevens, and the 11 November marriage to Norris Church.

“In a Merry Marriage-Go-Round, Norman Mailer Plans a Double Wedding, to Wives Five and Six,” a People Weekly report (3 November 1980) — drawn from Liz Smith’s column — on Mailer’s November marital shuffle: his divorce from Beverly Bentley, a brief marriage to and divorce from Carol Stevens (with whom he had lived 1969–1975), and his 11 November marriage to Norris Church. Mailer called the Stevens marriage-and-divorce “civilized,” undertaken to “honor” their years together and their child, Maggie. A New York Times editorial, “Mailer’s Ring Cycle,” called him “a still point in a turning world.”

First published: 1980-11-03
Form: article
Lennon & Lennon: 80.13
Cite as: /works/1980-11-03-merry-marriage-go-round
Last updated: 2026-06-05