14 DAY TRIAL // It's a sad day when a marriage that has lasted over 20 years crumbles down to nothing and results in a divorce. But that's exactly what happened to Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr., whose wife, Sara Kapfer, filed for divorce yesterday after two decades of being married to the actor.
The news was reported by TMZ which has obtained the legal documents that were filed in the Los Angeles court on Tuesday. According to these documents, it was Sara who initiated the divorce procedures and, in her opinion, the marriage was over as she is citing irreconcilable differences.
It was a little-known fact that Cuba Gooding Jr. married his high school sweetheart, but, up until their divorce, their marriage was seen as a model for other Hollywood actors who just can't seem to settle down. By comparison, Gooding's 20-year marriage was eons-long in a town that 72-hour marriages are not uncommon.
The “Jerry Maguire” actor and his wife Sara have been married since 1994 and have since become the proud parents of three children, two of whom are minors. In the legal documents, Sara specifies that she's seeking joint custody for their kids and mentions that she's going to work out child support at a later time in the proceedings.
There was no prior indication that a split was coming, especially after so many years of being married. Last year, Cuba went on television to speak about his marriage and there were no signs that things weren't going the way they were supposed to.
While talking with the ladies on the hit TV talk show “The View,” Cuba gushed about his wife and their relationship. The hosts of the show seemed to be in awe at the time of Cuba's 20-year marriage and praised him for making it last so long.
Suze Orman, guest host, asked Cuba “Are you the only one who's still with someone by this time?” to which he replied “I'm lucky.” He credited his long marriage to his ability to fall in love with his wife upon every new phase of their lives.
He later added jokingly “Oh I wanna kill her sometimes” but was careful to conclude with “she puts up with me” when referring to Sara. Among the main reasons for the divorce is believed to be Cuba's schedule that has been keeping him away from home for long periods of time.
He is quoted as saying at one point “When you do films, you're away from the family, but I can still fly them in or fly home to see them, so... my wife and I... have this rule - never go more than three or four weeks without seeing each other.”