The Daily Item from Sunbury, Pennsylvania • 6

Assessing live-in's value difficult pari of 'palimony nally predicted that within five years after, Marvin vs. Marvin every state would have either passed legislation or developed case law in the field. As of now, 24 states have adopted one or more of the Marvin principles as set forth in the original supreme court decision. Undoubtedly the Marvin decision, either by case law or statute, will be interpreted by state supreme courts and eventually by the United States Supreme Cases will develop to win unmarried spouses the rights of interim temporary support; attorneys' fees pending litigation, so the deserted spouse can afford to bring an action, restraining orders to prevent the other spouse from disposing of property; all the rights enjoyed by married spouses. Simply stated, cohabitation cases must and will be processed through the family, matrimonial and domestic side of the court.

Legislation is being pushed in many states to make cohabitation cases part of the family-law division. That is where they belong. The live-togethers are not going to go away and the courthouse doors cannot be barred against such a flood of people. taxe return separate, those facts may weigh more heavily in an actual trial than any remembered spoken words which may be afterward denied. The trial judge in Marvin vs.

Marvin noted that it is "not reasonable" to believe pillow talk. There is also a paragraph in the decision that might serve as an object lesson for people involved in such situations. During the relationship Michelle asked Lee for a written agreement in case of his death. According to Michelle's testimony, he responded that it was not necessary "You're taken care of" and she believed him. Neither the meek nor the gullible shall inherit the earth.

There-can be no doubt that Marvin vs. Marvin did resurrect the bitter "divorce trial" proceedings, as the trial of the issues in the case demonstrated. It would appear that such trials are inescapable and inevitable under the Marvin decision unless or until laws covering unmarried cohabitation are codified in the several states. What live-togethers have to realize is that until the law catches up with this new class of people, it is going to be difficult and fluid and ever changing. I origi mswss A Practical Guide to Help You Understand What might be learned from the Marvin vs.

Marvin decision and its actual application in a trial? Other cases will follow indeed, have followed and the results will vary with each individual case according to the evidence. Also, it should be clear that even with the broad sweep of power given to trial judges by the Marvin decision it is not easy to prove that express or implied contracts exist if there are disputes about them. If one partner keeps his property, his bank account, his income mond cuter either is skilled or he is not, no matter whom he lives with. Maybe George has already done the same thing for five years while living alone that he still does with with consu-mate skill now that Martha has moved in. How can you argue that she made a large contribution with her homemaking skills and companionship? Look for other facts Well, maybe there are other aspects to the case.

Maybe the lawyer can show that George did not do so well financally during those first five years. Maybe entertaining was important to building up that practice. Maybe he was not very social or well connected. You might be able to argue that his live-in woman was charming, socially aware, interesting and helped him eventually develop a lucrative practice and now he's on the staff of the Menninger Clinic. It can be established that the live-in woman was highly important to him, despite the skill he had all along.

A live-in who is unwilling to depend upon handouts from the wage-earning spouse or who prefers current real benefits to the promise of future rewards can draw up a straightforward "for hire" agreement. If both parties agree, they can set down exactly what each expects from the other in the matter of property and money-sharing. One part may contribute earnings, and the other may contribute companionship and homemaking. Such an agreement would undoubtedly not be as romantic as some might wish, but it would clear up the question of what the live-in party's companionship is really worth. Such an agreement might also preclude any future requests for support, of course.

It could have the result of establishing a strictly pay-as-you-go business relationship between an employer and an employee. Indeed, many a real wife might be happy to make such an arrangement. accumulated for, there to be something to divide. If a couple lives together for 10 years and they accumulate nothing, there is nothing to divide. But if in that 10 years they build up a business worth $100,000, then they might have to divide it equally.

If the woman helped in the business or provided some combination of money, services and companionship the court might very well divide the property. Sex clouds issue If the relationship is a mistress-lover situation, in which all she does is paint her toenails and all he does is come by for sex and to give her $200 a week, that is all there is to that. If the promise is, "I'll give you $200 a week for sex," that is prostitution and nothing more can come of it even if there is a written contract. The problem of the arrangement being termed prostitution, or some kind of sex-for-pay, clouds any situation in which the sexual acts are crimes in the state in which they occur. As in the case of homosexuals who live together in a state where homosexual acts, even between -consenting adults, are a crime, a partner in such a situtation may not be able to recover anything, unless he or she can show enough other elements to indicate that a de facto marriage existed, or that an enforceable promise was made.

If there is no criminal or other legal bar to recovery, however, then the questions remain: Is there accumulated property to divide? Is there an ment? If there is only an oral or implied agreement the usual situation, because if there were a written agreement chances are that the case would not wind up in then the question is how to show it and how to prove the contribution of the non-wage-earning partner. You might have trouble arguing that a neurosurgeon is a great surgeon because he has a happy home life. One might argue that a brain surgeon or a dia Editor's note This is the last in a series of articles on the legalities of living together. By Marvin Mltchelson Among the most intriguing, perplexing problems brought on by "palimony" suits is the question of how much a live-in companion is worth. The answer is totally subjective with each couple and also greatly depends on how much the couple are worth together.

It depends, too, upon how much they accumulate together as opposed to how much each had before hooking up with the other. Recent decisions have established that the services of a homemaker, cook and companion are valuable but have left it up to the individual judge in each case to determine what that value should be. There was a Japanese businessman who paid his wife $24,000 a year $2,000 a month for. her sevices. Figuring costs How do you establish the value of ho-memaking and companionship? What is the value of a woman who cleans the house, cooks for the man and his children, does the gardening, cleans the pool and-or entertains at social functions for business associates? I argue from the point of view: "What would it cost to do all these thing?" How much would it cost to hire a housekeeper? A cook? A gardener? A governess? A social secretary? This argument is usually acceptable to the courts.

Of course, adding up these separate functions, you can arrive at some lofty figures. You can determine that the woman should be paid $15,000, which might fie as much as the man earns. But such figures are offset by how much the woman has already received during the time involved. Of course, there has to be something ontemporary living Edmunds' album is modest success Reg and Doris Merridew enjoy a snack together Former Sunbury radio announcer rose through ranks of Kiwanis Sunbury, Fri.f July 24 1981 opus, reimbursement of attorneys' fees and the destruction of all copies of "I'm Your Angel." Both Geffen Records and Bregman, Vocco and Conn declined to comment. Ono also could not be reached for comment, but "Double Fantasy" producer Jack Douglas termed the lawsuit "pretty insane." Douglas went on to acknowledge that he had bugged the control room throughout the "Double Fantasy" sessions at the suggestion of Watergate buff John Lennon.

"He never really asked me to do it," Douglas admitted. He just said, wish someone would wire the control room, because all the best things are said in So I did, and he didn't know about it until I gave him the tapes." Douglas said the tapes, which run into the hundreds of hours, are full of "priceless stories; it's like a documentary of making a record." In the weeks before his death, Lennon would listen to the tapes, "pulling out things he liked, conversations, things he wanted to hold on to." Anya Phillips, the definitive personality of New York's No Wave music scene, died in Valhalla, N.Y. on June 19 after a two-year battle with cancer. She was 26. Born in Taiwan, Phillips arrived in New York in the early '70s and worked as a photojournalist (for "New York Rocker" and "Punk" magazine) and clothes designer (Deborah Harry wore a Phillips dress on the cover of the second Blondie album, "Plastic Phillips was most noted, however, as the manager of the influential punk-funk band known alternately as the Contortions and James White and the Blacks; Phillips lived with the group's leader, James Chance, for the last several years.

"It was just a perfect gonzo, git-down rock roll night," barked Ted Nugent, recalling a recent show in La Crosse, Wis. Trouble started after Ted had slashed through his second oncore, "Cat Scratch Fever," and was being hoisted onto the- shoulders of his guitarist confreres. "Just in the edge of the spotlight, I saw this projectile come flying toward my mouth," Nuge said. And doggone if the object didn't nail him flush on the jawbone. The enraged and bleeding guitarist bounded through the crowd in search of the perpetrator.

Nugent didn't find his man, but in the melee, somebody tried to yank Ted's trousers off. So what happened? "I burgerized his face." And what of bad guy number one? "Later oa, uiese uas came oy in a pickup with what looked like a human form in the back and said, 'We got him, He won't be doing any motivating for wLile." But Nugent may have spoken too soon: just a few nights later, more than 4 (MO wanarwianonArt haA in k. evacuated from an arena in Marquette, following a bomb threat. albums 15. Icehouse Icehouse 16.

Randy VanwarmerThe Beat of Love 17. Joe Perry Project The Rock and Rolls Again 18. Jon Vangelis The Friends of Mr. Cairo 19. English Beat Wha'ppen 20.

Sinceros Pet Rock Reviews By Dave Marsh DAVE EDMUNDS: "Twangin' (Swan Song) 4 Stars. I'm no big fan of Edmunds' recreations of the rock and roll canon, and that goes double for his shots at Elvis's "Baby Let's Play House" and John Fo-gerty's "Almost Saturday Night" here, both of which are just too sluggish. On the other hand, there's not much harm to be done to George Jones's "The Race Is On," or Guy Mitchell's "Sin-gin' the Blues," and several of the original songs, especially Nick Lowe and Carlene Carter's Everlys-style "(I'm Gonna Start) Living Again if It Kills Me," exude more warmth and charm than Edmunds has ever displayed before. And in times when quality rock and roll is in short supply, even a performer as repetitious and narrow as Edmunds is a pleasure and a relief. A modest success, but a real one.

IAN GOMM: "What a Blow" (Stiff-Epic) 3 Stars. On his first album, Gomm came across so daffy and charming that he seemed capable of outdoing his old bandmate, Nick Lowe (from their Brinsley Schwarz days), at his own game of lopsided put-on and generally exuberate mimicry. Unfortunately, as with all the Pure Pop for Now People ideologues, this purely efficacious approach to music makes it real hard to sustain a career, since after awhile even the most jaded listener begins hoping for something with a bit more substance. You won't find it here, although you will discover some inargu-ably amusing and finely crafted pop songs, of the English modern mode. And Gomm was the best singer Brinsley Schwarz had, which gives him a leg up on Lowe.

GET WET (Boardwalk) 1 Star. They're considered real hip in certain Manhattan circles, but frankly, I'm not in the market for a boy-girl duo that rehashes the conceptual possibilities of Bette Midler and the Manhattan Transfer. This has all the emotional authenticity of 'the "Grease" soundtrack, which is to say that this pair deserves its Connie Francis covers. And what's an ordinarily sensible guy like producer Bill Ramone doing in a freak show like this, anyhow? DAN HARTMAN: "It Hurts To Be in Love" (Blue Sky) Z.Stan) In which the original white disco-rocker suddenly remembers that he used to play in bands. The result is mildly interesting studio rock, with a redemptive factor: a terrific version of the title track (the old Gene Pitney DELBERT MCCLINTON: "The Best of Delbert McClinton" (MCA) 4 Stars.

I've never been a big fan of this Texas country rocker, and I would have to say that his 1980 hit, "Let Love WQSU Artists Albums 1. Pat Benatar Precious Time 2. Foreigner 4 3. Blue Oyster Cult Fire of Unknown Origin 4. Joe Vitale Plantation Harbor 5.

Carl Wilson Carl Wilson 6.2020 LookOut 7. Gary Wright The Right Place i "There's just not a lot we can do as individuals unless we're very wealthy, of course. But through Kiwanis we can combine our efforts and accomplish so much that otherwise would be next to impossible." Merridew family Merridew married a Sunbury girl, the former Doris Mae Long, in 1938. McNinch said the only member of Mrs. Merri-dew's family still in the region is a brother in WiUiamsport.

The Merridews live in North-brook, 111., a suburb of Chicago. McNinch and his wife plan to visit the couple in September. The Merridews are parents of two daughters and have three grandchildren. Born in Wales, Merridew's family settled in Pennsylvania in 1921 when he was 5. He calls Kiwanis "a way of life for me over the years.

I'm thankful that the opportunity to serve Kiwanis came along when it did and that I had the good sense to recognize it." Best-selling Country-Western records of the week based on the Cashbox Magazine's nationwide survey: 1. "Feels So Right," Alabama 2. "Lovin' Her Was Easier," Tompall 4 The Glaser Brothers 3. "Prisoner of Hope," Johnny Lee 4. "The Matador," Sylvia 5.

"Fire Smoke," Earl Thomas Conley 6. "Fool By Your Side," Dave Rowland and Sugar 7. "Dixie on My Mind," Hank Williams, -Jr. 8. "Unwound," George Strait 9.

"Too Many Lovers," Crystal Gayle 10. "I Don't Need You," Kenny Rogers 5 Bucknell University and soon thereafter, in the late 1930s, went to work at WKOK. From Sunbury, he went to WGAR in Cleveland. 1 An article in the June-July issue of Kiwanis magazine points out that Merridew, at age 32 in the late 1940s, had "a long, prestigious career in radio" ahead of him. Changes directions At this juncture, he became a member of Kiwanis in Cleveland and soon- found himself increasingly interested in the organization's activities.

Merridew became more and more involved at different levels of Kiwanis, according to the article, and it led to his becoming full-time international secretary. "Groups like Kiwanis provide the only organized way a business or professional man can become individually and directly involved in forming solutions to problems in Merridew said in the article. Best-sejling records of the week based on Cashbox magazine's nationwide survey: 1. "The One That You Love," Air Supply 2. "Bette Davis Eyes," Kim Carnes 3.

"Elvira," The Oak Ridge Boys '4. "Jessie's Girl," Rick Springfield 1 5. "Theme From 'Greatest American Joey Scarbury 6. "Stars On 45 Medley," Stars On 45 7. "You Make My Dreams," Daryl Hall John Oates 8.

"I Don't Need You," Kenny Rogers 9. "All Those Years Ago," George Harrison 10. "Slow Hand," Pointer Sisters Dave Edmunds Come Between Us" describes why: It has all the street grit of Boz Scaggs. On the other hand, that chart success has allowed this anthology of McClin-ton's work to appear, and gathered together, such ephemera as "Victim of Life's Circumstances," "Pledging My Love" and "Ruby Louise" add up to a country-rocker almost as tough as his cult claims. If McClinton ever makes an album this good on one try, he'll really be something to cheer about.

Until then, this is about as good a selection in the style as you're liable to find. (Records are rated from one star to fiveein ascending order of quality.) Random notes ByKnrtLoder "Double Fantasy" news: The owners of the song "Makin' Whoopee" have slapped Yoko Ono with a $1 million-plus copyright-infringement suit, claiming that her composision "I'm Your Angel" "was copied largely from, and is substantially similar to," the 1928 ditty. The suit, which also names Warner Bros. Records, Lenono Music and the David Geffen Company as defendants, was filed last month in a U.S. district court in Los Angeles by music publishers Bregman, Vocco and Conn on behalf of themselves and the heirs of deceased "Makin' Whoopee" songwriters Gus Kahn and Walter Donaldson.

Asserting that they've suffered "great and irreparable injury which cannot be adequately compensated or measured in money," those pressing the suit are asking for $1 million in damages, all royalties from the Ono FM's top 20 8. The A's A Woman's Got the Power 9. New England Walking Wild 10. Undertones Positive Touch 11. Foghat Girls to Chat Boys to Bounce 12.

Blackfoot Marauder 13. Billy Squier 14. Journey Don't Say No Escape SUNBURY Some 40 years ago, before television made its debut here, Reg Merridew was a well-known radio announcer to Sunbury area residents. Fresh out of college, he was an entertainer on WKOK. After leaving Sunbury in the early 1940s, Merridew became a Kiwanian and rose to the position of international secretary with headquarters in Chicago.

After 15 years in the latter post, Merridew has decided it's time to retire. He was honored last month at Kiwanis' international convention in New Orleans, La A friend remembers A close friend, Bob McNinch of Sunbury, recalled Merridew and Paul Miller forming a musical duo, "Reg and Paul," on WKOK. Merridew played the piano and sang and Miller was on the guitar. "They entertained throughout the area," McNinch said. "They' were quite well known." Merridew was a graduate of ilop records on the charts.