Newlyweds Thrive on Co-Operation

“Love in the Time of Heart Surgery” doesn’t quite have the ring of “Love in the Time of Cholera,” Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s novel about a man and woman who finally come together after 50 years of conflict and romance.

Still, it sums up the story of Earl and June Finmark, a Granada Hills couple who married in 1948 and divorced in 1985, but continued to live together.

Earl, a 64-year-old retired carpet dealer, learned recently that he needed open-heart surgery. Deciding to remarry June, he surprised his live-in ex-wife with a wedding ceremony at Encino Hospital last week on the eve of his coronary bypass operation.

Earl’s operation went well. Two days later, however, June fainted after visiting her husband and was rushed back to the hospital. Doctors discovered that she had a never-detected heart ailment and implanted a pacemaker the next day.

After spending their first postnuptial days in adjoining hospital rooms, the couple returned this week to their home, where their hearts were mending together Friday.

“The wedding was a delight,” said June, 62. “This was not a delight.”

Jon Finmark, the couple’s son, said the events of the past week had brought his parents closer than ever and left him tired but relieved.

“There is no way of explaining the feeling of having your dad in one hospital room and your mom in the next room, both for heart conditions,” he said. “I’m out in the hall saying, ‘Enough is enough.’ I don’t know what to do.”

The Finmarks were already celebrities at the hospital because of the tearful, joyous scene nine days ago, when Earl proposed remarriage to June in front of friends and relatives, then produced a rabbi to perform the ceremony on the spot.

Earl wanted to reaffirm his love for June to make sure she was provided for in his estate. The couple had never separated despite conflicts that led to their divorce six years ago.

On Sunday, just after Earl was moved out of intensive care, his wife--who had a history of fainting spells--complained she wasn’t feeling well. She passed out in the car in front of her aghast son and grandson. Doctors said they wanted to keep her overnight for observation.

And the only room available was next door to Earl’s, forcing Jon Finmark to break the news to his father.

“Right away, he’s walking over to her room trying to comfort her,” Jon said. “He’s hurting. He shouldn’t even be out of bed.”

Earl’s cardiologist determined that June’s fainting spells were caused by a dangerously slow heartbeat; Earl’s surgeon put in the pacemaker the next day. The surgeon, Dr. Mohammad Gharavi, said it is rare but not unheard of to treat husbands and wives simultaneously.

“To have operations at the same time, it’s really something,” Earl said. “At least we both got it over with.”

Concerned family and friends flocked to the hospital. They put up a sign in the corridor that said “Newlyweds: Earl and June,” with arrows pointing to the respective rooms.

The newlyweds were affectionate Friday--and animated enough for some verbal sparring. Although resting in bed and still visibly in pain, Earl said he plans to run sprints in the Senior Olympics when he feels better. June admonished him to take it easy.

Earl recalled their first honeymoon.

“Rosarito Beach,” he murmured. “Steaks were a dollar and a quarter then.”

The couple, regular visitors to Las Vegas casinos, were asked where they would spend their second honeymoon.

“Vegas,” Earl said immediately, his eyes brightening.

“I think we’ll do something else,” June retorted. “Maybe Hawaii.”

Then she gave her new husband a hug.