A Milhouse Divided

"A Milhouse Divided" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons' eighth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 1, 1996. In the episode, Milhouse's parents Kirk and Luann get a divorce, causing Homer to examine his own marriage. It was directed by Steven Dean Moore and is the only episode for which Steve Tompkins has sole writing credit.

Marge throws a dinner party to escape from the doldrums at the Simpson house, so she decides to invite the Flanders, the Lovejoys, the Hibberts and the Van Houtens. All the guests are enjoying dinner except for the Van Houtens who argue with each other as Milhouse plays in another room with Bart and the children. Kirk and Luann get more quarrelsome as the party progresses and finally, despite Marge trying to divert the party away from the pair, the two get into a fight and Luann demands a divorce.

Kirk moves out of the Van Houten house and, despite his drab new surroundings, manages to keep a cheery attitude toward it all until he is fired from his job at the cracker factory as "crackers are a family food... happy families" and Kirk, being single, is apparently unfit for the position. Meanwhile, Luann quickly readjusts to single life with Milhouse and starts a new relationship with an American Gladiator. Kirk also tries to have a new relationship with a sleazy radio station worker, but ends up getting his car stolen and his demo tape wrecked. While at Moe's, Kirk mentions that he never saw the divorce coming and regrets not being more sensitive to Luann's needs, concluding that "one minute, your wife is cooking you your favorite meal; the next, you're thawing hot dogs in a gas station sink." Homer cheers Kirk up by telling him that his marriage to Marge is solid, but Homer begins to fear that his marriage may end in divorce after coming home and finding hot dogs thawing in the sink.