Faye and Ward Thayer live through enough ups and downs for several lifetimes. A whirlwind courtship leads to a comfortable life fueled by Ward's family fortune. But as the fortune vanishes, Ward's drinking and cheating compel Faye to throw him out. Faye builds a film directing career and later takes on an unlikely partner: Ward, now reformed. But the strain of raising their four rebellious children threatens to split the marriage again.