Easy Living 1949

Pete Wilson is a star quarterback who believes his football future is secure, even after his longtime teammate Bill “Holly” Holloran is released by the team. He continues to receive advances on his salary from Anne, Lenahan’s secretary, while Lenahan—the team owner and coach—keeps a firm grip on the club’s fortunes.

One day, Pete secretly visits a doctor and learns he has a heart condition caused by a childhood bout of rheumatic fever. If he keeps playing, the condition could be fatal. He plans to tell his wife, Liza Wilson, but changes his mind when she treats Bill “Holly” Holloran as a has-been after his departure. Liza is grinding to build her own interior design business, and she isn’t afraid to bend the rules to advance her ambitions. At the same time, Gilbert Vollmer, Gilbert Vollmer, and his father Howard Vollmer, Howard Vollmer, circle her, with the elder man eager to replace his young girlfriend Billy Duane, Billy Duane, and to tempt Liza with the prospect of redecorating his apartment.

Amid the party circuits and social maneuvering, Pete’s prospects darken. Virgil Ryan, the retiring college head coach, informs him that he cannot recommend Pete as a successor because Liza isn’t deemed suitable for the duties of a coach’s wife. The job instead goes to Pete’s friend and teammate Tim “Pappy” McCarr, who offers Pete a chance to be his assistant. Pete declines at first, but the pressure mounts as Lenahan faces the possibility of playoff consequences and a hefty paycheck—there’s a lot riding on winning games.

Pete’s on-field performances suffer as he struggles with the knowledge of his heart condition, and Lenahan benches him in favor of Tim. Tim starts strong and the team wins the next game, heightening Pete’s sense of obstruction and doubt. Off the field, Liza’s relationship with Howard deteriorates, and she dumps him, only to find herself entangled in a renewed tension with Pete. Howard’s rejection of Liza pushes her to try to win Pete back once more, though the path to reconciliation is tangled with professional and personal ambitions.

As Tim is sidelined by injury, Pete is given another shot at glory, yet he chooses honesty over prestige and tells his teammates about his heart condition, walking away from the game. Anne has made it clear that she loves him, but Pete’s heart is pulled toward Liza. In a decision that feels like fate and choice collapsing into one, Pete decides to return to Liza—but only on his own terms, reframing the relationship around mutual respect, boundaries, and a shared understanding of what truly matters on and off the field.