A contented magazine writer tries to put his life back together after his wife opts for independence as a singer-songwriter. A wacky nursery school teacher tries to help him surmount the emotional hurdles, but he's still hung up on his ex-wife.

Ruthless newspaper editor Walter Burns (Walter Matthau) and reporter Hildy (Jack Lemmon) believe together they can cover any story. The only problem is their team is being broken up as Hildy has decided to get married and leave the newspaper business altogether. As Hildy grooms his replacement, his retirement is derailed when the story of the century breaks and all of Chicago is in hot pursuit.

48 hours of intersecting lives and crimes in Los Angeles.