Cher Is Suing Sonny Bono's Widow

Mary Bono has said that Cher was "a constant source of comfort" after the man they both loved, Sonny Bono, died in a skiing accident in 1998. It's doubtful, however, that the late congressman's widow is finding much comfort in the latest correspondence from Cher: a lawsuit over song royalties, reports Deadline. In the complaint filed Wednesday in Los Angeles, the 75-year-old singer claims that after she and her former performing partner divorced in 1975, they agreed to divvy up revenue from the songs they'd recorded together in the '60s, including hits like "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On."

Mary Bono, however, undercut that arrangement over the years and has been withholding royalties from Cher that she's entitled to, according to the complaint. City News Service notes that after their smash run together, which included an early '70s variety show, Sonny and Cher's popularity began to wane in the mid-'70s. Cher went on to act in movies such as Moonstruck, Mask, and Silkwood, while her ex turned to politics, becoming the mayor of Palm Springs before being elected as a Republican to the US House of Representatives. Cher's suit is seeking at least $1 million in damages from Mary Bono, who won her husband's congressional seat three months after he died, serving till 2013. (More Cher stories.)