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A Reluctant Shriver Made Most Of First Lady Role

SACRAMENTO (CBS/AP) -Maria Shriver's career as a TV journalist was sidelined when her movie star husband, Arnold Schwarzenegger, decided to jump into her family's business, politics.

The future direction of professional life is now in question following the revelation that Shriver and Schwarzenegger are separating.

A statement issued by a spokesman for Schwarzenegger revealed the split Monday and indicated that the pair were working on the future of their relationship while living apart and they would continue to parent their four children together.

Being first lady of C aliforniain a Republican administration was not an easy fit for an ambitious feminist who worked hard to carve out a separate identity from her Democratic family dynasty.

Shriver did not seek to fit in during her time in Sacramento, but she was never far away in spirit.

An enormous Andy Warhol portrait of her hung in the Capitol office, and she weighed in frequently on policy. She helped resurrect her husband's governorship after a disastrous 2005 special election.

Shriver also took on projects to promote women, turning the annual women's conference into a star-studded gala and connecting poor families to services.

(Copyright 2011 by CBSSan Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services may have contributed to this report.)

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