A Private Matter

A Private Matter is a 1992 film made for television (HBO) drama based on the true 1963 story of Sherri Chessen-Finkbine, a resident of Phoenix, Arizona in the first trimester of her fifth pregnancy. She was the popular hostess of the locally produced children's television show Romper Room.

She was taking the drug thalidomide and discovered its potential to damage a fetus. Concerned that her fetus might be damaged she consulted with her physican who scheduled a therapeutic abortion at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix.

The hospital refused the use of their facilities for an abortion so Finkbine filed a lawsuit to compel the use of Good Samaritan Hospital. A public and bitter struggle ensued, culminating with Sherri Chessen-Finkbine terminating her pregnancy in Sweden.