I am a retired history teacher and found this episode of "The Star and the Story" very interesting. This is because there's a prevailing myth that everything was swell during the 1950s and sex was apparently discovered in the 1960s! I know not everyone believes this exactly, but this is the general attitude. Additionally, there's a belief that TV in the 1950s was sterile and everyone on the tube was like Ozzie & Harriett or the Cleavers! While this nice, wholesome image was common, there were exceptions...and "Brief Affair" is certainly one of them...though there are others.
The show begins with a seemingly happy family. However, Pat (Joanne Dru) and her idyllic life are about to be thrown for a loop...her husband Richard (Craig Stevens) drops a bombshell. He's been having an affair and wants a divorce! She is naturally shocked and saddened but her response is somewhat unusual. She says she will grant him a divorce IF and only IF he agrees to work on the marriage for the next three months and stop seeing his mistress. He agrees. But what is next? Can they both get past their suspicions and can he really give up his other woman?
Infidelity is certainly something we actually don't talk about much on TV today...let alone the 'sterile 50s'...which makes this episode unusual and very adult. The excellent acting (except the little boy...and thankfully he only got one line..which he blew) and interesting story make this one worth seeing. Many episodes of the series are available for free download from archive.org--a site often linked to the IMDb pages.