WOMEN DETERMINED TO SUCCEED

BARNES, DJUNA CELEBRATED MODERNIST WRITER (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-12-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

Djuna Barnes’s extraordinary career as a journalist and illustrator deserves revisiting primarily because she made an important contribution in the development of 20th century English language modernist writing. She was born in a log cabin in 1892 and lived through the Deco years and became one of the key figures in 1920s and ‘30’s bohemian Paris and fulfilled a similar role in Greenwich Village. Though her upbringing in an unconventional household was fraught with incest, rape and hardship, Barnes developed an outsider’s perspective on ‘normal’ life that served her well as a writer. As a woman determined to succeed much of Barnes’s journalism was subjective and experiential. An early twentieth-century advocate for women’s rights Barnes also wrote interviews, features, theatre reviews, and a variety of news stories, often illustrating them with her own drawings. Left: This satirical drawing of a dandyish Greenwhich Village resident accompanied Barnes's 1916 article "How the Villagers Amuse Themselves." Newspaper Fiction: The New York Journalism of Djuna Barnes, 1913-1919, an exhibition of 45 objects including drawings, works on paper, documentary photographs, and stories in newsprint by the celebrated writer Djuna Barnes will be presented in the Herstory Gallery of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art from January 20 through October 28, 2012 at Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, New York. http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/. GREENWICH VILLAGE Barnes’s liberal sexuality fit in perfectly with the bohemian lifestyle of Greenwich Village and, later, the lesbian expatriate community in Paris. From her first articles in 1913 until her departure for Europe in 1921, she specialized in a type of journalism that was less about current events and more about her observations of the diverse personalities and happenings that gave readers an intimate portrait of her favorite character-New York City. Attempting to capture its transition from turn of the century city to modern metropolis, Barnes developed her unique style of “newspaper fictions,” offering impressionistic observations and dramatizing whatever she felt to be the true significance of subtexts of a story. Prior to publishing the modernist novels and plays for which she is now remembered, such as Ryder (1928), Nightwood (1936) and The Antiphon (1958), which present complex portrayals of lesbian life and familial dysfunction, Barnes supported herself as a journalist and illustrator for a variety of daily newspapers and monthly magazines including the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, McCalls, Vanity Fair, Charm and the New Yorker. THE BOHEMIAN LIFESTYLE In 1915 Barnes moved to a flat in Greenwich Village, where she became part of a thriving Bohemian community of artists and writers counting among her social circle Dadaist artists and poets. One supporter was Guido Bruno, an entrepreneur and promoter of published magazines and chapbooks out of his garret on Washington Square. He was willing to risk prosecution by publishing Barnes’s 1915 collection, The Book of Repulsive Women, with its explicit poetic descriptions of sex between women, at a time when lesbianism was virtually invisible in American culture. Barnes was unusual among Villagers in having been raised with a philosophy of free love, espoused both by her grandmother and her father. She retained sexual freedom as a value and had a number of affairs with both men and women during her Greenwich Village days. PARIS SOJOURN (1921-1930) Barnes first traveled to Paris on assignment for McCall’s Magazine, where she soon became a well-known figure on the local scene; her black cloak and her acerbic wit are remembered in memoirs of the time. She was part of the inner circle of the influential salon hostess, Natalie Barney, who would become a lifelong friend and patron, as well as the central figure in Barnes’s satiric chronicle of Paris lesbian life, Ladies Almanack, which was published under the pseudonym “A Lady of Fashion.” However, the most important relationship of Barnes’s Paris years was with the artist Thelma Wood, a Kansas native who had come to Paris to become a sculptor. Driven by Barnes’s influence Wood took up silverpoint instead, producing animals and plants that one critic compared to Rousseau. By 1922 they moved in together in a flat on the Boulevard Saint-Germain. In 1928 Barnes dedicated Ryder and Ladies Almanack to Thelma Wood the year that both books were published and the year that she and Wood separated. NEW YORK CITY AGAIN Barnes published little journalism in the 30s and was largely dependent on the largesse of the art patron, Peggy Guggenheim. Barnes was constantly ill and drank more heavily. After an attempted suicide Guggenheim funded hospital visits and doctors, but finally lost patience and sent Barnes be back to New York. During her Patchin Place years, Barnes became a notorious recluse. E.E. Cummings, who lived across the street, checked on her periodically, others put roses in her mailbox. It is at this time that Barnes stopped drinking in order to begin work on her verse play The Antiphon, that drew heavily on her own family history, the writing was fueled with anger. Although Barnes had other female lovers, in later years she was known to claim, “I am not a lesbian; I just loved Thelma.” BARNES WAS ELECTED TO THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND LETTERS IN 1961. SHE WAS THE LAST SURVIVING MEMBER OF THE FIRST GENERATION OF ENGLISH-LANGUAGE MODERNISTS WHEN SHE DIED IN NEW YORK IN 1982.

MEIERE, HILDRETH ART DECO MURALIST (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-10-05T08:25:00.000-07:00

If walls could talk what would they say? They would praise the artisitic oeuvre of Hildreth Meiere, who installed a prolific outpouring of works at a hundred public and religious buildings, like Temple Emanu-El, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and St. Bartholomew’s in New York City, and the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D. C. and the Nebraska State Capitol. Her most famous designs are the Art Deco roundels, the plaques Dance, Drama and Song that appear on the 50th Street facade of Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan. For this Art Deco muralist, mosaicist, painter and decorative artist the domes, ceilings, walls, windows and floors of monumental buildings were her canvas. She completed more than 100 commissions which ranged from corporate art to liturgical works. SUCCEEDING AS AN EQUAL In the 1930s Meiere was considered the most famous muralist of the Art Deco style, and probably, the most prolific, in the country. She was a woman determined to succeed and beat the odds against professional success for her sex. She wrote to a friend in 1936, “I’ve worked as an equal with men, and my rating as an equal is all that I value.” Hildreth Meiere (1892-1961) was a woman artist who was able to gain the respect of the greatest muralists and architects of her day. Her finest achievements and artistic installations serve as an inspiration for all women in the fields of creative endeavor. MEIERE’S EDUCATION Achieving recognition as an artist takes many avenues of education and exploration, but foremost is the innate talent that Hildreth possessed. Educated at the Art Students’ League in New York, her hometown, the California School of Fine arts, the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, she sought after the best teachers and studied in Florence, Italy. There she was overcome by the glories of the Renaissance and all that preceded it, and she fell in love with mural painting and the magnificent walls. MEIERE’S OEUVRE It wasn’t long before Meiere’s talent would attract architects. In 1923, architect, Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue hired Meiere to decorate the dome of the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D. C. and her career took off exponentially. She worked on two additional projects for Goodhue, most notably the Nebraska State Capitol’s eight distinctive works, which collectively became her piece de resistance. Meiere collaborated with other architects and craftsmen who executed her creations which reached beyond painted wall murals to include glass and marble mosaics, marble floors, glazed terra-cotta tiles, stained glass and wool tapestries. Her range was astonishing and identified with rich decorative quality.
HILDRETH MEIERE’S BEAUTIFUL ART OF MOSAIC CONTINUES TO BE ENJOYED IN CHURCHES AND PUBLIC BUILDING ACROSS THE COUNTRY. HER RANGE WAS ASTONISHING YET SHE FOUND TIME TO PAINT THE PORTABLE WOODEN ALTAR PIECES PRO BONO FOR MILITARY CHAPLAINS DURING WORLD WAR II. SHE SERVED ON BOARDS OF SEVERAL PROFESSIONAL GROUPS INCLUDING THE ART STUDENTS’ LEAGUE, THE NATIOANAL SOCIETY OF MURAL PAINTERS AND THE LITURGIAL ARTS SOCIETY TO NAME A FEW. IN 1956 SHE WAS THE FIRST WOMAN HONORED WITH THE FINE ARTS MEDAL OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUE OF ARCHITECTS AND THE FIRST WOMAN APPOINTED TO THE NEW YORK ART COMMISSION.

Hildreth Meiere is finally having her overdue recognition. The first thorough exhibition of her work, “Walls Speak: The Narrative Art of Hildreth Meiere,” through June 2012, showcases her work at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts at St. Bonaventure University in Bonaventure, N. Y., near Buffalo. The exhibit "The Narrative Art of Hildreth Meiere," has been extended to 2012 at the National Building Museum in Washington, D. C.

The International Hildreth Meiere Association conducts activities to promote and perpetuate the legacy of Hildreth Meiere. Contact Email: info@hildrethmeiere.com Web: www.hildrethmeiere.com.

NAEGEL, DIANE LYNNE DYNAMIC INNOVATOR (c) By Polly guerin

2011-09-30T09:09:00.000-07:00

There are many stars in the galaxy but one very special individual descended on earth bringing with her innovation, creativity, entrepreneurism and publishing. That star that shined its light in so many endeavors was Dianne Lynne Naegel whose vibrant young life was cut short on Sunday, September 25, 2011, from complications due to breast cancer. At thirty-one Diane accomplished what would take some people a lifetime. She was a woman determined to succeed and did so with such grace, charm and beauty that she could pass through a crowded room and turn heads with her personal style. She was part a modern muse, a Vintage aficionado and Art Deco enthusiast, but always her interpretation was original. Diane Lynne Naegel leaves a legacy of inspiration for others to follow. THE AMAZING INNOVATOR Tributes keep pouring in about the life of this young innovator. Kathryn Hausman, president of the Art Deco Society of New York said, “Diane was a lovely young woman who partnered with her fiancé, Don Spiro, on monthly Wit’s End Deco soirees held around the city and featuring a jazz age celebration of music and dance. On occasion ADSNY offered its membership invitations to special venues. Diane and Don partnered with ADSNY on the Madame Yevonde events last year. Knowing how devoted she was to DECO I had invited her to be on the ADSNY board. In addition, she had a major following with the younger Decophiles and I had hoped to have her bring awareness to her group of ADSNY’s mission.” ZELDA MAGAZINE As publisher and designer of Zelda: A Magazine for the Vintage Nouveau, Diane was a born innovator seeing the magazine through several issues, first issue Fall/Winter 2009, and the most recent issue Spring/Summer 2011, the fifth issue was about to be published at the time of her demise. Hausman adds with gratitude: “She had given ADSNY complimentary full page advertisements in several issues, and for this we were very proud.” Alicia Kachmar said, “She was an amazing woman that no amount of words could truly describe. She was a gem.” Sam Altman: “To know that she was able to touch so many lives during her journey is inspirational.” DESIGNER PAR EXCELLENCE Diane Lynne Naegel was no ordinary gal, she was proprietress of the Internet scarf business Lulette.com for a year before coming to New York to work in the fashion business, and how lucky these companies were to have such talent in their business. Working first at the Gap in the International Division and most recently as Accessory Designer at OshKosh b'gosh Corp., she designed children’s accessories. She was passionate about her work and lent some of her expertise on the Rose Marie Reid swimsuits and modeled her own in the Thrifty Vintage Chic Swimsuit Edition. DIANE, THE EARLY YEARS Diane Lynne Naegel was born August 31, 1980 in Cincinnati, Ohio, the first and only daughter of Sarita Diane Naegel and Mark Robert Naegel. No one would have suspected that from a typical upbringing that she would emerge as the dynamic creative individual that she became. She attended pre-school and grade school at Concordia Lutheran School and high school at St. Ursula Academy, graduating with Honors. Diane studied and worked at the University of Cincinnati, the co-op program of the College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning and graduated with Honors with a degree in Fashion Design 2003. She received several recognition awards: Fashion Mafia Winner of Saks Fifth Avenue Award-outstanding senior and Collection winner of director’s Choice Award for Senior Thesis Collection. New York’s fashion industry as mentioned previously was her next move.
THE LOSS OF SUCH A VIBRANT AND CREATIVE SPIRIT TOUCHES ALL THE LIVES OF THE PEOPLE WHO KNEW HER, NONE MORE SO THAT THAT OF DON SPIRO, DIANE’S FIANCE WHO SAID, “To those who knew and loved her, she would want you to be strong, enjoy every bit of life, and be happy celebrating her memory.”

MAYER, TERRY-FASHION ICON, BELLOLOGIST (c) by Polly Guerin

2011-09-17T12:19:00.000-07:00

Of all the women who have reinvented themselves Terry Mayer, a woman who wore many hats during her storied career, became a fashion authority, a publicist and product innovator. Terry’s meteoric rise to the top echelon of women determined to succeed was accomplished by the sheer magnitude of her prolific outpouring. As a mentor to many women in the fashion industry she helped to elevate other women to achieve their goals and all the time she was the ultimate fashion icon, beautiful, intelligent and a native New Yorker. Terry Mayer quietly and with dignity leaves a vast legacy of original ‘firsts’ that count her among the legends of New York women, the ‘brains’ behind America’s most glamorous period in fashion.
THE LADDER TO SUCCESS Well suited to the fashion culture of New York City when Terry graduated from college she pursued her dream and entered the business world. After landing a job in the publicity/marketing department of Macy’s Department Store she started on a course that would define her life and her career. Vin Draddy, president of David Crystal Co., makers of fine women’s dresses on New York’s Seventh Avenue recognized her talent and appointed Terry the firm’s publicist. She spearheaded the growth of the company’s fashion recognition and worked on the exciting new colorful line of IZOD golf shirts. Terry far exceeded her ambition and decided to break out on her own.
BECOMING TERRY MAYER PUBLICITY Competition was rampant in the fashion publicity but undaunted Terry created many ‘firsts,’ like the Denim Council. At a time when denim was considered utilitarian she promoted denim as fashionable and chic through newsletters and fashion shows. It was at this time that Terry began her awesome collection of ‘Drum Beaters,’ amusing and animated figures and characters that represented the drum beating of publicity. A unique collection it really should be housed in a museum. Terry aligned herself with the international sectors of fashion and was cited for her work on the Inter-American Council promoting Latin American fashion. She also spearheaded the campaign on the Mayor’s Committee to celebrate New York City. In time she participated in many fashion industry organizations and was a founder of The Fashion News Workshop.
A REGULAR AT ‘21’ Terry had great social instinct and knew that being seen and socializing with clients and the fashion cognoscenti was an essential to a successful publicity career. She became a regular patron of ‘21’ the famous restaurant on W. 55 Street and her name was assigned to her regular table, #53. One could find her meeting a client for a drink to gossip and catch up from time to time. Terry once remarked, “I had been going to ‘21’ since the 60s and enjoyed being made a fuss over. That’s what it’s all about. Maybe that’s what life is about.” When a birthday or a career achievement was celebrated at ‘21’ Polly, her chief copywriter at Amos Parrish where Terry was vice president of Fashion, was often a guest. “I never had a meal I did not enjoy,” Polly exclaimed, “For anyone who was in Terry’s orbit she celebrated life and made it a more exciting.” Terry never lacked for admirers and especially when male diners came forward to greet her. The fashion icons of the day included celebrity designers. Even Bill Blass made his way to her table.
BECOMING A BELLOLOGIST If indeed ideas are planted in the very young then Terry’s subconscious mind held a secret. As Terry recalls when she was a little girl, her mother put bells on her shoes, “so I would not get lost around the house." And so it was that after a 30-year career in publicity and public relations and counting her service as president of the Publicity Club of New York, Terry embarked on yet another career designing bell jewelry. As the commentator of a Denim Council fashion show she had blue-jeaned models wear jingling bells around their waists. That sparked an idea and led Terry to take a course in jewelry design at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Eventually her own bells, which she designed as jewelry in the shape of fruits, animals, seashells and sailboats with a tinkling bell found their way into stores like Tiffany & Company and as the bull and bear in the financial district.
THE BELL ASSOCIATION With her enthusiasm and success as a jewelry designer it was inevitable that Terry’s path would lead further into the world of bell collecting. As president of the New York chapter of the American Bell Association International, Terry held regular meetings with sort of “show and tell” sessions among avid bell collectors. The collections discussed included all kinds of bells that have maintained a lofty place in American history, in church towers, pilot houses, locomotives and schoolhouses. Today many museums maintain bell collections including world famous historical collections as well as American glass bells, walking sticks, sleigh bells, bicycle bells and even mother-of-pearl teething rings. Most wonderful and privileged were the New York chapter meetings that were held in the music department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art where historic bells were the main topic on view and discussion. There were ancient bells that lonely shepherds once used to communicate from mountain to mountain as they tended their flocks of sheep and majestic stone temple bells of the Orient that when struck released a different sound message. These meetings were organized through the largesse of Joe Petnick III who passed these treasures among the bell enthusiasts and regaled us with historic stories and legends of the past.
ON A PERSONAL LEVEL TERRY MAYER WAS GENEROUS; SHE WAS KIND AND A CHAMPION OF WOMEN PURSING CAREERS IN THE FASHION, ADVERTISING AND PUBLICITY ARENAS. SMART, ATTRACTIVE AND INNOVATIVE TERRY MAYER WAS ONE OF THE OUTSTANDING WOMEN WHO SUCCEEDED IN THE COMPETITIVE BUSINESS WORLD. WHEN MOST WOMEN WOULD HAVE RETIRED TERRY MAYER REINVENTED HERSELF FROM FASHION PUBLICITY ICON TO JEWELRY DESIGNER. SHE CREATED NEW WORDS, ‘BELLOLOGIST,’ FOR EXAMPLE, TO IDENTIFY WITH HER ROLE AS JEWELRY DESIGNER AND BELL ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT.
THANK YOU TERRY MAYER FOR BEING ONE OF THE MOST ADMIRED AND VENERATED WOMAN OF THE CENTURY.

CAPITMAN, BARBARA BAER, CHAMPION OF ART DECO (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-08-31T09:11:00.000-07:00

When it comes to Art Deco preservation and the woman who founded numerous Art Deco chapters around the country I recognize and honor the memory of an amazing Art Deco woman Barbara Baer Capitman. An intrepid little woman with a colossal personality, Capitman was a pioneer and spearheaded the struggle to save Miami’s colorful Art Deco district. Identifying the architectural value of the 1930s buildings in South Miami Beach she literally put her body on the line to protect deteriorating Art Deco buildings marked for demolition. It is amazing how one person with limited resources yet possessing a powerful goal could change the course of a city’s prosperity so completely and wonderfully. It had a ripple effect through its people and tourism, and gave rise to a greater appreciation of Art Deco style nationwide. Barbara Baer Capitman was a woman determined to succeed and her reputation as the indomitable champion of Art Deco treasures of Miami Beach is revered in the architectural history of our country.
BECOMING A PRESERVATIONIST Leave it to a woman to rally behind a cause and put her whole heart and soul into its realization. After the death of her husband William, at 53 Barbara Capitman became a preservationist she admitted, “To fill the void and as a means of making new friends.” Petite and feisty she attributed her quavery voice, which her detractors frequently mimicked, to the shock of his death. Unfazed by any criticism Barbara pressed on as a preservationist, observing as she did that the 1930s Art Deco buildings in South Beach could be a historic district of 20 century architecture. Although Art Deco is somewhat more whimsical in Miami, the style is exemplified by the Chrysler Building and Radio City Music Hall in New York City, which are the best examples of Art Deco.
THE MIAMI DESIGN PRESERVATION LEAGUE It was inevitable that such a monumental task of saving the Art Deco treasures in South Miami Beach, which Capitman took up unrelentingly, was an insurmountable task alone. Although she began her campaign to create 20th century historic district in Miami Beach in 1975, she no doubt realized that she would need support to back up her preservation goals and in 1976 through Barbara’s efforts and her son John Capitman, The Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL) was formed. The initial impetus for forming The Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL) was to find a project to honor the United States’ bicentennial and in 1977 MDPL was duly incorporated by the State of Florida.
THE FIRST ART DECO WEEK As an incentive to showcase the Art Deco Section of Miami Beach, and hoping to attract locals, tourists and Art Deco aficionados to the area, the first Art Deco Week was held in October 13-19, 1978.Within four years, despite opposition by the Miami Beach city manager and the Chamber of Commerce, Barbara and her Design Preservation League won listings of the mile-square district on the National Register of Historic Places, providing federal tax incentives for restoration. The Miami Beach Historic District popularly referred to as the “Art Deco District” is the only district with 20th century architecture in the register. Art Deco Week continues to be a great attraction and draws visitors worldwide. Today the festival is in its 28th year and attracts upwards of 400,000 over the three-day festival.
MIAMI BEACH ART DECO REVIVAL A born visionary, in the early 1980s it was Capitman’s idea to bring the fashion industry and travel writers to South Miami to see the Art Deco architecture first hand. While it was winter in New York South Beach provided a summer venue for fashion industry professionals and photographers. As an incentive she offered the photographers and press inexpensive rooms in the Art Deco District. Miami Beach became a sensation and advertisements and travel stories worldwide garnered millions of dollars in free advertising as did its fame increase with the hit television series “Miami Vice,” which gave the district more free publicity on a major television network. Today celebrities, the fashion cognoscenti, the curious tourist come to call South Beach their own playground of Art Deco delights. World famous artist and one of the pioneering Art Deco collectors Andy Warhol was among the celebs who visited South Beach and the news generated caused a sensation that brought art-world notoriety to the district.
CHAMPIONING ART DECO No better spokesperson ever existed for Art Deco style than Barbara Baer Capitman. In 1981, at her own expense, she went on a three month nationwide tour driving her small car across the country to tell people about Miami Beach’s historic district and to promote Art Deco style. Her feisty personality and determination to popularize Art Deco was singular achievement which led to preserving nationwide the “decorative arts” style of architecture popular between the two world wars. She personified the genre and instigated the founding of Art Deco Societies around the country including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington D.C., Boston and New York to name a few. Modeled after these societies many others sprung up all over the world, but Miami Beach became the Mecca for Art Deco enthusiasts. Capitman also became the founder of the World Congress on Art Deco, a major conference that is held in a different country every two years. The 11th World Congress on Art Deco met August 14 to August 2o in Rio de Janiero, Brazil, marking the first ever meeting in Latin America. World Congress’ were previously held in New York, Australia, England, New Zealand, Tulsa and South Africa.
THE INDOMITABLE CAPITMAN After Capitman took her celebrated trip around the nation in search of Art Deco treasures the idea for a book inspired her to write Deco Delights, her definitive book on the efforts to save and protect Miami Beach’s famed Art Deco district published in 1988. At the time of her death Capitman was working on a book, “Rediscovering Art Deco U.S.A.,” her final book, but passed away in the midst of the project, on March 29, 1990. The book was completed by co-authors Michael K. Kinerk (an original member of the MDPL) and Dennis W. Wilhelm, who spearhead the Miami Art Deco Society today. The publishing world was her métier for she had worked all her life in the design and publishing, serving as editor of numerous magazines. At the time of her death, she was president of the International Coalition of Art Deco Societies (ICADS), president of Art Deco Society of Miami and counted the Miami Design Preservation League and board member of the metro Dade County Historic Preservation Board among her liaisons.
WHILE MOST OF THE INVESTORS AND BUILDERS WHO RESTORED SOUTH MIAMI’S ART DECO DISTRICT MADE HUGE FORTUNES BARBARA BAER CAPITMAN GARNERED NO FINANCIAL REWARD FOR HER PRESERVATION EFFORTS. FOR CAPITMAN SAVING MIAMI’S COLORFUL ART DECO TREASURES WAS A LABOR OF LOVE. HER SOLE COMMITMENT TO RESCUING ART DECO FROM OBLIVION IN SOUCH BEACH, AND ESTABLISHING SOCIETIES AROUND THE COUNTRY IS A LASTING LEGACY AND A FITTING PROJECT THAT HONORED AMERICA’S ART DECO HERITAGE.

BRANDT MARIANNE, BAUHAUS METALIST (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-06-28T08:41:00.000-07:00

Not to be confused with the Edgar Brandt, modernist, Marianne Brandt, born in Chemnitz in 1893 as Marianne Liebe, became a Bauhaus metalist whose name and design innovations rank among those of Marcel Breuer, Mies van Der Rohe and Walter Gropius. She started out as a painter, studying from 1911 to 1918 at the Hochschule fur Bildende Kunst in Weimar, and did a brief stint as a freelance painter before marrying the Norwegian painter Erick Brandt in 1919. The couple lived in Norway and the South of France until 1922. In 1923 Marianne Brandt and her husband moved to Weimar but Erik Brandt returned alone to Norway the same year although the Brandt’s did not divorce until 1935. Abandoning painting Marianne Brandt destroyed most of her paintings and drawings and at the age of 32, in 1924 she joined the Weimar Bauhaus. She was a woman determined to succeed by breaking through barriers that barred women Marianne Brandt became the first woman to head of the metal workshop at the Weimer Bauhaus in 1928. Brandt’s designs for household objects such as lamps, ashtrays and teapots are considered the harbinger of modern industrial design.

THE BAUHAUS PHILOSOPHY

The famous glass and steel educational complex were Marianne Brandt studied was brilliantly Bauhaus: Form follows function. It became the icon of Modernism, of the International Style. The workshops were the core curriculum, even for master artists and out of them came daily objects at affordable prices. She became a student of Hungarian modernist theorist and designer Laszlo Moholy-Nagy who realized what a talented designer Marianne Brandt was and nurtured her gifts and admitted her to the metalworking workshop. Brandt was one of the few women to have excelled in the man’s world of design. Until her arrival at the Bauhaus, women students had been forced to study ceramics or weaving but thanks to her mentor, Moholy-Nagy, she was the first woman to be admitted into the male bastion of the metal workshops.

QUICK RECOGNITION OF SKILLS

In the metal workshop Marianne quickly rose to the position of workshop assistant. The years 1924-1929 saw Marianne Brandt design numerous utilitarian objects and lamps. She eventually succeeded Moholy as the workshop’s director in 1928 and in the post she negotiated some of the most important Bauhaus contracts for collaborations with industry, launching some of her lamp deigns on a mass-produced basis, mainly for the lighting firm of Korting & Mathiesen in Leipzig and also Schwintzer & Graff in Berlin.

THE TALE OF THE TEAPOT

Perhaps the most stunning of her accomplishments of hand wrought designs is an exceptionally rare silver and ebony tea service which exemplifies the best of the German Bauhaus’s modernist aesthetics and functional ideals. The tea service pictured here rejects ornamentation for simple geometric forms like cylinders, spheres and hemispheres. It also reveals the famed school’s emphasis on function: the push-on lid of the teapot, placed away from the spout, does not drip, and the wood knobs provide heat-resistant grips. The teapot was one of several prototypes designed and made by Brandt, when she was a student, and later a teacher in the Bauhaus metal workshop.

THE TEAPOT AND ITS CREATOR

Brandt made the original prototype in 1924, her first year in the metal workshop, which was then run by the charismatic Hungarian constructionist Laszlo Moholy-Nagy. The design was inspired by Moholy-Nagy’s constructivist style. However, Brandt strove to ensure that the teapot’s form was directly related to its function. Brandt created an abstract sculpture, which at the same time, is a teapot. According to Richard A. Born, senior curator, Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, “The tea service, designed by Marianne Brandt and created by hand in the school’s workshops , consists of tea infuser (pot), creamer, sugar bowl and tray in sterling silver and ebony. The service is firmly set in the tradition of costly craft-based metalworking and was likely intended for a well-heeled clientele receptive to progressive interior design—a point that underscores the limitations of the Bauhaus’s social agenda of mass-produced and affordable domestic items of good design.”

NEW HORIZONS

After leaving the Bauhaus for Berlin in 1929, Brandt was briefly employed by Walter Gropius’ architecture practice in Berlin. She designed mass-produced and modular furniture for the interiors of the public housing project in Karlsruhe-Dammerstock. She subsequently became head of metal design at the Ruppel firm in Gotha, where she remained until losing her job in the midst of the ongoing financial depression in 1932. During the l930s, when Gropius and Moholy and other Bauhauslers fled Nazi Germany, she returned to her hometown of Chemnitz to look after her family.
DERIDED AS A ‘DECADENT’ BAUHAUSLER, MARIANNE BRANDT WAS UNEMPLOYABLE UNDER BOTH THE NAZIS AND THE EAST GERMAN COMMUNISTS AFTER WORLD WAR II. SHE REMAINED ISOLATED ON THE ICY SIDE OF THE IRON CURTAIN UNTIL HER DEATH IN 1983. SOME OF HER BAUHAUS DESIGNS HAVE EVEN GONE INTO PRODUCTION, BUT SADLY NOT THE TEAPOT SERVICE. MARIANNE BRANDT WAS OFTEN OVERLOOKED BUT TODAY SHE IS RECEIVING HER DUE RECOGNITION AS A MAJOR BAUHAUSLER AND CELEBRATED ALONG WITH WALTER GROPIUS, MARCEL BREUER, MIES VAN DER ROHE. SHE WAS A MODERN WOMAN AHEAD OF HER TIME AND BROKE THROUGH THE MALE BASTIAN IN METAL CRAFSMANSHIP IN 1924.

STOWE, HARRIET BEECHER, Anti-Slavery Novelist (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-06-14T07:25:00.000-07:00

Never underestimate the power of the mighty pen. Harriet Beecher Stowe the author of the anti-slavery novel, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” it is said helped prompt the start of the American Civil War. Little did she know that her destiny would be forged in raising awareness of the plight of African-American salves during the 19th century. Harriet Elizabeth “Hattie Beecher was born 200 years ago on June 14, 1811 in Litchfield, Connecticut the sixth of 11 children into a family of powerful and very demanding individuals. The foundation of family values, social service and activism was at the gore of her upbringing. She was a woman progressive in her values and ideals and was determined to succeed. In an era when most women were not formally educated she and her sisters were educated and devoutly Christian. All of her brothers like their father, Lyman Beecher, a fiery, Evangelical Calvinist, became ministers and her sisters were both pioneers in advancing women’s education and voting rights. Harriet choose to do it through the powerful written words of activism.
AN AUTHOR EMERGES In 1832 Harriet’s family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, when her father was made the president of the Lane Theological Seminary. It was at this time that Harriet made her first attempts at writing fiction and her writing career was well underway with the publication of two novels before her marriage in 1836 to theology professor Calvin Stowe. The couple opposed slavery and was active in the abolitionist movement and housed runaway slaves from the south and assisted the Underground Railroad. During this time they had seven children but it was the death of her toddler child that inspired Stowe to write about slavery. With a mother’s heart torn by the loss of her child she sympathized with the slave mothers who were forced to give up their children to be sold. She also had the opportunity to visit the South and observed the operation of the slave system there. The riveting details of this trip further fueled her pen.
UNCLE TOM’S CABIN Harriet’s husband Calvin Stowe was called to a position at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine where Harriet set about writing Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The action of the book traces the passage of the slave Uncle Tom through the hands of three owners, each meant to represent a type of Southern figure, the last being the wicked Simon Legree, who causes the death of Uncle Tom. The successful dash for freedom taken by Georg and Eliza is the high point of the book. The story was first conceived as installments and appeared in serial form from 1851 to 1852 in the National Era, a Washington, D.C. anti-slavery newspaper. Harriet wrote more than 40 installments but the book was published in 1852 in a two-volume edition by the house of John P. Jewett. It sold three hundred thousand copies in its first year and a best seller worldwide.
WILD CRITICISM ERUPTED In the North there were universal charges that the world of the slave had been misrepresented and in the South retaliation hit the newspapers in a flood of criticism. Stowe answered her critics in 1853 with “A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” to document the facts in the novel. Harriet also responded to her success by traveling and lecturing widely, receiving her just due and praise in England and in Europe. She never lacked a devoted and enthusiastic American audience and in 1862 when she was introduced to President Abraham Lincoln, he is said to have exclaimed, “So this is the little lady who started our big war!”
Harriet Beecher Stowe published more than 30 books in her lifetime but she is best known for a crusading sense of social and political responsibility. Uncle Tom’s Cabin remains a classic product of the culture of her time and made her one of the most widely known American women wrtiers of the 19th century. In later life she returned to her home state, where she died on July 1, 1896 at age 85 in Hartford, Connecticut.

Duff Gordon, "Lady Lucile" One of the First Couturiers (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-06-07T13:43:00.000-07:00

Who would have thought that in a male-dominated fashion world of the, 1900s Lucy Christina Sutherland would emerge as the designer, “Lucile,” a couture designer of international prestige. Born in 1863, she and her sister, the future romantic novelist Elinor Glyn, were pioneers who paved the way determined to succeed beyond expectations of women of their era. She survived a lackluster childhood in Canada and the Isle of Jersey, legal actions and business reversals and assorted marital problems the magnitude of such that would have challenged any modern woman to give up. Not, Lucile, she was independent and resourceful, but sadly she is unfortunately immortalized as the cold, imperious woman who, with her husband, Sir Cosmo, survived the terrible ending of the maiden voyage of the Titanic. However, Lucile is a powerful and unforgettable woman in history of fashion. Nonetheless, through her imagination and talent, she helped to lay the foundation for today’s couture and ready-to-wear markets, and the impact of fashion on society. DESIGNING WOMAN In 1884 Lucy married a well-heeled but eccentric alcoholic Scot, James Stuart Wallace who after several years of marriage abandoned Lucy and their young daughter Esme to a life of genteel poverty. In a move that presaged her innate audacity and independence, Lucy separated from and then divorced Wallace and moved to London. After a stint of dressmaking at home, the self-reliant Lucy started out in 1890 by dressmaking for her friends. It was the era of Aestheticism and her clients hoped to appear “artistic” and Lucy was ready for the task. She designed what she called “personality dresses” which allowed each woman’s individuality to shine. THE HOUSE OF ‘LUCILE’ Lucy’s fashions were utterly different and like Poiret, she honed in on what women craved in their attire producing romantic, sensual gowns, innovative at the time, such as draped skirts that revealed the legs. Utterly feminine lingerie was full of the frou-frou, silks and lace so popular during the Edwardian era. Her specialty was picturesque tea gowns in diaphanous layers of pastel silk called, “dream dresses” with names like “Birth of Venus,” worn unrestricted with mild corsetry. Her success blossomed and she opened her fashion house, Maison Lucile in 1890. Like Charles Frederick Worth Lucile held mannequin parades. However, she created over the top fashion shows into a stage productions, complete with mood-lighting, music, little gifts and programs. Customers were invited to watch the catwalk sipping tea and cookies while Lucile announced her ‘emotional gowns’ which were influenced by literature, history and the personality of her clients. The models were gorgeous, statuesque and beautiful and became sought-after as Gaiety Girls. EXPANDING LUCILE HORIZONS Lucile was becoming quite a wealthy woman. In 1903 her business was incorporated as “Lucile, Ltd” and she took on Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff Gordon, a dashing aristocrat as a partner in a shrewd business move. They married in Venice in 1900 and Sir Cosmo's keen business sense helped Lucile to expand her horizons. She opened branches in New York and Chicago. Despite French colleague warnings, “Nobody but a Frenchwoman knows how to dress,” her Paris Maison was prosperous. Madame Lucile was a keen business woman and licensed her name to Sears, Roebuck & Co. for a two-season lower-priced, mail-order fashion line. Lucile was on a high and began writing a weekly column for the New York Examiner. She also designed for the entertainment world designing costumes that became famous fashions, such as those for Lily Elsie, star of the smash-it operetta, The Merry Widow, the brightest light of the 1907 season and the large picture hat reminiscent of those of the 1780s, swept though fashionable society. Lucile also counted among her private clients the actress Sarah Bernhardt and the dancer Irene Castle. LEGAL ACTION and LUCILE In 1917 Lucile was embroiled in the case Wood v. Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon, wherein the Judge stripped her of the use of her own name after she contracted the sole right to market her name to her advertising agent. Shortly thereafter the House of Lucile began to collapse. By pre-WWI the name Lucile and the inspiration of its namesake designer were considered old-fashioned and démodé. Unable to adjust to changing fashion sensibilities and suffering from financial difficulties Lucile folded by the end of the 1920s. However, Lady Duff Gordon remained influential as a fashion columnist but her former success proved elusive. After penning her florid and discreet memoirs, Discretions and Indiscretions, in 1932, Lady Duff Gordon died three years later at the age 71. ABOUT THE TITANIC Urgent business required Lucile to travel with haste and although she had been reluctant to sail on the first crossing of the Titanic her fears were overcome when the booking agent reassured her, “Why the boat is absolutely unsinkable.” Lucile’s concerns were not without merit for as history tells the Titanic struck an iceberg on April 14, 1912. Legend has it that the Duff Gordon’s made their way onto Lifeboat 1, which could have accommodated 40 people, but held only 12 passengers when lowered into the water. The actions of Duff Gordon were viewed with suspicion when it was revealed that he tried to bribe the oarsmen to ignore drowning passengers as the boat that he and Lucy were in rowed swiftly away from the wreckage. She further drew the ire of her fellow passengers by complaining about her ruined nightdress when other people were dying. However, later in London, an official inquiry pronounced the charges unfounded.
LUCY DUFF GORDON IS A POWERFUL & UNFORGETTABLE WOMAN IN THE HISTORY OF FASHION. SHE WAS THE FIRST BRITISH DESIGNER TO ACHIEVE INTERNATIONAL RENOWN AND THE ACKNOWLEDGED INNOVATOR IN COUTURE STYLES, THE ORIGINATOR OF THE ‘MANNEQUIN PARADE,’ AND THE TRAINING OF THE FIRST PROFESSIONAL MODELS. SHE LIBERATED WOMEN WITH SLIT SKIRTS, LOW NECKLINES AND LESS RESTRICTIVE CORSETS. SHE DRESSED TREND-SETTING CLIENTELE OF ROYALTY, NOBILITY, AND STAGE & FILM PERSONALITIES, AND FOR ONE WONDERFUL PERIOD IN FASHION EVERY WOMAN WANTED TO WEAR A LUCILE GOWN. Lady Duff Gordon said, “PUT EVEN THE PLAINEST WOMAN INTO A BEAUTIFUL DRESS AND UNCONSCIOUSLY SHE WILL TRY TO LIVE UP TO IT.”

LANDON, LETITIA ELIZABETH A Literary Celebrity (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-05-14T05:08:00.000-07:00

Although Letitia Elizabeth Landon, is relatively unknown today, the work of this beautiful, young English poetess and novelist of the late Georgian and early Victorian period is resurfacing with fascinated interest and feminist criticism has given critical interpretation of her work another perspective. She was born (1802-1838) into the lower middle class, only to become in her teenage years, a published poet, and eventually the most successful poet of her day. Her verse reveals a highly intelligent and emotional intensity. She wrote of passionate love at a time when women were conventionally restricted in their themes making her the favorite among the literary intelligentsia, known to her devoted readers as simply L.E.L. Her success as a young single woman carving out an independent career in the tough arena of literary London in the 1830’s recognizes her as a gentle woman determined to succeed beyond her dreams. Landon’s body of work is an impressive achievement but her mysteriously scandalous life and early death is once again being scrutinized. . THE SCANDAL OF LITERARY ENGLAND Landon’s writing observed today exerts a powerful fascination in the vividness and musicality of her distinctive voice. Her typical themes are about “Sorrow, Beauty, Love and Death.” The influential London periodical, the Literary Gazette began publishing her poetry at the age of seventeen. It is rumored that she had a long-term illicit affair with an older, married neighbor who is also the editor who published her first poem. The gossip mongers and letters circulated among London's social set about Landon and her lifestyle. When she escapes to the countryside every few years the rumors circulate: “Is it to bear his illegitimate children?” Rising above the tide of criticism she wrote movingly of romance and continued to partake in her high-spirited social life. LANDON’S PROLIFIC OEUVRE Landon’s voluminous publications are now again in print and renewed recognition of Landon’s impressive achievement may be due in part to the largess of the exhibit, "The World of Letitia Elizabeth Landon: A Literary Celebrity of the 1830s," which showcased at the Grolier Club in New York in 2011 with manuscripts, first editions, prints, photos and other materials, which illuminated the life and art of this outstanding British writer. Today Landon is attracting attention for her unbridled success as a poet and novelist. Her oeuvre was prolific. THE POETESS and NOVELIST In the eight years that followed the publication of Landon's first volume of verse in 1821, it and the eight collections that followed were extremely popular. Landon wrote reviews, articles, and stories for many London journals. In 1824 her volume of romantic narrative poems, "The Improvisatrice," became a major best seller. In 1831 Landon published her three-decker novel, "Romance and Reality," followed by successful historical novels, Francesca Carrara (1834), and Ethel Churchill (1837). Landon’s celebrity was widespread and her writings were translated into French, German, and Dutch, and distributed widely from Paris to St. Petersburg. She was no shrinking violet. Famous writers who counted among her admirers included Hawthorne, Whittier, Poe and many other prominent American authors. MARRIAGE AND MYSTERIOUS DEATH The subject of Landon’s romances is both mysterious and questionable. After the scandal of her teenage romance with a married man, her first editor, she later was engaged to one man or another, only to have those engagements broken by rumors. Why Landon finally chose to marry a man who would take her to far off Africa is yet another mystery. In 1838 Landon married George Maclean, a colonial official, possibly an abusive man, who sweeps her away to Cape Coast, West Africa (in present-day Ghana), where the lonely, often ailing, poetess is found with a vial of prussic acid in her hand, slumped against her bedroom door. Mysteriously dead at the age of 36, the question still remains. Is it by her own hand? Did she administer the elixir as a medicine, was it an accident? suicide? or was it murder? The answer is still pondered, but conjecture suggests that Landon was taking the prussic acid to soothe a stomach ailment.
Letitia Elizabeth Landon wrote movingly and delicately of ‘romance.’ Her vast body of work: poetry, her novels and her life are, once again, being scrutinized. Landon had much to say about life and love. In one of her famous quotes she says it all, “Delicious tears! The heart’s own dew.”

CONE, CLARIBEL and ETTA Art Connoisseurs (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-05-06T07:56:00.000-07:00

Henri Matisse fondly called them “My two Baltimore ladies,” and for good reason as the patronage of Matisse by the Cone sisters was a paramount reason for his celebrity. As daughters of prosperous German-Jewish immigrants, the Cone sisters, Claribel and Etta, were supported in their connoisseur art quest by their family’s successful textile business, Cone Mills Corporation, a firm that became widely recognized for producing the fabrics for the fashion industry. The Cone sisters were well-educated and widely traveled independent modern women who were determined to succeed. They found in modern art an emblem of their own independence. Together the sisters amassed one of the finest collections of modern French art in the United States, discovering as they did Pablo Picasso an unknown at the time. Claribel and Etta had the foresight and generosity to envision their extraordinary array of art worlds in a public institution and bequeathed their collection of legendary masterpieces to the Baltimore Museum of Art.
THE GERTRUDE STEIN CONNECTION
With the financial means and important social connections the two wealthy, cultured Cone sisters became world travelers and art collectors. Always, impeccably dressed in ruffled collars and layered petticoats, they immersed themselves in the swirl of Parisian bohemian life and became enmeshed in the excitement of new art and ideas and fell in love with modern art. In Paris, Claribel and Etta spent time with the doyenne of the Parisian avant-garde, Gertrude Stein, and her brother Leo, who influenced their collection. In 1905, Etta went with Gertrude, another Baltimorean, by adoption, to the run-down studio of a young, unknown artist named Pablo Picasso and, on impulse, bought an etching. It was the first purchase of what turned out to be a vast, decades-long art shopping spree. By the time Etta bought her last Picasso 44 years later, she and her older sister, Claribel, had filled their Baltimore apartment with some 3,000 art objects, textiles and decorative arts, which they had acquired from their travels across Europe and expeditions to Africa and Asia. The Steins also introduced them to Henri Matisse at the Salon d’Automne. Tough decried by the critiques for his bright, vividly hued paintings, Etta was intrigued by Matisse’s work and made her first of many visits to the artist’s studio. Etta was close to the entire Matisse family and maintained an ongoing correspondence with the painter as well as his daughter Marguerite and his son Pierre, an art dealer in New York. Ever a devoted patron, she wrote to him, “Of course, I want to do everything I can to add to your father’s fame.” Throughout the years, however, the sisters became friends of both artists.
LEGENDARY MASTERPIECES
Claribel and Etta seem to have had an insatiable desire for shopping, browsing in Parisian lace and button shops, and going to opera, socializing with friends, and buying art at an astonishing rate. And they kept separate records. Legendary masterpieces included Matisse’s “Blue Nude” (1907), Gauguin’s “Woman with a Mango (1892) and Cezanne’s “Mount Sainte-Victoire Seen from the Bemus Quarry (circa 1897). Claribel acquired paintings by Pissarro, Sisley and Van Gogh; Etta purchased works by Degas, Rodin, both bought Cezanne, Renoir, and more than twenty works by Matisse. Most of the art collected are images of women including Matisse’s 1929 The Yellow Dress, which shows a woman centered in her own world, very much like the Cone sisters’ independent penchant. In his 1937 Purple Robe and Anemones, a woman in a purple dress sits in a room in a classic Matisse interior filled with patterned rugs, screens, flowery drapes and vases of flowers. The Cone sisters collected art because they loved it and lived in two adjoining apartments in Baltimore.
THE BALTIMORE LADIES
Claribel Cone (1864-1929) and Etta Cone (1870-1949) grew up in a large, close-knit German Jewish family of twelve children. Their father, Herman Cone (Kahn before he immigrated to America) owned a wholesale grocery business which afforded the family with a comfortable lifestyle. However, it was the investment of Herman’s two eldest sons, Moses and Ceasar, in the textile business, The Cone Mills Corporation that made the family wealthy. The brother’s support of their two unmarried sisters enabled Claribel and Etta to devote their lives to collecting masterpieces of modern art. Claribel pursued a medical degree, an unusual path in the late nineteenth century America. Etta was content to stay in her elder sister’s shadow, becoming the family caretaker and spending her time studying music, French and art. There were no early signs that the Cones would develop a taste for modern art but there interests in collection art, textiles and objects were eclectic.
Claribel and Etta Cone were wealthy socialites but they had Yankee spirit and were blessed with excess capital and the leisure pursuit to collect the finest collections of Modern Art in the United States. Considering their accomplishment, the amassing of the Cone Collection, is reason enough to admire two women determined to succeed, who sharpened and refined their collective eye and put Baltimore on the map.

DAY, DOROTHY Founder of the Catholic Worker Movement (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-04-28T07:22:00.000-07:00

Throughout Dorothy Day’s life she searched for a purpose in life and found it in the social reform movement in the 1930s. Day worked closely with fellow activist Peter Maurin to establish the newspaper, The Catholic Worker Movement, a nonviolent pacifist movement that continues to combine direct aid for the poor and homeless with nonviolent action on their behalf. Even before she left university Dorothy Day (1897-1980) became a part of the pre-World War I American youth rebellion against the conventions of their parents. She and her friends wanted to create a new and freer society. Dorothy Day was a women determined to succeed counting among her achievements a career as an American journalist, a social activist and as a devout Catholic convert she advocated the Catholic economic theory of distribution.
ADRIFT IN JOURNALISM
The seeds of rebellion were planted early on. She worked for the successor journal to Masses, The Liberator, and a magazine that opposed American involvement in the European war. The post office rescinded the magazine’s mailing permit and five editors were charged with sedition. An activist at heart in 1917 Day went to prison for being one of 40 women in front of the White House protesting women’s exclusion from the electorate. Assigned to a rural workhouse, the women were roughly handled. Finally they were freed by presidential order. Working as a reporter for the New Orleans item in 1922-1923 she wrote and published a commercial successful, partly auto-biographical novel, The Eleventh Virgin (1924), which revealed the great tragedy of her life, an abortion, which resulted from a love affair with a journalist.
A COMMON-LAW MARRIAGE
With the money garnered from the success of the novel Day moved back to New York and using the money from the sale of the movie rights for the novel she bought a beach cottage on Staten Island. She resumed contact with the city’s intellectuals and wrote occasionally pieces for the new Masses. At the same time (1924) she began a four-year common-law marriage with Forster Batterham, an English botanist she had met through friends. There’s was a short-lived alliance. Primarily because they shared conflicting views on life. Batterham was an anarchist opposed to marriage and religion. In a world of such cruelty, he found it impossible to believe in a God. Day’s belief in God, on the other hand, was unshakable. “How can there be no God, “she asked, “when there are all these beautiful things?”
SWEPT INTO ACTION
Her pregnancy with Batterham created a split with her common-law husband, who did not believe it wise to bring a child into this troubled world. On March 3, 1927, Tamar Teresa Day was born and Day quickly had her baptized in the Catholic Church resulting in a permanent break with Batterham. She eventually moved to Mexico City, where Day and her daughter lived on the edge of poverty. The same summer she returned to the United States on the onset of the Great Depression which swept her into the movement for social reform. It was at this time that she met Peter Maurin, a former French Christian Brother and social agitator, who convinced Day that that radical social reform and the Roman Catholic Church could be united.
BIRTH OF THE CATHOLIC WORKER
Surrounded by people in need and attracting volunteers Day’s apartment was the first location of the Catholic Worker and the seed of many houses of hospitality for the homeless to come. During the Great Depression, when no government services existed the Catholic Worker became a national movement and by 1936 thirty-three hospitality houses, havens for the houses spread across the country. For the next 50 years the Catholic Worker Movement was at the forefront of all Catholic reform efforts. In 1965 many Catholic Workers went to prison for refusing to cooperate with conscription, others took part in protests and many went to prison for civil disobedience. Day herself was jailed in 1973 for taking part in a banned picket line to support of farm workers. She was 73.
DOROTHY DAY LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO SEE HER ACHIEVEMENTS HONORED. IN 1967, SHE WAS RECEIVED BY POPE PAUL VI AND NOTRE DAM UNIVERSITY PRESENTED HER WITH ITS ‘LAETARE MEDAL,’ THANKING HER FOR COMFORTING THE AFFLICTED. MOTHER TERESA OF CALCUTTA VISITED HER AS DID MANY OTHER DIGNITARIES. DAY FOUND HERSELF REGARDED BY MANY AS A SAINT BUT SHE DECLARED, “If I have achieved anything in my live, it is because I have not been embarrassed to talk about God.” In 2000 the Vatican began the process of considering Dorothy Day for sainthood.

RAND, AYN of Atlas Shrugged Fame (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-04-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

The firs time I saw the movie Fountainhead, a modern epic of gigantic proportions both by content and visual presentation, I was captivated by the story of the romantic and philosophical story of an uncompromising young architect named Howard Roark. This was the kind of hero whose depiction was the chief goal of Ayn Rand’s writing: the ideal man and his struggle against “second handers”-- those who attempt to live through others, placing others above self. The book itself, which Rand wrote over a period of seven years, was rejected by twelve publishers before finally being accepted by Bobbs-Merrill Company. But it became a worldwide success and in 1943 Rand sold the rights for the film version to Warner Brothers. Ayn Rand, a woman determined to succeed; a woman who today is called to the fore of public attention with the release of the movie, Atlas Shrugged is resurrected, so to speak, into the public consciousness.
TWO FAMOUS NOVELS
Two famous best-selling novels define the Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright and screen writer. The Fountainhead gained for its author lasting recognition as a champion of individualism. Atlas Shrugged, published in 1957, was her greatest achievement and her magnum opus. The plot of Atlas Shrugged involves a dystopian United States in which the most creative industrialists, scientists and artists go on strike and retreat to a mountain hideaway where they build an independent free economy. With this fictional strike Rand intended to illustrate that without the efforts of the rational and productive, the economy would collapse and fall apart. In it John Galt the novel’s hero delivers a lengthy monologue containing Rand’s most extensive statement of Objectivism. The publication of this novel of more than one thousand pages ended her career as a novelist and began her role as a popular philosopher.
THE PHILOSOPHER EMERGES
Rand is also recognized for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism, which she characterized as “a philosophy for living on earth.” Her philosophy of living on earth has changed the lives of thousands of readers and launched a philosophic movement with growing impact on American culture. In 1958 Nathaniel Branden established the Nathaniel Branden Lectures, later incorporated as (NBI) Nathaniel Branden Institute, to promoted Rand’s philosophy Rand expressed opinions on a wide range of topics including music, literature, sexuality and some of her followers mimicked all her preferences, wearing clothes to match the characters from her novels. Some describing NBI or the entire Objectivist movement as a cult or religion.
BORN TO MAKE HER MARK
Ayn Rand, Alisa Zinov’yevna Rosenbaum was born on February 2, 1905 in St. Petersburg, Russian Empire. During her formative years she was educated in Russia and was eyewitness to both the Kerensky Revolution, which she supported, and in 1917 the Bolshevik Revolution which she denounced from the outset. In late 1925 she obtained permission to leave Soviet Russia for a visit to relatives in the United States and arrived in New York in 1926 and did not return to Russia. She worked as a screenwriter in Hollywood and sold her first screenplay, “Red Pawn,” to Universal Pictures in 1932 and saw her first stage play, Night of January 16th, produced in Hollywood and then on Broadway. We Are Living, her first novel, was based on her years under Soviet Tyranny. She died on March 6, 1982 (aged 77) in New York City.
RAND’S POLITICAL VIEWS EMPHASIZED INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS, INCLUDING PROPERTY RIGHTS AND LAISSEZ-FAIRE CAPITALISM ENFORCED BY A CONSTITUTIONALLY LIMITED GOVERNMENT. HER VIEWS REFLECTED IN BOTH HER FICTION AND NONFICTION WORK. THE NEW FILM, ATLAS SHRUGGED I IS CURRENTLY PLAYING IN New York MOVIE THEATERS.

ARDEN, ELIZABETH Cosmetic Empire Visionary (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-04-09T06:52:00.000-07:00

An invitation to Elizabeth Arden’s Red Door on New York’s Fifth Avenue was my introduction to the pampered world of a luxurious spa and cosmetic beauty regime. The chic Red Door saleswomen or the ‘Ladies’ as some women called them, were immaculately dressed in black sheath dresses, their hair impeccably coiffured and makeup so precise that their personae made it clear that beauty could be obtained for a price. Elizabeth Arden’s brand name was synonymous with a woman determined to succeed, a woman who built a cosmetics empire in the United States that at the peak of her career, she was one of the wealthiest women in the world. FAME IN A NAME Arden was destined for remarkable destiny. Her middle name ‘Florence Nightingale’ was popular choice at the time, honoring as it did the renowned Florence Nightingale of nursing fame. Florence was born on December 31, 1884 in Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada and was named Florence Nightingale Graham. This name may very well have influenced her career choice as she took up nursing at a school in Toronto but later dropped out. Spreading her wings and looking for a new path she ventured to the United States and joined her brother in New York City where she worked briefly for the E. R. Squibb Pharmaceuticals Company; spending hours in the lab she began to learn about skincare. The steps leading to her life as a cosmetic tycoon had its fledgling beginning as a ‘treatment girl’ working for Eleanor Adair, an early beauty culturist.

BECOMING ARDEN Learning as she did along the way through association with other culturists, in 1909 Florence partnership with Elizabeth Hubbard, and when the partnership dissolved, she coined the business name from her former partner’s first name and from Tennyson’s poem “Enoch Arden,” and so Elizabeth Arden was born. Arden presented herself to the business and social society as an elegant woman, meticulous dressed and always a ‘Lady.’ She traveled to France to the Mecca of beauty intelligentsia and returned with a collection of rouges and tinted powders she had created. In an era when it was generally only acceptable for entertainers to wear makeup the forward thinking Arden introduced the concept of the “makeover to American women in her salons. A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH Arden’s early lab experience no doubt greatly influenced her scientific approach to her cosmetic formulas. Case in point. Arden collaborated with A. Fabian Swanson, a chemist, to create a “fluffy” face cream called, Venetian Cream Amoretta, and the corresponding lotion, Arden Skin Tonic. “Total Look” was another innovation in which she advocated matching lip, cheek and nail polish colors; coordinated thus this marketing concept meant that a woman would make a three part sale. Another ‘first,’ as there were many, included the fact that Arden was the first to make cosmetics commercials shown in movie houses. Always in step with changing times during WWII the Arden Salon showed women entering the work force how to apply makeup and dress properly for careers outside the home. With her acute awareness of women in the armed forces she created a lipstick called Montezuma Red that would match the red in their uniforms. WORLDWIDE EXPANSION The Elizabeth Arden brand had escalated into a formidable empire which began expanding internationally in 1915, when Arden opened salons across the world all of which she launched personally. By the 1930s through the 1960’s Elizabeth Arden was considered the most upscale cosmetic brand and acquired celebrated patrons from queens to movie stars and president’s wives. IN FULL GALLOP Wealth and prestige heaped upon her empire Arden indulged in her favorite pastime and used the name Maine Chance Farm for her thoroughbred horse racing and breeding operation in Lexington, Kentucky. The association with the blue grass Kentucky land may well have inspired the introduction of the perfume, Blue Grass in 1934, which was a great success. Considered the first all-American scent, it remains on the market today. By the 1940s her stable became a major force in American Thoroughbred horse racing. Among her winners in 1947 her colt Jet Pilot, trained and ridden by future hall of Famers Tom Smith and Eric Guerin won the Kentucky Derby. Other fillies followed and for her contribution to the racing industry, Elizabeth Arden Graham was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2003. ELIZABETH ARDEN’S LEGACY Elizabeth Arden’s cosmetics company continues to trade today, and was bought by IFF International Flavors and Fragrances in 2003. The company continues its collection of coordinated make-up sets, as well as an extensive line of skin care products and treatments. The focus today, however, is on a number of fragrance lines including the company’s signature fragrance called, “Red Door” named after the day spas which were called “Elizabeth Arden Red Door Salons.” Elizabeth Arden lived a rich and rewarding life dying at 81 years old on October 18, 1966 and is buried in Sleepy Hallow Cemetery under the name Elizabeth N. Graham. Sadly towards the end of her life, Arden did not prepare the company for her passing and as a result, her company and private estate was heavily taxed after her death. Her stable was sold and her family had to auction off many of her personal assets. Fortunately, Elizabeth Arden's famed Red Door is still open to women today.

BEACH, Amy Marcy Cheney Foremost Female Composer (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-03-31T16:40:00.000-07:00

There are children who come into the world with a talent so extraordinary at such an early age that they are recognized as a child prodigy. Such is the amazing case of Amy Marcy Cheney, the American composer and pianist, who was immensely talented and largely self-taught. Imagine the wonder of it all. She was able to sing forty tunes accurately by age one and by age two she could improvise a countermelody to any melody her mother sang. As young as she was the seeds of determination to succeed took shape and later in life she developed a significant performing career. She taught herself to read at age three, began composing simple waltzes at the age of four and performed publicly at age seven. Many talented prodigies fizzle out when they mature but not Amy Marcy Cheney. She became the first successful American female composer of large-scale art music and composed copiously throughout her life. Amy March Cheney (Amy Beach) remains one of the foremost female composers of her time. THE FLEDGLING ARTIST Amy was born in Henniker, New Hampshire September 5, 1867 into a distinguished New England family that nurtured the precocious child’s talent. She began formal piano lessons with her mother at the age of six, and a year later started giving public recitals, playing works by Handel, Beethoven, Chopin and her own pieces. Inspired by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem,”The Rainy Day,” the young composer at thirteen wrote her first published song. She was immensely talented and largely self-taught and during her lifetime she composed over 100 songs including the Three Browning Songs, OP. 44. In particular the delightful song “The Year’s at the Spring” proved enduringly popular. FORMAL STUDIES With such a precocious child further musical training was paramount to her development. In 1875, Amy’s family moved to Boston, where they were advised to enter her into a European conservatory. Because her parents could not afford to send her abroad she received local training in Boston, but was primarily self-taught learning orchestration from a treatise by Berlioz and counterpoint by writing out figures from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. Prepared as she was beyond her years, in 1883, at age sixteen, she made her professional debut as a pianist. Later she became a soloist with the Boston Sympathy Orchestra. BECOMING MRS. H.H.A.BEACH At eighteen, Amy could almost certainly have made a brilliant career merely as a concert pianist, but she married Dr. Henry Harris Aubrey Beach, a prominent Boston physician who was 25 years her senior and from then on most of her compositions and performances, were under the name Mrs. H.H.A. Beach. Much to his credit and influence he encouraged her to limit public appearances and concentrate instead on composition (she later returned to the platform following his death in 1910). Her first major success was the mass in E-flat major, which was performed by the Handel and Haydn Society in 1892. Finding inspiration in Romanticism and the European folk music tradition of her New England ancestors, she composed copiously including Gaelic Symphony in E Minor, OP. 32 in which she turned to the Celtic folk tradition which incorporates Irish melodies. It was the first symphony by an American composer to gather significant attention in Europe. Beach composed the Jubilate for the Women’s Building at the World’s Columbian Exhibition, held in Chicago in 1893. AN INDEPENDENT WOMAN After Dr. Beach’s death Mrs. Beach resumed her career as a performer, changed her professional name to Amy Beach and embarked on a three year tour of Europe. She returned to the United States in 1914 later moved to New York which she became the virtual composer-in-residence at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church. She wrote most of her later works while visiting the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire including her two famous piano pieces, “The Hermit Thrush at Eve and “The Hermit Thrust at Morning.” When she died of heart failure in 1944, she left the rights to her music to the MacDowell Colony. Amy Beach’s output was prolific and covered all the major genres. Piano Concerto, OP. 45, for example, is a large-scale bravura masterpiece in the manner of contemporary late-Romantic concertos. Three of the four movements are based on material from Beach’s own songs. Amy Beach used her status as the pre-eminent American woman composer to further the careers of young musicians, serving as leader of several organizations, including the Society of American Women Composers as its first president. In Boston her name was added to the famous Hatch Shell and is the only woman composer on that granite wall. She received numerous honors and was inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 24, 1999.

HOLT, Winifred and Edith, LIGHTING THE WAY (c) by Polly Guerin

2011-03-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

When you are the daughters of the renowned publisher, Henry Holt, the Misses Winifred and Edith Holt might just as well have carried on as any proper heiress was expected to and lead a life of social pleasure. However, the Holt sisters were of that fine breed of American women that break down barriers and forge ahead as women determined to succeed in making the world a better place for people without sight. In the 1900s the problem of helping the blind in New York City was long in waiting for an intelligent solution but no program had been established. The pioneering Holt sisters, however, take their rightful place as the founders who facilitated that solution. Their humble goal became the Lighthouse International, an organization recognized for its pioneering work in vision, rehabilitation services, education, research and advocacy which enabled people of all ages who are blind or partially sighted to lead independent and productive lives.
A SERENDIPITOUS EVENT
The custom of the day for taking the ‘grand tour’ was on the Holt sisters’ agenda. During a concert in Florence, Italy, Winifred noticed a group of blind school children in the audience who were evidently enthralled with the music. Intrigued by their participation she investigated further and discovered that a free ticket program enabled the children to attend the concert. Inspired by such a simple solution to bring pleasure to blind individuals when the Holt sister returned home they established the Lighthouse Free Ticket Bureau in 1903. Their single thought was that like the Florence ticket service they might relieve the somber lives of the blind by procuring tickets from entertainment managers or their own friend’s tickets for concerts and operas and theaters. The ticket service went on for some time, but the sisters also became increasingly aware of the world of adults who were blind and their greater purpose that was unfolding.
FOUNDING THE FIRST LIGHTHOUSE
The Holt sisters pooled their resources and borrowed $400 from their dress allowances, which was a considerable sum at the time. The visionary sisters personally gave over their family brownstone at 44 East 78th to the work for the blind, installing clerks, stenographers, and other helpers for the larger work in their hands for all those in need. Their home became a hub of workers engaged in advancing the interests and education of the blind in many ways. In order to facilitate the program of training and educating the blind the sisters themselves studied the blind alphabet with blindfolded eyes in order to understand the difficulties of learning the various demands on blind persons to perform tasks. The blind men and women were given work to do and how to do it. Women were trained to create handcraft items. If a seamstress had lost her sight she was shown how to thread a needle and how to use a studded tape. The blind showed a remarkable ability with the typewriter and other pursuits, for which they are trained before they are gainfully employed. A workshop for blind men was established at 147 E. 42nd Street, where chairs were caned and brooms were made for house and factory use and other marketable items.
LEGISLATION AT LAST
The Lighthouse organized the first census of people who were blind in New York State resulting in the astonishing number totaling nearly 10,000 cases. Furthering the sisters’ research, after many efforts, in 1904 a legislative commission was formed to investigate the conditions of the blind in New York State and an appropriation of $5,000 was secured from the State for the collecting of all the data concerning the blind. Miss Edith Holt was appointed chief to head up the commission for gathering this important information. Winifred Holt also participated in founding the New York State Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped.
THE LIGHTHOUSE INCORPORATES
From this early seed, in 1906 the Lighthouse was officially incorporated as The New York Association for the Blind, Inc. Home teaching and instruction began, marking the first community-based direct service—the forerunner of today’s professional vision rehabilitation services. It was a fortuitous beginning and many programs were staffed by teachers who were blind. In 1907 Winifred Holt personally traveled to Albany to draft a bill making the use of a medical measure at birth mandatory to prevent “ophthalmia neonatorum.” She also established the first lay committee to address blindness prevention. In 1988 The Lighthouse Inc. became the Lighthouse International, in recognition of its global reach---and outreach---on behalf of 180 million people who are visually impaired worldwide.
THE HOLT SISTERS LEAVE A LEGACY OF PHILANTHROPY THROUGH ACTION AND PERSEVERANCE. FOLLOWING IN THEIR LEAD THE LIGHTHOUSE TODAY CONTINUES TO OFFER NEW AND INNOVATIVE WAYS TO HELP PEOPLE OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES OF VISION LOSS AND TO LEAD PRODUCTIVE, ACTIVE AND INDEPENDENT LIVES.

Visit http://www.lighthouse.org/abouthistory/ Learn more about The Lighthouse.

HORNE, LENA Elegant Chanteuse (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-02-24T09:04:00.000-08:00

Dear Lena Horne: I never dreamt that I would meet you, the elegant chanteuse-entertainer, on the stage of Paramount Studios in Hollywood. But there I was a fledgling journalist invited to watch a rehearsal dance routine as Ms. Horne glided across the limelight like a glorious bird in flight, a backup team of men following in formation. Her vitality and star presence dominated the scene as it did in so many of her performances. I especially treasure this encounter and remember that her signature song was Stormy Weather and indeed she did weather many stormy race-related situations but remains one of the most respected, talented and celebrated performers of all time. A woman of great beauty and commanding stage presence, she performed in nightclubs, concert halls, movies and on radio and television. In the hallowed halls of celebrity Lena Horne is known as one of the most popular African American entertainers of the twentieth century.
DISADVANTAGES OF RACE
It is fitting to write about Ms. Horne during Black History Month and to remember that there were prevailing racial attitudes during the time when Lena was just starting her career yet she was a woman determined to succeed and forged ahead holding her head up high not only for herself but for her race. In Brian Lanker’s book, “I Dream A World: Portraits of Black Women Who Changed the World” she is quoted, “My own people didn’t’ see me as a performer because they were busy trying to make a living and feed themselves Until I got to cafe society in the ‘40s, I didn’t even have a black audience and then it was mixed. I was always battling the system to try to get to be with my people. Finally, I wouldn’t work for places that kept us out…it was a damn fight everywhere I was, every place I worked, in New York, in Hollywood, all over the World.”
SEGREGATION DILEMMA
Ms. Horne, in her own refined way, was a staunch fighter in making great changes in society that paved the way for anti-segregation. In WWII Italy, for example, she was scheduled to make an appearance before the troops, but she refused to appear before a racially segregated US Army audience. The plan was to have one show for the white troops and another show solely for black troops. Nothing doing for Ms. Horne, this African American woman, determined to succeed, stood her ground and insisted on performing for mixed audiences. She won the argument and put on a show for a mixed audience consisting of black US soldiers and white German POWs.
CONQUERING STEREOTYPES
While at MGM, Ms. Horne’s roles were shot so that they could be cut easily from the film. That was because MGM feared audiences of the day, especially in the South, would not accept a beautiful black woman in romantic, non-menial roles. Many in the show business believed that this was the main reason that she lost out on playing the mulatto “Julie” in MGMs remake of Show Boat in 1951. However, she had already appeared in the Show Boat segment of Till the Clouds Roll By (1946) in which she appeared as “Julie” singing “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man,” again shot in such a way so that it could easily be edited out of the film. Because of her association with Paul Robeson and her progressive political beliefs Lena was branded a “Communist sympathizer,” which led to her to being blacklisted in the 1950s. Robeson had made her realize that African American people were going to unify and she felt that she needed to be part of that movement. From that point onward, Lena Horne became a significant voice in the struggle for equality and justice for African Americans in the United States.
LENA’S EARLY YEARS
The seeds of entertainment were inbred in Lena Mary Calhoun Horne’s genes. She was born on June 30, 1917 in Brooklyn New York. Her mother, Edna, was an actress with an African American theater troupe and traveled extensively. Lena was born on June 30, 1917 and when her parent divorced she was raised mainly by her grandparents. Later when her mother took her on the road she experienced the first pangs of segregation when she attended various small-town segregated schools in the South. From an early age Lena dreamed of becoming a performer, much against her educated, middle class family. Lena, however, was a young woman determined to succeed against all odds and at age sixteen she was hired in the chorus at Harlem’s famous Cotton Club.
PREPARING FOR STARDOM
Lena took voice lessons and landed in an all-black Broadway show, Dance With Your God. From then on she was jet propelled ahead and in 1936 she performed as a ‘single’ in a variety of New York City nightclubs. Romance tickled the ivories and the beautiful and talented songstress married Louis Jones, a minor politician, by whom she had a daughter, Gail, and a son, Edwin. They divorced and she pressed on to join the great white swing band, Charlie Barnet Orchestra. However, as the group’s only black member she suffered many humiliations of racial prejudice, especially from hotels and restaurants that catered exclusively to whites.
CIRCUMVENTING PREJUDICE
Despite all the early prejudice and race segregation during the 1940s Lena Horne rose to heights of celebrity few African American women at the time could claim. Her singing roles in movies established her as the highest-paid African American entertainer in the United States. In 1981, Lena had her greatest triumph, a Broadway show called Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music and in 1991 she was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame.
Lena Horne was an amazing woman determined to succeed. With pride of her heritage, and her innate elegance, grace and dignity she helped to improve the status of African Americans in the United States and particularly in the performing arts. She died May 9, 2010 leaving a profound legacy that has enriched the lives of her vast audience of admirers.

GUGGENHEIM, PEGGY ART COLLECTOR EXTRAORDINAIRE (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-02-16T12:07:00.000-08:00

Dear Peggy: I first saw your extraordinary art collection at the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni on the Grand Canal in Venice when I took twenty college students from the Fashion Institute of Technology on a whirlwind fashion tour several years ago. In an attempt to include some cultural venues to the fashion expedition I took the students to Venice to view your magnificent collection of modern art. They were in awe of the art works as well as your sculptures in the garden, but more than that your presence, though absent, was felt deeply and inspired their vivid reports back to the college. Your name is synonymous with the Guggenheim Museum yet you carved out a life determined to succeed as an independent art collector who bought art, not as an investment, but primarily because you loved them.
THE HEIRESS AND ART
It certainly makes a big difference if you have enormous wealth to support purchasing art, sometimes even picking up works of art even if they didn’t sell. However, Peggy was unique and became a true patron of the arts discovering among modern artists Jackson Pollock when he was working as a humble carpenter in the Solomon Guggenheim museum. Peggy was a unique woman, born in 1898 to a wealthy New York City family. Her lineage gave her certain advantages. Peggy’s father was Benjamin Guggenheim and she was the niece of Solomon R. Guggenheim, who established the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. However, her education in modern art did not begin until 1920 when she inherited from her father, who went down with the Titanic in 1912, a trust fund with an income of $22.500 a year. With her inheritance Peggy Guggenheim could have chosen to play the role of a socialite among New York’s tony social set, but she became something more than that: an avid art collector who safeguarded modern art from obscurity.
THE AVANT-GARDE CONNECTION
With such financial resources Peggy realized her desire to carve out a life of her own. When Peggy was twenty-two, she traveled to Europe and discovered the literary and art worlds in Paris and lived there on and off for some twenty years returning to New York sporadically. She made Paris her home base and quickly immersed herself in the arty circles. Peggy became celebrated not only as a patron and collector of modern art, but also for her love affairs with important artists including Max Ernst, Jackson Pollock and Samuel Beckett. A dedicated collector she acquired Constantin Brancusi’s “Bird in Space and works by the abstract painter Robert Delaunay. In 1938 she opened the gallery Guggenheim Jeune in London and Marcel Duchamp was her chief advisor showing the first one man show for Wassily Kandinsky, the abstract expressionist, and Yves Tanguy, the surrealist painter’s work, Le Soleil dans son ecrin (The Sun in a casket) 1937. In 1942 on the advice of the surrealist painter Max Ernst and the poet Andre Breton she continued to add to her collection and opened the gallery Art of This Century in New York. Venice beckoned in 1949 and she moved into the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, where she installed her remarkable collection of modern art.
LOVE AFFAIRS AND FAMILY
Peggy coveted both art and lovers and became notorious for her overt love affairs, such was her free spirit. However, she did sandwich in several marriages. On one of her visits to New York when visiting a gallery owned by a cousin, Harold Loeb, she met Laurence Vail, a Dada sculptor and writer who was part of the avant-garde intelligentsia in Greenwich Village. They married two years later and had two children, Michael Sindbad and Pegeen Vail Guggenheim. The marriage ended and in 1928 she met and formed a relationship with the English intellectual John Holms, never a success he was a man who suffered from writer’s block. They engaged in a tempestuous alliance that was riddled with drunken harangues and boisterous rows. Her second husband was Max Ernst, in 1941. Another liaison was with Kenneth McPherson with whom she felt comforted and safe, and they eventually became the best of friends. Throughout her days in Venice Peggy was always surrounded by her beloved Lhasa terriers and when she died she was interred in the sculpture garden of her home next to her beloved dogs inside the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni.
PEGGY GUGGENHEIM’S MODERN ART COLLECTION IS HER MOST DURABLE ACHIEVEMENT NOT ONLY AS A PATRON, BUT AS A PHILANTHROPIST SHE HELPED ARTISTS AND FOUNDED A PUBLIC MUSEUM.

RUBINSTEIN, HELENA...QUEEN OF BEAUTY(c) By Polly Guerin

2011-02-09T12:42:00.000-08:00

Dear Helena: Aladdin may have had his lamp, but you had a magical elixir, a simple face cream that eventually made you one of the world’s richest women. Determined to succeed with little else at first but your milky complexion and pots of gold you became a legendary beauty authority, industrial pioneer, patron of the arts and philanthropist. Who would have imagined that Chaja Rubinstein (later adapting the first name Helena), the eldest of eight children born December 25, 1870 to Augusta and Horace Rubinstein in Cracow, Poland would shape the way generations of women see themselves. Like loyal subjects women bowed at your beauty throne to acquire the cream that made the Helena Rubinstein Empire a reality.
AUSTRALIAN OPPORTUNITY
At the age of eighteen, Helena immigrated to Australia in 1902 arriving with no money and little English. However, Helena’s milky complexion and stylish clothes did not go unnoticed by the Melbourne ladies. She noticed that the Australian women had rough reddish faces that required attention. At a time when career opportunities for women were virtually nonexistent Helena Rubinstein created a successful business enterprise. She opened a modest shop in Melbourne where she dispensed her “Crème Valaze,” supposedly including herbs imported “from the Carpathian Mountains”. Costing ten pence and selling for six shillings, it walked off the shelves as fast as she could fill the pots.
THE SECRET INGREDIENT
Fortunately a key ingredient for the beauty cream was readily on hand. Coleraine, in Western Victoria, might not have seemed the likely place to find the gold for Helena’s cream, but the secret ingredient came from sheep, some 75 million merinos that produced the finest wool, secreting abundant grease in the process. To disguise the ship oil’s pungent pong, Rubinstein experimented with lavender, pine bark and water lilies. Helena’s cream was an enormous success and she could soon afford to open a salon in fashionable Collins Street, selling glamour as a science to clients whose skin was ‘diagnosed’ and a suitable treatment prescribed.
A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE
Helena knew that women craved the attention and coveted the beauty results of her Crème Valaze. So overwhelmingly was her success that she went to London in 1902 and financed a Salon de Beaute Valaze, to Paris in 1906, and to New York in 1912. As such, Helena formed one of the world’s first cosmetic companies. Remember, this was accomplished at a time when women could not obtain bank loans, so the money was her own. Helena was a brilliant innovator in developing her business so that it required beauty routines and women to dispense advice. She trained sales people to teach women skin care and inaugurated a “Day of Beauty” in her salons, which became an instant success.
GETTING PERSONAL
In 1937 after a shaky marriage she divorced her husband Edward William Titus in London. They had two sons, Roy Valentine Titus and Horace Titus. Eager to pursue a regal title to call her own in 1938 she married the self-proclaimed Prince Artchil Gourielli-Tchkonia, a Georgian royal twenty-three years her junior, which enabled her to pass herself off as Helena Princess Gourielli. Always alert to market trends Madame developed a line of male cosmetics which bore his name. Author, Ruth Brandon relates in her book, “Ugly Beauty,” that the war also boosted Rubinstein’s business. Because “glamour was recognized as being of the greatest psychological importance” in the Allied countries, cosmetics sales spiked and Rubinstein’s company’s profits nearly doubled between 1941 and 1942 alone. During the same time Madame also sold the United States Army kits of toiletries for every G. I. deployed in the invasion of North Africa; sunscreen and camouflage makeup, not to mention deodorant and cologne which became lucrative new additions to her product line.
HELENA RUBINSTEIN FOUNDATION
As Helena Rubinstein’s business grew, so did her interest in the arts and philanthropy. Later in life she used her enormous wealth to support charitable institutions in the fields of education, art and health. She was a friend and patron of many artists and also accumulated significant collections of African sculpture, modern paintings, Oriental and Oceanic art and Egyptian antiquities. In 1953 she created the Helena Rubinstein Foundation, which provided the necessary funds to organizations concerned with health, medical research and rehabilitation. The Foundation also supported and awarded scholarships to Israelis. In 1959, she went to Moscow where she officially represented the cosmetic industry in the United States at the American National Exhibition. She died April 1, 1965, aged 94.
One of Rubinstein’s numerous mantras is: “There are no ugly women, only lazy ones.” Some say that Helena Rubinstein was a ruthless entrepreneur, but to a multitude of women she was “The Queen of Beauty.”

SHAW, FLORA A VISIONARY JOURNALIST (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-02-02T15:22:00.000-08:00

Dear Flora: You carved a career in journalism at a time when few women ventured into the world let alone shaped public policy. A woman determined to succeed despite all odds you were in the right place at the right time in England and began your career in journalism in 1886. Flora was sent by the Manchester Guardian newspaper as the only woman reporter to cover the Anti-Slavery Conference in Brussels. Her influential journalism furthered a brilliant career. In 1892, The Times sent her to Southern Africa and thus began an incredible journey. The positive benefits of the British Empire infused in her writings led the way in publicizing favorable attitudes about British imperialism. Flora Shaw became one of the greatest journalists of her time, specializing in politics and economics, but she is also known for naming Nigeria.
A FREE WOMAN
As a free woman, unencumbered by husband or family, Flora decided to use her writing ability to shape political policy. For fifteen years she worked as a highly regarded political journalist and foreign correspondent for the Pall Mall Gazette and The Manchester Guardian. She started to write for the London Times under the name F. Shaw trying to disguise the fact that she was a woman. Later she was so highly regarded that she wrote openly as Flora Shaw. She penned more than 500 articles on economic and political issues in British colonies that supported British expansion, by military force if necessary. Shaw was not timid about her point of view. She did not merely report what leading statesmen had to say about imperialism, she shaped the ways that politicians used language to garner support for the imperialist cause. Had she been a man, she was told by the Times, she would have been made their colonial editor.
NAMING NIGERIA
In an essay, which first appeared in The Times on January 8, 1897, Flora Shaw, the advocate for imperialism, suggested the name “Nigeria” for the British Protectorate on the Niger River. She thought that the official title, “Royal Niger Company Territories” was too long and coined “Nigeria” in preference to such terms as “Central Sudan” that was associated with the area. Her argument pushed the name chance through saying, “The name Nigeria applying to no other part of Africa may without offense to any neighbors be accepted as coextensive with the territories over which the Royal Niger Company has extended British influence, and may serve to differentiate them equally from the colonies of Laos and the Niger Protectorate on the coast and from the French territories of the Upper Niger.”
THE SEEDS OF IMPERIALISM
Imperialism played a role in the Shaw’s family, even before Flora was born in 1852, in Woolwich, England. Her mother’s father was the governor of Mauritius, A French Colonial Island in the Indian Ocean. The daughter of an English father, Captain George Shaw and a French mother, Marie Desfontaines, Flora’s talent for writing emerged early. When she was 17 she met writer John Ruskin who adopted Shaw as a protégée and with his guidance, she published her first children’s story, Castle Blair which was based on her own Anglo-Irish childhood experiences. Between 1876 and 1886 she wrote four other novels as well as a history of Australia for children. Ruskin also introduced her to historian Thomas Carlyle who introduced her to the ideals that would shape her life and career.
A SOLITARY LIFE
Flora became an extremely successful career woman. Like modern women today, she did not marry until she had established a name for herself, thus freeing herself from the restraints of marital duty that were obligatory for white, middle-class, 19th century women. Although Flora had a determined sense of individualism and independence she apparently did not extend that philosophy to other women. Case in point, sadly she did not believe that other women ought to act independently of their fathers and husbands as she did and refused to support woman suffrage, or the right of women to vote.
DAME OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE
When Flora was 50 years old she married Sir Frederick Lugard, a high commissioner of Northern Nigeria, a British colony in West Africa. As a governor’s wife she continued to support the imperialism cause by promoting her husband’s career and working with philanthropic organizations, such as the Royal Society of Art. Flora Shaw Lugard’s work with refugees during World War I earned her the title Dame of the British Empire.
Dame Flora Louisa Shaw, Lady Lugard: Despite her fame, Flora remained modest saying, “To have helped to rouse the British public to a sense of Imperial responsibility and an ideal of Imperial greatness…to have prevented the Dutch from taking South Africa, to have directed the flow of capital and immigration to Canada…are all matters that I am proud and glad to have had my part in.”

Gardiner, Muriel "The Real Heroine" (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-01-26T07:26:00.001-08:00

Dear Muriel Morris Gardiner Buttinger: Who was the real “Julia?” That is the question. When the 1977 movie “Julia,” came out about a young heiress involved in the Austrian underground, in which American author Lillian Hellman claimed the story as her own, you were a woman determined to set the record straight and rightfully did so saying, “The film distorted history.” Muriel realized that the similarities between her wartime exploits and the Julia film version were remarkably similar. The release of the movie prompted Muriel to record her own story, “Code Name ‘Mary’: Memoirs of an American Woman in the Austrian Underground, which depicts her heroic role in war torn Europe in the 1930’s.

THE TRUTH BE TOLD

According to the documentary “The Real Julia,” Muriel related her wartime experiences in the Austrian Socialist party in Vienna to her lawyer, Wolf Schwawbacher and the speculation is that through Schwawbacher, who also was also Hellman’s lawyer, he was probably the source for Hellman’s story. Muriel also talked about the time she convinced a friend to smuggle a supply of American passports in her high-fashion fur hat, just as it happened in the movie, “Julia.” The similarities were remarkable and resulted in the controversy that challenged Hellman’s authenticity, as she was known in literary circles to invent heroic details about herself in her autobiographies. In the documentary Muriel set the record straight and declared that she had never met Lillian Hellman nor had Hellman ever smuggled anything to Muriel in her days with the underground. Muriel Gardiner declared that she was “The Real Julia.”

AN AMERICAN HEIRESS

The daughter of Edward Morris (the meat-packing magnate and president of the Morris & Company) and Helen Swift (a member of the family which owned Swift & Company) Muriel Morris was born on November 23, 1901 into a Chicago family of great social position. Although it gave her enormous wealth, privilege and opportunities Muriel was uncomfortable with her wealth and gave away money to the needy and gifts to friends. As a young heiress she became aware of the plight of the poor and developed a lifelong commitment to social and political reform which planted the seeds of philanthropy.

THE SEEDS OF SOCIAL JUSTICE

The seeds for social justice were forged when Muriel became a student at the University of Vienna Medical School in Vienna, Austria where she became an staunch activist. She later married Joseph Buttinger, leader of the Austrian Revolutionary Socialist movement. By 1934 Muriel became involved in anti-fascist activities and used her significant trust fund, and enormous courage to help Jews and others in danger by the Nazis, who would soon run Austria. Amidst great poverty and despair Muriel provided her home as a safe-house, smuggled false passports and provided money to help hundreds of Jews and political dissidents escape from Europe.

RETURNING TO THE UNITED STATES

When she graduated from medical school in 1938, she was forced out of Vienna by the Gestapo guards after writing that she was Jewish on her exit forms and a similar scene appears in the movie. However, during her sojourn in Europe she also forged a strong relationship with Anna Freud, daughter of the father of psychology, Sigmund Freud. When she returned to the United States Muriel continued in her role as benefactor and was active in aiding concentration camp refugees. She completed her medical internship and began work at the Trenton State hospital. She switched to psychoanalysis and worked for years as a therapist and adjunct professor at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.
Muriel Morris Buttinger Gardiner’s exploits in the Austrian Socialist movement, the expulsion from medical school in Vienna, her enormous trust fund which aided Jews and dissidents, the transportation of passports, the subject of the fashionable fur hat—all this was Muriel’s own story and the basis for the movie, “Julia.”

LOW, JULIETTE GORDON GIRL SCOUT FOUNDER (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-01-19T09:29:00.000-08:00

Dear Juliette: Who would ever have expected that during a time when women were restrained by society, that you would break out of the Victorian Age with its limits and social order to emerge as a woman determined to succeed, the founder of the Girl Scouts of the United States in 1912. Known as “Daisy” most of her life, Juliette Magill Kinzie Gordon was born on October 31, 1860, in Savannah, Georgia. Young Juliette spent an idealistic childhood in her large handsome English Regency house, the second of six children of William Washington Gordon and Eleanor Kinzie Gordon. However, her life was not devoid of a physical handicap and disappointment. Juliette had her own cross to bear and struggled with impaired hearing, which gradually worsened. Nor did back problems or cancer keep her from participating in life. Juliette did not let these obstacles deter her determination to exert herself and to search for “something meaningful” to do with her life.

A SERENDIPITOUS MEETING

Juliette developed a lifetime interest in the arts. She wrote poems; sketched, wrote and acted in plays and even became a skilled painter and sculptor, all this while enjoying the social benefits afforded a privileged young woman of Gilded Age. Her horizons were broadened when she married William Low, an Englishman and the couple moved to England. Unfortunately, the marriage disintegrated and divorce was eminent. Taking herself on a world tour, she settled in Paris to pursue her interest in sculpture. However, the hand of fate had other plans for Juliette. Her search for “something meaningful” ended when she met Sir Robert (later Lord) Baden-Powell, a former English General and war hero, who started the Boy Scout movement in 1908 and Girl Guides in 1910.

A MEANINGFUL LIFE

Sir Baden-Powell and his sister Agnes had a tremendous impact on Juliette and the new youth movement. This movement was exactly what Juliette Gordon Low had been searching for. She realized that young women in the United States were missing a wonderful opportunity. When she returned to Savannah she immediately called a friend (a distant cousin, saying, “I’ve got something for the girls of Savannah, and all of America, and the entire world, and we’re going to start it tonight.” On March 12, 1912, Juliette gathered eighteen girls to register the first troop of American Girl Guides, which was renamed the Girl Scouts the following year.

CHANGING THE ROLE OF GIRLS

One need only recall that the significance of the inauguration of the Girl Scouts in 1912 had wide significance as it was a time when young girls’ education as well as their futures were limited. An organization such as the Girl Scouts was especially important as it fostered and nurtured the development of a new, stronger and motivated young woman determined to succeed beyond the restraints of society. This was clearly evident when World War I loomed that women realized that their role was a vital one in which they would participate as value citizens. This was the beginning of youth movement or a youth quake that permeated throughout the world.

GIRL SCOUT RECOGNITION

The Girl Scouts is the largest educational organization for girls in the world and has influenced the more that 50 million girls and women who have belonged to it. GSUSA uses the Scout principles developed by Sir Robert Baden-Powell to build self-esteem and to teach values such as honesty, fairness, courage, compassion, character, sisterhood, confidence, and citizenship through activities including camping, community service, learning first aid, and earning numerous badges by acquiring other practical skills. Girl Scouts welcome girls with disabilities at a time when they were excluded from many other activities. This idea was an original by Juliette, who suffered debilitating deafness, back problems and cancer in her lifetime. When she died on January 18, 1927, Juliette Low had inspired the founding of the Juliette Low World Friendship Fund. This organization uses it money to send American girls to other countries and to bring other girls to visit the United States.
THE JULIETTE LOW BIRTHPLACE IS A NATIONAL CENTER IN SAVANNAH, GEORGIA IN THE ELEGANTLY RESTORED GORDON FAMILY HOUSE WHICH REFLECTS MANY ORIGINAL FAMILY FURNISHINGS AND SOME OF JULIETTE’S ARTWORK. www.girlscouts.org/birthplace

BARTON, CLARA Founder American Red Cross (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-01-12T07:09:00.000-08:00

Dear Clara Barton: A gift to your parents Stephen and Sarah Barton, you were born on Christmas Day in 1821. On that day the world was introduced to Clarissa Harlow “Clara” Barton the youngest of five children, a female who would turn out to become a highly influential woman during her lifetime as a teacher, nurse, activist and humanitarian, but best remembered for founding the American Red Cross. Clara was a true pioneer, a woman determined to succeed beyond the call of duty in times of war and in times of peace, which made her a symbol of profound humanitarianism. She is honored as one of the great women of America.
A TRUE PIONEER
After teaching for over 18 years and establishing a free public school in New Jersey, in the mid-1850s Clara moved to Washington D. C., to work as a copy clerk in the U.S. Patent Office. She was the first woman in the United States to hold such a government appointment. Soon after the outbreak of the Civil war, Clara’s was in Washington when the first units of federal troops poured into the city in 1861. Some were wounded, some hungry and some without clothing except for what they had on their backs. Not content to sit on the sidelines, Clara decided to work to provide supplies for the wounded and sick soldiers. She served as an independent nurse and gained support of the generals to travel to battle sites to distribute much need supplies and to tend to the needs of the soldiers.
THE ANGEL OF THE BATTLEFIELD
Carla’s courage and determination to provide for the troops was legendary. After the battle at Cedar Mountain, she appeared at a field hospital at midnight with a four mule team load of supplies. Wrote the surgeon, “I thought that night if heaven ever sent out a holy angel, she must be one, her assistance was so timely.” Thereafter, Clara was known as “The Angel of the Battlefield.” She brought food, dressings to surgeons who had none left and lanterns to light the work of the medical staff. She herself cooked, comforted and nursed the wounded. Clara once said, “I may be compelled to face danger, but never fear it, and while our soldiers can stand and fight, I can stand and feed and nurse them.”
THE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS
After the war ended in 1865, Clara worked for the War Department helping to reunite missing soldiers with their families. She also became a lecturer that crowds attended, eager as they were to hear about her war experiences. While visiting Europe on a much need rest cure, Clara again could not sit by the sidelines, and volunteered with The International Red Cross during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. She knew the needs of war and went to the war zone to begin distributing relief supplies to the destitute in the conquered cities. To identify with the International Red Cross she used a red ribbon and made a cross to pin on her coat which became the first Red Cross symbol. The Swiss-inspired International Red Cross led to an American branch. Spearheaded by Clara Barton The American Red Cross was founded in Washington D. C. on May 21, 1881 and Barton served as its first president. Much to her credit she never took a salary from the organization and sometimes used her funds to support relief efforts. After years of service she retired in 1904. However she remained active, giving speeches and lectures and died at her home April 12, 1912.
By Clara Barton's words and her actions she is honored as a great American heroine who created The American Red Cross, an organization that still aids victims of natural disasters today.

POST, EMILY AUTHOR/ARBITER ON ETIQUETTE (c) By Polly Guerin

2011-01-05T11:30:00.000-08:00

Dear Emily: Who would have imagined that Emily Price, a fashionable Victorian young woman, who seemingly held the elite world of the Gilded Age in her hands, might have had any other thought in her head than to get married and spend more and more time in society. Emily, born in 1872, was the only daughter of Bruce Price, the architect and planner of Pierre Lorillard’s Tuxedo Park, an exclusive country resort which opened in May 1884 to fanfare and anticipation. It inaugurated an era of social propriety in the rich and fashionable world in which Emily lived. The independent, planned, carefully screened community housed the social elite at a time when manners were tantamount to participating in polite society. Emily always behaved correctly and knew what was expected of her. With her beauty, fine breeding and wit she was destined to become a woman determined to succeed in the role that she would later assume as an arbiter of manners.

SOCIETY’S DARLING

Educated by governesses and at Miss Graham’s finishing school on West Twelfth Street in New York, Emily was trained on the dictum that a lady always, at all times, under all circumstances, lives up to what is expected of a lady. She lived up to Miss Graham’s expectations and attended a ball in one of Fifth Avenue’s elegant mansions and met a prominent banker named Edwin Main Post, her husband-to-be. Following a fashionable wedding in 1892 and a honeymoon tour of the Continent Mrs. Edwin Post’s first home was in New York’s Washington Square. The couple had two sons, Edwin Main Post, Jr. (1893) and Bruce Price Post (1895). Emily had had little time to think of herself and in a world so carefully orchestrated she found herself wondering how much of her life was habit and what proportion of her social behavior was a sincere expression of her own feelings.

EMILY POST EMERGES

Sitting for her portrait to be painted by Rosina Emmet Sherwood, Emily was asked, “What do you do with yourself?” Emily told the portraitist the usual. Balls, dinners, receptions, calls. A coaching party. A weekend house party at Rhinebeck. Being bridesmaid at a friend’s wedding. Tuxedo as soon as May made the country endurable. Emily observed something unusual about Mrs. Sherwood. She had at least one small child and was soon to have another, but this did not appear to be hindering her career. She was the first professional woman Emily had known, a woman who combined marriage, motherhood and a career. This encounter was the stirring pot of Emily’s realization that she was living in a dream world and that like Mrs. Sherwood there was potential for her to pursue another avenue for her creativity, which early on she had exhibited as a writer.

REALITY SETS IN

On the first of November everyone who was anyone of social note came back to town. Besides and big parties, there were small dinner parties, the Horse Show, the smart weddings, and balls to attend. It would be rare for the couple to dine alone together, without guests. Further abetting this fact in accordance with Edwin Post’s view of marriage, he and Emily would be spending less and less time together, and after the preliminaries of establishing a proper family were accomplished he would spend more and more time in Society. In this regard, the Posts were no different than other couples in their set. However, Emily realized that her husband was as much a stranger to her as she was to him. The couple divorced in 1905, because of Edwin’s affairs with chorus girls and fledgling actresses, which had made him a target of blackmail.

THE LAST WORD ON SOCIAL CONDUCT

When her two sons were old enough to attend boarding school, Emily turned her attention to writing. She produced newspaper articles on architecture and interior design. Her romantic stories of European and American Society were serialized in several popular magazines including Harper’s, Scribner’s, and The Century, as well as light novels, including Flight of the Moth, Purple and Fine Linen, Woven Tapestry to name a few. Her writing was diversified, including humorous travel books and she even became a ‘traveling correspondent.’ The recognition that would afford Emily her greatest fame was writing about etiquette, a subject on which anyone interested in participating in polite society sorely needed advice. After publication in 1922, her book Etiquette (full title Etiquette in Society, in Business, in Politics and at Home) was a best seller, the phrase “according to Emily Post” soon entered our language as the last world on social conduct. It was a best seller, and updated versions continued to be popular for decades. Mrs. Post, who as a young woman had been told that well-bred women cannot work, was suddenly a celebrity, a woman determined to succeed, an outstanding career woman. Her numerous books, a syndicated newspaper column on good taste for the Bell Syndicate, and a regular network radio program made Emily Post a figure of national stature and importance.
IN 1946, SHE FOUNDED THE EMILY POST INSTITUTE WHICH CONTINUES HER WORK. She died in 1960.

CURIE, MARIE NOBEL PRIZE SCIENTIST (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-12-08T07:33:00.000-08:00

Dear Marie Curie (1867-1934): Though you are most famous for the discovery of the elements Radium and Polonium, and awarded the Noble Prize, few of us realize that your remarkable achievement heralded the dawning of the atomic universe. As a daughter in the learned and cultured Sklodowska family you took an unexpected path in science, so few women of your day would have considered. You were determined to succeed beyond expectations because like most young women of your day you were prohibited a higher education in your native Poland, then controlled by Russia. Your quest for an education, so plainly denied, would have deterred many other women but you took up the challenge even when it meant studying in secret. Circumventing this setback you would one day carve your destiny in science and also pave the way for other women physicists by giving them jobs in your own research institute.
SECRET SCIENCE STUDIES
With only a dream and determination Marie Sklodowska planned to study at the Sorbonne in Paris but the problem remained that in order to prepare for university level course work there were no colleges open to women in Poland. So Marie attended science classes at a secret school for women called “the flying university,” so called because it did not have a campus and sessions were held in people’s homes in secret. Marie furthered her studies in physical science abetted by her cousin, Jozef Boguski, the director of the Warsaw Museum of Industry, who allowed her to do experiments in physics and chemistry on the weekends in the museum. Thus, Marie’s preparatory studies enabled her to attend the Sorbonne in Paris.
PARIS AND THE SORBONNE
In 1891 Marie Sklodowska, arrived in Paris with plans to study to become a teacher at the Sorbonne. All that changed when she met and married a dashing young physicist, Pierre Curie, who was by then a noted scientist. Together they began working on radiation experiments researching a mysterious, invisible energy discovered by Henri Becquerel a few years earlier. This radiation emitted from uranium atoms propelled Marie to the top of the physics profession. She discovered two new elements which the Curie’s named Radium (after “radiation”) and Polonium (after Poland). In 1903, the Curie’s and Becquerel shared the Nobel Prize for physics.
PROFESSOR MARIE CURIE
The Curie’s close partnership was abruptly ended in 1906 when Pierre Curie was killed suddenly by a horse-drawn wagon and died. Marie stepped into his shoes and succeeded her husband as Head of the Physics Laboratory at the Sorbonne, becoming the first woman to teach there. Her prestigious position was challenged when a love affair with Paul Langevin, a close friend of Pierre’s was revealed in the newspapers. Marie’s reputation and career was nearly destroyed, but reinstated when she was awarded a second Nobel Prize in 1911.
OPENING DOORS FOR WOMEN
Marie always championed people who suffered discrimination and in her laboratory she made a point of particularly hiring women and gave them their start in physics. Among these early pioneering women was her own daughter, Irene, who she tutored at home. During WWI, Marie and Irene took X-rays of wounded soldiers which located bullets and shrapnel for the surgeons albeit an invaluable medical tool today. After the war she toured the United States and raised money for the Radium Institute. Irene married Frederic Joliot and continuing in the Curie tradition they were joint recipients of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
THE BOLD ADVENTURE INTO THE ATOMIC UNIVERSE LOST ITS TOWERING FIGURE IN THE HISTORY OF CHEMISTRY WHEN MARIE CURIE SUCCUMBED TO THE LETHAL EFFECTS OF RADIATION EXPOSURE. SHE DIED IN PARIS IN 1934.

Hale, Sarah Josepha, A Different Thanksgiving Story (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-11-23T08:23:00.000-08:00

Dear Sarah Josepha Hale: You were a Crusader in Crinoline and more than the Pilgrims, you gave us Thanksgiving. You also championed women’s rights, the advancement of women’s wages, better working conditions and the reduction of child labor and started the first day nursery. Sarah Josepha Hale was the Martha Stewart of the pre-Civil War era and as Lady Editor of the popular Godey’s Lady Book, a 19th Century magazine, she wielded a mighty pen from her editorial desk reaching a subscription list of over 150,000, the largest circulation of any monthly publication in the country. Hale was a woman determined to succeed at a time when a working woman of her stature was unprecedented.

HALE’S LETTER WRITING CAMPAIGN

Sarah Josepha Hale’s relentless handwritten letter campaign spanned a period of almost three decades in which she urged that Thanksgiving be declared a national holiday. With tireless zeal she penned thousands of editorials and wrote handwritten letters to prominent, citizens, governors and went right to the White House, addressing the issue to United States Presidents. She never gave up on her campaign which had roots in the country’s unification.

CIVIL WAR UNIFICATION

As the dark days of the Civil War divided the country into two armed camps Mrs. Hale’s editorials became more vigilant. who wouold listen to a lone woman with her persistent plea for "just one day of peace amidst the blood and strife"? Eventually she came to see the nationalization of Thanksgiving not only as a day for counting our blessings, but as a logical bond of union, one more means of drawing the sympathies of the country together. Year after year without typewriter Hale continued to pour out her handwritten letters, which were sent to influential people urging them to join in establishing Thanksgiving the last Thursday in November.

LINCOLN DECLARES THE HOLIDAY

With the country gripped in the North and South divide, Mrs. Hale’s concept of unity finally caught the attention of one man in the White House. Prompted by a letter she had written to Secretary of State William Seward in 1863 President Lincoln recognized the urgency for unification and issued a proclamation appointing the last Thursday in November as a day of national Thanksgiving in America.

HALE, THE LADY EDITOR

Sarah Josepha Hale succeeded at a time when there were few opportunities for working women to escape the drudgery of domesticity. In addition, like other women of her era, she had been denied a formal education but found refuge in her father’s library, self-educating herself. After her husband died, leaving her penniless, she wrote and published a novel, Northwood, which captured the attention of a Boston publishing firm. She was offered editorship of one of their periodicals in 1836 and at the age of 40, with five children to support, she left her home town of Newport, New Hampshire and moved to Boston to assume the post of Lady Editor. Running one of the most powerful magazines in the country did not escape critics, but she always explained that she was forced to hold down a job to feed her children.

ARBITER OF WOMEN’S ISSUES

Sarah Josepha Hale, as Lady Editor, was the arbiter of parlor etiquette, fashion, manners and intellect. As a journalist, lobbyist, career woman and crusader in crinoline she spoke her mind and succeeded where others had failed. A petite woman, she dressed in the crinoline style of the 1800s. However, even in this cumbersome attire and the restrains of society she championed numerous women’s issue bringing about a number of important improvements in the lives of women in the Victorian era. She was the first to advocate women as teachers in public schools. She demanded for housekeeping the dignity of a profession and put the term “domestic science” into the language. Sarah Josepha Hale was to prove to be unique exception of her times.

AUTHOR OF MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB

In addition, she helped to establish Vassar College, the first college for women. Hale was civic minded and among her credits she promoted the movement to preserve Mount Vernon as a National memorial and raised the money that finished Bunker Hill Monument. She was the author of some two dozen books and hundreds of poems, including the best known children’s rhyme in the English language, “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”
Sarah Josepha Hale stepped from the shelter of an early nineteenth century marriage untrained, unschooled and stepped forward to become the nation’s most celebrated Lady Editor. For her patriotic part in nationalizing Thanksgiving Day, we give thanks.

GRAY, Eileen Pioneer in Modern Design (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-11-18T08:32:00.000-08:00

Dear Eileen Moray Gray: Celebrated for your pioneering style that proved highly influential in the Art Deco era, you became one of the foremost women in furniture design and architecture. Eileen Gray (1878-1976) was the one artist working in Britain who chose to develop her designs in the “new” material lacquer and later chrome, steel tube and glass furniture. Advantage in her favor she was born of wealthy Irish parentage and the stirrings of creativity had its roots in childhood when her father encouraged her artistic interests. A trip to Paris in 1900 to visit the Exposition Universelle further fueled her design ambitions. Eileen Gray was fired with creative ambition, a furniture designer and architect, a woman determined to succeed as a pioneer of the Modern Movement in architecture.

THE LACQUER ENCOUNTER

Eileen Gray spent her childhood in London and was the first woman to be admitted to the Slade School of Art where she took up painting in 1898 before undergoing an apprenticeship in a London lacquer workshop. While living in London Gray came across a lacquer repair shop in Soho where the owner showed her the fundamentals of lacquer work which had taken her fancy and later would become her métier. Upon moving back to Paris in 1902 she met Seizo Sugawara, who originated from an area of Japan that was known for its decorative lacquer work. She worked closely with Sugawara and quickly established herself as one of the leading designers of lacquered screens and decorative panels.

REVOLUTIONARY DESIGN

During the 1920s and 1930s, Gray became a major exponent of the revolutionary new theories of design and construction and worked closely with many outstanding figures of the modern movement, including Le Corbusier and J P Oud. Her circular glass E1027 table and red, rotund Bibendum armchair were inspired by the recent tubular steel experiments of Marcel Breuer at the Bauhaus. Meant for lounging Gray’s Bibendum Chair was one of the 20th century’s most recognizable furniture designs with legs made of a polished, chromium plated, stainless steel tube. Its back/arm rest consists of two semi-circular, padded tubes encased in leather. The name Bibendum originated from the character created by Michelin to sell tires.

AN INNOVATIVE APARTMENT

At end of WW l Gray returned to Paris and was commissioned to decorate an apartment in the rue de Lota for millionaire; Madame Mathieu Levy, a trendy, modern woman. During this time Gray created the Bibendum chair along with most of the furniture, carpets and lamps, and installed lacquer panels on the walls. The Bibendum Chair was hardly like anything ever seen before and its originality was quite amazing at the time. The Art Critics loved the chair and the apartment’s minimalism and reviews in papers and magazines exclaimed that the furnishings were a “triumph of modern living.” Until her death in 1976, Eileen Gray continued to work on both major architectural projects and on a number of smaller furniture designs. In 1973 Gray granted the worldwide rights to manufacture and distribute her designs to Aram Designs, Ltd. London.

EILEEN GRAY’S HIGHLY ORIGINAL AND DARING DESIGNS ANTICIPATED MANY OF TODAY’S MODERN DESIGN TRENDS.

CARSON, RACHEL Mother of Environmental Movement (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-11-09T08:19:00.001-08:00

Dear Rachel Carson: To you, society owes a measure of gratitude. In your book, “Silent Spring,” the first work to detail the dangers of pesticides and pollution you raised the alarm that the widespread of pesticides (and other chemicals) travel through the food chain, contaminate the environment, remain for many years in soils and waters, and accumulate in the human body. Although pesticide and chemical industries retaliated and mounted an intense publicity campaign against your findings, you remained steadfast, a woman determined to succeed in bringing the environmental message to the masses. As a scientist and activist you had a chilling vision and foresaw a time when “On the mornings that once throbbed with the dawn chorus of robins, catbirds, doves, wrens and scores of other bird voices there was now no sound; only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh.”
THE MODERN ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
Rachel Carson is credited with starting the modern environmental movement. She was not exactly opposed to the use of insecticides and chemicals, only their indiscriminate, widespread use. Carson noticed that the unchecked use of DDT was no longer effective in killing insects as they were slowly developing immunities to the poisons. However, the pesticides were killing other animals. She feared this would cause an extreme ecological catastrophe. Further she pointed out, “The sprays, dusts and aerosols now applied universally to farms, gardens, forests and homes have the power to kill every insert, the good and the bad, to still the song of the birds, end the leaping of fish in the streams, to coat the leaves with a deadly film and to linger on in the soil---all this, though the intended target may be only a few weeds or insects.”
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATES
Although Carson’s writings were attacked by chemical manufactures who tried to dismiss her as an alarmist and the book drew threats of lawsuits she had sounded the alarm and the Silent Spring caught the attention of the government. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy set up a special commission, the Science Advisory Committee, to investigate her findings. She testified before congress and called for new policies to protect human health and the environment, and this set the stage for the first legislation regulating pesticides, and her activism led to a ban on the use of DDT.
WHO WAS RACHEL LOUISE CARSON? (1907-1964)
The love of nature and the environment has its roots in Carson’s upbringing in the rural Pennsylvania community of Springdale, where she developed a love of nature. She studied biology and zoology in college and then went on to become the first woman to pass the civil service test for federal employment. In 1936, the Bureau of Fisheries hired her as a full-time junior biologist and she wrote several books on the environment, including Under the Sea Wind (1941) the The Sea Around Use (1951). The success of these books enabled Carson to leave the Bureau of Fishers in 1952 to pursue a full-time career in writing.
CARSON’S LEGACY
Carson said, “The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction.” Sadly Carson was battling breast cancer as she wrote the Silent Spring. She succumbed to the disease in 1964, after it became a best seller. Even today Silent Spring remains popular and influential. The name Rachel Carson, The Mother of the Modern Environmental Movement, would be proud to know that the US Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970. She is the namesake of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge near Wells, Maine a safe haven for wildlife and to protect the valuable salt marshes and establish sanctuary for migratory birds. www.wilderness.org. In 1980, Carson was award the presidential Medal of Freedom.
RACHEL CARSON’S WARNINGS IN THE SILENT SPRING SOUNDED THE ALARM THAT STILL APPLIES TODAY MORE THAN EVER BEFORE. ABOUT NATURE SHE ONCE SAID, “ONE WAY TO OPEN YOUR EYES IS TO ASK YOURSELF, WHAT IF I HAD NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE? WHAT IF I KNEW I WOULD NEVER SEE IT AGAIN?”

PERKINS, FRANCES: First Lady of Labor (c) by Polly Guerin

2010-11-03T08:23:00.000-07:00

Dear Frances Perkins (Fannie Coralie Perkins 1882-1965): Fulfilling your destiny as a woman of social welfare and political action you overcame many of the restrictions and prejudices of your era and as an outstanding career woman you became an effective public official whose work profoundly changed the lives of Americans. You not only engaged in diverse social work but you committed yourself to the advancement of women, the concern for fair labor practices and the plight of working people, so it is no wonder that later in life you became the first woman, appointed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, to serve in the cabinet. Typical of a woman determined to succeed beyond expectations you rose to the position of Secretary of Labor and served longer than any other Secretary of labor, from 1933 to 1945. Hail to you Frances Perkins, with your devotion to improving the plight of the working masses you are indeed recognized as the "First Lady of Labor."

THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT OF 1935

Early on as Industrial Commissioner of New York State Perkins worked hard to improve work regulations and related social programs. She fought for laws to set minimum wages, expanded factory investigations, reduced the work week to 48 hours for women and facilitated minimum wage and unemployment insurance. American citizens owe a debt of gratitude to Frances Perkins, especially when they receive their social security checks each month. Most notable she contributed to the creation of the Social Security system through her role as chairwoman on the President’s Committee on Economic Security. A report issued by the committee laid the basis for the Social Security Act of 1935. When the Fair Labor Standards Act was passed in 1938 it was again Frances Perkins who had persuaded Congress to improve labor conditions and the well-being of workers. The law also established a minimum wage.

THE NEW DEAL

The current political arena would surely benefit from the services of a woman like Frances Perkins whose diligence and vision brought about necessary labor initiatives. As Secretary of Labor, appointed in 1933 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Perkins played a key role in writing New Deal legislation, which resulted in the National Labor Relations Act (1935), and the creation of the National Labor Relations Board which gave workers the right to collective bargaining. Perkins was a strong advocate for government intervention for the public good and brought to her office a deep commitment to improving the lives of workers. In 1945, after serving twelve years as Secretary of Labor during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency Perkins resigned and then joined the U.S. Civil Service Commission, an appointment by President Harry S. Truman.

WHO WAS FRANCES PERKINS?

Frances Perkins’ role as a political activist has roots in her belief that “poverty was preventable, destructive, wasteful and demoralizing.” Her hopes were focused on improving the quality of life for all and devoted most of her life to enhancing the public welfare. Early stirrings of political activism began when she took part in the women’s suffrage movement, marched in parades and gave street corner speeches. In 1910 w hen Perkins earned a master’s degree from pursued Columbia University Perkins she became head of the National Consumer’s League (NCL) where she lobbied for better working hours and improved working conditions.

THE TRIANGLE SHIRTWAIST FIRE

A pivotal event that impressed Frances Perkins into political action was the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, where the building in which immigrant females worked lacked fire escapes and one newspaper account recorded that even the exit doors were locked. Along with the stunned onlookers she witnessed 146 sweatshop-factory workers leap to their deaths. She said it was “a never-to-be-forgotten reminder of why I had to spend my life fighting conditions that could permit such a tragedy.” This incident inspired Perkins to lobby harder on behalf of the workforce.
FRANCES PERKINS: WE SALUTE YOUR TENACITY, YOUR VISION, YOUR DRIVE AND YOUR DEEP CONCERN FOR THE LABOR OF THE WORKING CLASSES. TO FRANCES PERKINS WE OWE A DEBT OF GRATITUDE FOR SOCIAL SECURITY, FAIR LABOR PRACTICES AND THE NEW DEAL MANIFESTO.

ROOSEVELT, Eleanor: First Lady of the World (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-10-26T08:17:00.000-07:00

Dear Eleanor: In the words of President Harry S. Truman you were indeed the “First Lady of the World,” a humanitarian, civic leader, champion for the poor and women, at home and abroad, through the United Nations that you helped to develop. Looking at you portrayed in early pictures, a rather Victorian young girl looks out wistfully from the photo unaware that her concern for the oppressed would become her trademark, nor would anyone have expected you to evolve to such heights of accomplishment as a humanitarian benefactor. Despite obstacles thrown in your path you were a woman determined to succeed beyond the restraints imposed as the daughter of an affluent New York family and became one of the most important women of the 20th century.
A WOMAN IS LIKE A TEA BAG
With your marriage to your handsome distant cousin Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had embarked on a political career, you evolved from society wife tending the household and five children and unwittingly entered the world of politics. Activism was so inbred in your concern for the oppressed and when Roosevelt was Assistant Secretary of the navy during World War I, you volunteered for the Red Cross and became an active member of the women’s suffrage movement. Eleanor once said, “A woman is like a tea bag-you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water,” and her activism attests to this edict.
EMERGES ON THE POLITCAL SCENE
However, Franklin Roosevelt’s ambitious career in politics was altered irrevocably in 1921, when a bout with polio left him crippled. Despite therapy Franklin’s physical activity was extremely limited and temporarily halted his brilliant career expectations. To the fore came Eleanor his constant and faithful companion. It was Louis Howe, Franklin’s political mentor, who urged Eleanor to become vocal in the Democratic Party so that the name Roosevelt would not be forgotten. Could this shy, society bred young woman rally to the task? Indeed, she did making speeches and political appearances, and discovered that she could segue into this new role and had a liking for politics.
BECOMING FIRST LADY
In time Eleanor became an old hand at politics and her steadfast encouragement enabeled Franklin Roosevelt to return to politics and win the governorship of New York (1929-1933). In this role Eleanor became the “good wife” behind Franklin, acting as his political surrogate, speaking on his behalf to the American people and relaying their concerns to him, but most significantly she always gave her input as well. When FDR was elected to the presidency, Eleanor realized that as a president’s wife she was expected to concern herself merely with social issues. However, these were unusual times and the Great Depression and FDR’s “New Deal” program offered her opportunities to rise to the forefront of the administration.
THE FIRST LADY TRAVELS
Since Roosevelt was incapacitated he depended on Eleanor to go out into the trenches, so to speak, and find out firsthand about the national condition, observations that he could not make. Eleanor proved to be a great source of comfort and inspiration to the nation. She toured the country extensively and with her nurturing sensitivity she observed the poverty-stricken country side, city slums, prisons and even insisted on visiting inside a coal mine. She became the first activist first lady and she urged swift action to change conditions that she considered intolerable. With press conferences and her daily column in the nation’s newspapers she kept the public aware of White House politics, in particular the New Deal.
THE FIRST LADY ACTIVIST
With her vivid descriptions of the country’s dreadful conditions, she persuaded FDR to create the National Youth Administration (NYA) to provide financial aid to students and job training for young men and women. Her contribution to the Roosevelt era was marked by innovative measures to foster a better America. She also worked closely with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Her power to right an unjust situation was notable. You may remember that she resigned from the Daughters of the American Revolution in protest to their preventing singer Marian Anderson from performing at Constitution Hall.
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT’S LEGACY
After the United States entered World War II; Eleanor took off overseas. She channeled her energies into the war effort and as assistant director of the Office of Civilian Defense, she visited U.S. troops abroad, provided visible comfort to wounded service men in England, the Caribbean and the South Pacific, which boosted morale. When Franklin died in office in 1945, Eleanor thought that she would retire, but her career was not over. Although she have garnered international respect and admiration as First Lady she took on another challenging role and became a delegate to the United Nations General Assembly. In 1948, she drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which affirmed life, and equality internationally for all people, regardless of race, creed or color. This document would become her greatest legacy.
THANK YOU FOR INSPIRING WOMEN TO TAKE UP THE GAUNTLET OF CHALLENGE AND BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS, “A woman is like a tea bag-you never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.”

Hildegard von Bingen: 12th Century Visionary (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-10-19T08:20:00.001-07:00

Dear Hildegard von Bingen: You have been called by your admirers “one of the most important figures in the history of the Middle Ages,” and “the greatest woman of her time.” Known as Saint Hildegard and Sibyl of the Rhine you were a Christian mystic, German Benedictine abbess, visionary and elected magistra by your fellow nuns in 1136. You were truly a woman ahead of your time determined to succeed in a medieval universe where few women would have dared to tread. You were a composer of Gregorian chants, a playwright, poet, and scientific pioneer in the fields of healing, herbal medicine and botany. Hildegard, who had the will of a modern feminist, has emerged from the shadows of history as a forward-thinking pioneer of the holistic approach to medicine and a prophetic warning that elements could turn against us. Similarly today we speak of nature turning against us if we do not protect it.
BORN IN THE RHINELAND
Instilling the world of a cloistered existence began in early childhood. Hildegard was the daughter, the tenth child of a noble German family and as was the custom of the time, her parents gave her to the church when she was eight years old. She was sent to live with Jutta, a holy hermit/nun, the sister of a count whom Hildegard’s father served as a knight, at the Benedictine monastery at Mount S. Disibode to be educated. When Hildegard was eighteen, she became a nun. However, during her youth she experienced visions but kept them secret. When Jutta died, Hildegard replaced her as the mother superior.
ARCHITECT AND ADMINISTRATOR
After becoming mother superior, Hildegard had a vision that she should spread the knowledge of her visions instead of keeping them secret. She devoted the years from 1140 to 1150 to writing them down, describing them and commenting on their interpretation and significance. After recording her visions with the aid of a monk, her writing and letters became popular and the abbey overflowed with the arrival of novice nuns. People of all classes wrote her for advice, and one biographer called her “the Dear Abby of the 12th Century. After a power struggle in 1150 with the abbot who wanted Hildegard to remain at Disibode, she moved her nuns to a location near Bingen, and founded a monastery for them completely independent of the monastery. She oversaw its construction, which included, innovative at the time; water pumped through pipes and advocated regular exercise, singing and musical instruments. She refused to allow the church to treat women as subservient to men, and she rejected negative stereotypes of evil seductresses, and taught that woman was indeed created in the image and likeness of God.
THE MIRACLE WOMAN
As her abilities as a doctor and natural healer spread the crowds gathered at the doors of the visionary for a miracle healing. While Hildegard was working on books on medicine, Scivias and Causae et Curae (Cause and Cure and Physica, as well as numerous other writings about herbalism, she was also writing hymns and some of her songs were apparently known in Paris by 1148. This was the period in which Hildegard collected her songs as symphony of harmony and heavenly revelation. One of her works as composer, the Ordo Virtutum is an early example of liturgical drama. Musicologists credit her with the invention of opera and recognize her as a Gregorian composer.
TRAVEL AND RECOGNITION
Hildegard wrote and spoke extensively about social justice, about freeing the downtrodden, about the duty of seeing to it that every human being, made in the image of God, has the opportunity to develop and use the talents that God has given him, and to realize his God-given potential. Around 1158 Hildegard began to write Liber vitae meritorum (Book of Life’s Merits), a book of moral instruction. Unheard of for a woman to do so, over the next thirteen years Hildegard, the visionary preacher, also began a series of travels to men’s and women’s monasteries and to urban cathedrals to preach religious and secular clergy. She died in 1179 and her oeuvre leaves 90 songs, numerous books and surviving works of more than 100 letters to nobles, popes, bishops, nuns and emperors.
VISION, THE FILM
The recent release of the film “VISION,” written and directed by Margarethe von Trotta, a Zeitgeist Films attests to the fact that the Cult of Hildegard is finding new admirers along with the nuns who revered her teachings and continue to live in the Rhineland. The film’s release exalts the diverse accomplishments of Hildegard von Bingen, the Benedictine nun, portrayed by Barbara Sukova, who presents her character with complete conviction and unfaltering devotion. For more information about the film: www.zeitgeistfilms.com/vision.

MARKIEVICZ, CONSTANCE, COUNTESS OF IRISH FREEDOM (C) By Polly Guerin

2010-10-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

Dear Countess Constance Georgina de Markievicz: Suffragette, Socialist, Soldier--your pedigree ranked among the finest of the old Gaelic aristocracy, yet your heroic deeds and amazing ascendency as a national heroine blazed across the Irish skies in the momentous years of the early 20th Century. I met you in Sligo, Ireland several years ago when I attended the Yeat’s Society poetry conference and learned all about your exploits when I visited Lissadell, your family’s country mansion, county Sligo. Legend has it that you were a beautiful, headstrong girl who rode fast horses over the thousands of acres on the estate owned by your father Sir Henry-Gore Booth. You were presented at the court of Queen Victoria and dubbed the darling of the Dublin Castle set. It all seemed like an idyllic fairytale. Born to power and privilege you could have remained isolated from the trials and tribulations of the common man, the dreadful conditions of tenant farmers, but your destiny led you to become ‘The Countess of Irish Freedom.’

THE AWAKENING

Gore-Booths were known as model landlords in Sligo but as a young girl Constance was overcome by the destitute conditions of her father’s tenants and high rents they paid and she asked her father, Sir Henry, for an explanation. With nothing of consequence coming forward from her father she vowed that one day she would make amends for her family’s deeds. She said much later in life that her activities were, ‘only a small atonement for her ancestors’ sins in plundering the Irish people.

A FAIRYTALE SETTING

Constance’s upbringing in such an atmosphere of despair and neglect of the common people forged a compassion for the lives of the poor dispossessed Irish families and it impressed upon her mind the inequities of society. Constance reminisced in later life, “We lived on a beautiful, enchanted West Coast, where we grew up intimate with the soft mists and the colored mountains, and where each morning you woke to the sound of wild birds, no one was interested in politics in our house. Irish history was also taboo…” A frequent guest to their estate was a young W. B. Yeats who later in a poem spoke of Constance and her sister Eva as, “Two girls in silk Kimonos, both beautiful, one a gazelle.”

AMBITION AND DESTINY

Despite all the trappings of social privilege Constance was not aspiring to the ornamental life of a “society beauty,” and she became weary of aristocratic privileges. Hoping to carve out a life of her own she had ambition to become an artist and went to London to study at the Slade School and later in Paris she attended the Julian school. It was there in Paris that she met and married, Count Casmir Dunin Markievicz, an artist from a wealthy Polish family. This union was short lived and they separated amicably. The course of her life was now heading in a totally different direction. In 1907, Constance first became known to British intelligence for her role in helping to found Na Fianna Eireann, a nationalist scout’s organization whose purpose was to teach young boys in military drill and the use of firearms. These youths would later become the volunteers during the Easter uprising.

A POLITICAL ACTIVIST

A head strong and inspired activist Constance became active in the Irish suffragette movement and joined Maud Gonne’s women’s group, Inghinidhe na hEireann. By 1911, she was now an executive member of both organizations and went to jail for the first time for her part in a demonstrations against the visit of George V. Her compassion for the poor was evident in the 1913 lockout when she ran a soup kitchen to provide food for the worker’s families. The Citizen Army drilled regularly and one soldier remarked, “She was lovely in uniform. I can remember seeing her marching at the head of the Citizen army with James Connolly and Michael Mallin at a parade one Sunday afternoon. My God, she was it!” THE EASTER RISING

As WWI began, Constance was in the center of social and political upheaval that was building in Dublin. On the 25th of April, 1916, the pressure cooker exploded in the streets of Dublin and war soon erupted in the streets of the capital. While most women in the movement participated in the Rising as nurses and messengers, Countess Markievicz, who had joined Connolly’s Citizen Army, was second in command to Michael Mallin in St. Stephen’s Green, and was active in a fighting capacity throughout the week.

DEFEAT AND DEATH

Mallin and Markievicz and their men held on to Stephen’s Green for six days, finally giving up when the British brought them a copy of Patrick Pearse’s surrender order. They were taken to Dublin Castle and Constance fully expected to be executed. As she prepared to die, alone in her cell, she heard the firing squad put one bullet in the heads of Patrick Pearse, Thomas Clarke and Thomas MacDonagh. At her court martial she declared, “I did what was right, and I stand by it.” The verdict in her case was: “Guilty, Death by being shot,” but General Maxwell commuted this to life in prison, “Solely on account of her sex.” Always the fiery revolutionary she told the officer who brought her the news, “I do wish your lot had the decency to shoot me.” Constance was released from prison during the General Amnesty of 1917.

HONORS AND SERVICE

Her heroic endurance during several prison terms stand her as an Irish heroine of unprecedented recognition. In the general election, December 1918, Countess Markievicz became not just the first woman ever elected to the British Parliament, but as Minister for Labour, the first Cabinet Minister in Europe. A month later she became sick and died in a public ward at Sir Patrick Dunn’s hospital. Throughout her life the Countess had intentionally risked her life for the common people. In tribute to her courage, daring and sacrifice as many as 300,000 turned out and lined the streets of Dublin for the funeral of the Countess of Irish freedom.

FULLER, MARGARET Women's Rights Advocate (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-09-24T08:51:00.000-07:00

Dear Margaret Fuller: You were a woman before your time and international acclaim followed with your book, “Women in the Nineteenth Century”(1845), which recognized your enormous knowledge of literature and philosophy and command of language in which the rights of women as independent and rational beings is defended. An American journalist and women rights advocate, you counted among your interests the American transcendentalism movement. Sarah Margaret Fuller Ossoli, (1810-1850) is better known by the name Fuller, because this was her pen name by which Americans knew her. She was fueled with incredible determination to succeed, yet Fuller’s notoriety and her bravado shocked Americans.

CHAMPIONING WOMEN

Fuller was a brilliant conversationalist, respected for her intellect and learning. In 1839, she began overseeing what she called “conversations” on various topics, primarily for women, discussions meant to emancipate women from their traditional intellectual subservience to men. She was a spellbinding conversationalist and held her women only “conversation classes,” in Elizabeth Palmer Peabody’s West Street bookstore in Boston. The famous series of conversations was planned for attendance by twenty five women committed to thirteen weeks of conversation, from noon to two once a week. Fuller derived a steady income from these conversations for five years which enabled her to pursue her other literary interests.

THE EMERSON CONNECTION

Margaret Fuller’s oeuvre was on the forefront of intellectualism. She was a close friend with intellectuals in Boston and Concord, particularly Ralph Waldo Emerson and was one of the few women who could command Emerson’s interest and respect. After visiting Emerson by invitation for three weeks in 1836 she became acquainted with many transcendentalists including Bronson Alcott, who invited her to teach at this innovative Temple School in Boston, which in the end lapsed in financial failure. This event propelled Fuller in another direction.

THE DIAL, LITERARY JOURNAL

Although Emerson was at first somewhat put off by Margaret’s plainness, however, with time he came to consider her a most engaging personality, an intellectual and at times extremely entertaining. A mutual alliance of admiration was formed and from 1840 to 1842 she served with Emerson as editor of The Dial, a literary and philosophical journal for which she wrote many articles and reviews on art and literature. Perhaps the most significant journalistic contribution to the Dial was an article in 1843, her essay entitled, “The Great Lawsuit. Man versus Men, Woman versus Women, in which she called for women’s equality.

THE NEW YORK TRIBUNE

Margaret Fuller’s literary achievements attracted Horace Greeley, the celebrated newspaper owner and editor. He was enormously impressed with Fuller’s “Summer on the Lakes in 1843, so much so that he offered her a job that most women would never have dreamed of. In 1844 Fuller relocated to work as literary critic for the New York Tribune becoming the first literary critic in any American newspaper, this at a time when journalism was considered unfitting employment for a woman. In this role she became more aware of social deprivations becoming interested in prison reform prostitution, suffrage rights for women, slavery abolition, and the status of minorities. In 1845, as foreign correspondent for the Tribune, Fuller traveled to Europe and sent back feature articles.

THE ITALIAN REVOLUTION

During her European journalism stint this spirited young woman embarked on another major segment of her life and proclaimed herself a citizen of Italy. During the Revolution of 1848 and during the siege of Rome by French forces, Fuller assumed charge of one of the hospitals in the city. She fell in love with Marchese Giovanni Angelo d’Ossoli, a petty nobility and a fellow revolutionary, and they had a child, a son Angelo. In 1850, when the revolution failed, they decided to sail to America. It is said that she was carrying the manuscript of a book on the Italian Revolution and letters from Emerson. Sadly the ship went aground in a storm off of Fire Island, New York and Fuller, Ossoli and Angelo drowned when the ship went down. Although this event cut short Margaret Fuller’s life, her intellectual legacy lives on to challenge and inspire other women.

Book: Read MEN, WOMEN, AND MARGARET FULLER, by Laurie James, Golden Heritage Press, Inc. (1990)

NORDICA, LILLIAN AMERICA'S YANKEE DIVA (C) By Polly Guerin

2010-09-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

Dear Lillian Nordica: As celebrated as your life was acclaimed on the international opera stages you never lost sight of your modest Maine roots. Nordica’s fabulous life from her frugal upbringing to her career as an opera star is a significant portrayal of a woman determined to succeed. Demonstrating courage, independence of spirit and compassion, Nordica’s valuable contribution to the world of music is an inspiring story. Even opera aficionados today never cease to marvel at her accomplishment as America’s first international diva.

AS AMERICAN AS APPLE PIE
As American as Apple pie, Nordica was born Lillian “Lillie,” Norton in Farmington, Maine on December 12, 1857 in a small farmhouse built by her grandfather. She was the sixth daughter of Amanda Allen and Edwin Norton. Lillian’s mother was the family’s motivator who was full of ambition for her family. At home the entire family sang but Lillian was not the favored daughter. The family pinned its hopes on Wilhelmina, her older sister, who had studied at the New England Conservatory. However, fate would play its hand in Lillian’s life. When Wilhelmina caught typhoid fever on a visit to cousins in Farmington and died the family’s hopes of fame and fortune were dashed.
THE YANKEE DIVA
Stunned by the death of her daughter, Amanda went into two years of mourning but Lillian’s lilting voice caught her ear and Amanda seemingly revived spontaneously to focus on Lillian as the family’s rising star. Lillian began her vigorous vocal training in Boston at the New England Conservatory, and then she gave recitals throughout the United States and England, while barely in her teens. Accompanied by her devoted mother, Lillian studied further in Milan. Her obsession for patient study of languages and opera scores sets an example for aspiring students today. The Nordica stage name was bestowed by San Giovanni, an Italian maestro, convincing her that a plain sounding name would not appeal to European opera-goers. The adopted name was Giglia Nordica, (Lily of the North) but she soon became known as “Madame Nordica” or simply as “Nordica”.
MADAME NORDICA’S DEBUT
As Madame Nordica Lillian made her debut at Brescia in 1879 where she sang Violetta in La Traviata and went on to high honors showered with bouquets by adoring fans. Later engagements included ten secondary roles at the Imperial Opera in St. Petersburg, Russia. Nordica’s magnificent voice of liquid purity carried her triumphantly throughout Europe. The year 1882 marked her Paris opera debut as Marguerite in Faust. Nordica became the leading prima donna of the Paris season and couturiers named a new color and a new cloak, “la Nordica.” And at last she was treated like royalty and coming from frugal stock she fully appreciated the elaborate concert gowns fashioned by Worth of Paris, the fine jewelry and accolades. It is suggested that her costumes, stage jewelry and opera scores will be of great value to future singers as models for the many operatic roles for which they were designed and worn.
WAGNERIAN SOPRANO
Nordica’s impressive voice which gave a hint of her dramatic soprano. She was the first American woman asked to sing at the Beyreuth Festival in Germany in 1894 and would create of the role of Elsa for Cosima Wagner’s production of Lohengrin. German opera houses were then open to her and there was a great surprise that an American soprano could sing Wagnerian roles. With her big, agile, soprano voice her repertoire included Brunnhilde in Wagner’s Ring Cycle, Tristan und Isolde. In New York her Bel Canto style rivaled that of Melba, Patti and Caruso, and her frequent stage partner at the Metropolitan Opera House was the cultured Polish tenor Jean de Reszke. Nordica’s rare dramatic gift combined with an exceptional range and magnificent power and with a charming persona represented everything fine in vocal art.
LIFE AS AN OPERA DRAMA
Nordica’s private life had a hint of the dramatic but with mostly disappointing consequences. Nordica married three times. Her first husband, Frederick Allen Gower, a second cousin, didn’t even like opera and almost jeopardized her career. This disastrous liaison ended when she became a widow under mysterious circumstances. For all her discipline when it came to singing, by her design when it came to romance she was less fortunate. She married for a second time, divorced and married again to a man who wooed her with emeralds.
THE FINAL CURTAIN
In 1913, Nordica embarked on a recital tour to Australia. She nearly missed the ship leaving Sydney on her return, and that proved to be fatal mistake. Her untimely death came as a result of a shipwreck in the South Seas. Nordica became seriously ill with pneumonia and her sweet voice was hushed at Batavia, Java on May 10, 1914.
Great details about her operatic life and sad personal life are chronicled in the “Yankee Diva, Lillian Nordica and the Golden Days of Opera” written by Ira Glackens, (1963). Lillian Norton was never forgotten by Farmington, Maine. The townspeople bought the farmhouse where she was born and opened the Nordica Homestead Museum where many artifacts from her extraordinary career are displayed. Location: 116 Nordica Lane, Farmington, Maine 04938-5664. Telephone: 207.778.2042.

MORGAN, Anne Tracy Morgan's War (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-09-01T07:28:00.000-07:00

Dear Anne Tracy Morgan: Your name is synonymous with power and financial advantage but you were destined to become a woman determined to succeed beyond the boundaries of the social upper crust set. Born to privilege in 1873, you were the youngest of four children of John Pierpont Morgan, who had made an immense fortune in banking and whose bank (now JPMorgan Chase & Co.) is still a global financial services firm. Anne grew up in a wealthy household with servants and received a private education with most summers spent traveling abroad. She would discover, however, philanthropic ways to use her wealth that very few privileged women of her time would have considered. She became a dynamic leader in Anne Morgan’s War rallying up American women volunteers for relief work in France during and after World War I.
BROADENING VIEWS
As a youthful debutante Anne enjoyed the finer things in life but her life took an important departure in her 20s when she came under the influence of women from New York’s intellectual circles. In this arena of enlightenment Anne worked to address women’s social issues and focused attention on plight and needs of working women. She served as a volunteer factory inspector and established a clubroom in the Brooklyn Navy Yard so that workers could receive nutritious meals. In 1903, she became part owner of the Villa Trianon near Versailles, France, along with decorator/socialite Elsie de Wolfe and theatrical/literary agent Elisabeth Marbury. The Villa Trianon, abandoned by the French royal family after the Revolution of 1848 was the ideal setting to separate her from her domineering father and pursue her own interests.
ANNE MORGAN’S WAR
At the start of World War I, Anne was in France and she saw the terrible effects of war and was horrified by the carnage and wartime destruction. With an innate character of philanthropy Anne wanted to help the victims. She returned to the United States to collect food and clothing and relief packages to assist the devastated regions. She financed the work with her inheritance and with contributions from other Americans. Anne even persuaded Henry Ford to donate Model T ambulances. Setting such an example Anne was the leader and inspiration, and hundreds of American women left comfortable lives at home to volunteer in the devastated regions of France.
RALLYING VOLUNTEERS
Anne Morgan rallied potential volunteers and donors on speaking tours across the United States, and employed the power of documentary photography and silent film to foster a humanitarian response to the plight of French refugees. With haunting views of ruined French towns, decimated agricultural fields and livestock, public buildings, railways, bridges, schools and factories, portraits of refugees and pictures of American volunteers at work---these images tell a little known, but important story of American volunteerism during World War I. THE WOMEN’S ENCAMPMENT
Anne financed the Chemin des Dames, an encampment for women in the courtyard of the ruined seventeenth-century Chateau de Blerancourt, which served as the base of operations for the American Committee for Devastated France which she created with her friend, Anne Murray Dike. Anne Morgan with her commanding presence and social prominence took the lead in fund raising, while her colleague Anne Murray Dike, trained as a physician, organized activities in the field. The group established headquarters in Blerancourt, less than forty miles from the front living in barracks and working long hours. The American Committee provided vital services to revitalize life in a region considered by many to be beyond redemption. After the war, Anne donated the property to the town of Blerancourt, and founded a museum documenting the history of French-American cooperation.
REGOGNITION AND HONOR
When the Second World War again brought devastation to northeastern France, including Anne Morgan’s beloved Blerancourt, she took action again and formed the American Friends of France and the Comite Americain de Secours Civil, its French counterpart. Her generosity and benevolence did not go unnoticed. In 1932, Anne Morgan became the first American woman to become a commander of the French Legion of honor and the first woman to be honored with a marble plaque in the Court of Honor at the Hotel des Invalides, near Napoleon’s tomb in Paris. ANNE MORGAN’S WAR; REBUILDING DEVASTATED FRANCE 1917-1924 is on view at The Morgan Library & Museum 225 Madison Ave. through November 21, 2010. www.themorgan.org.

Mitchell, Margaret, Gone With The Wind Fame and Black Atlanta (c) by Polly Guerin

2010-08-27T07:49:00.000-07:00

Dear Margaret Mitchell: We all remember you as the celebrated Pulitzer Prize author of “Gone With The Wind,” the epic novel about the Civil War and Reconstruction but you were a woman determined to succeed in a place that most women of your time would never had considered entering. Your public life revolved around your life as a novelist, but your role as a benefactor only surfaced years after your demise and revealed your extraordinary involvement with Atlanta’s African American community. As expected of any Jazz Age debutant flapper, Margaret Mitchell was no wall flower and joined the newest dances introduced to Atlanta’s younger set. However, as a result of her concerns about Black Atlanta she was ostracized from the Junior League.

BLACK ATLANTA’S PATRON

Margaret Mitchell’s involvement with the African American community began when she was a 19-year-old debutante. She was working on several projects with Atlanta's Black community and being a proper Junior Leaguer, whose mission was community service; Margaret chose to work in the city’s Black clinics. It was a remarkable move considering that it was a time when segregation was the law of the land and the Ku Klux Klan regularly held rallies. Obviously her work with the Black clinic was the reason that she was rejected from the conservative Junior League.

GONE WITH THE WIND SUCCESS

Margaret Mitchell’s exposure to the black community no doubt also sharpened her sensitivities about old Atlanta and the battles the Confederate Army fought there. She grew up listening to stories of the Civil War that she heard first from her parents and great aunts and later from Confederate veterans who regaled the girl with battlefield stories. Such a background fueled her imagination as did the fact that the ancestry of the Mitchell family was not unlike the O-Hara’s of Gone with the Wind. Gone With the Wind was published in June 1936 and became an equally famous motion picture starring Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable.

MOREHOUSE COLLEGE

With these two successes Margaret Mitchell became an international celebrity and a celebrated Atlanta citizen. It is no doubt this notoriety brought her to the attention of Dr. Benjamin Mays, the new president of the historically black Morehouse College. He may or may not have known about Margaret Mitchell’s former involvement with the Black community, the question is mute; her celebrity had put her in the limelight. In 1941, when he realized that some of his promising students needed funds to put them through school and with fund raising on his mind it appears that Margaret was the first person he approached. She agreed to an anonymous donation of $80, enough at that time to put a student through one year of school. Dr. Mays later wrote Margaret a letter describing the impact her gift had on its young recipient. So moved by this disclosure she made arrangements to make the same contribution on a regular basis. Again, Dr. Mays agreed to keep the scholarship fund a secret, even for many years after her death.

HER SECRET REVEALED

The fund’s donor, Margaret Mitchell so long kept a secret, was revealed when Dr. Otis Smith, the first African-American in the state of Georgia to be certified as a pediatrician told the story to the Margaret Mitchell House, in Atlanta. Despite years of work as a teacher, shoe shiner, and field hand when he had been a first-year student at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., he told Dr. Mays he simply had no more money to continue his studies. Dr. Mays sent him back to Nashville and said cryptically, “Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll take care of it.”

MITCHELL’S LEGACY

Although Dr. Smith’s tuition and fees were completely paid; it was 35 years later (Margaret Mitchell had long ago died in 1949, struck by a speeding car while crossing the intersection of Peachtree Street) before Dr. Mays revealed the source of the gift, one of about 40 to 50 Margaret Mitchell had made to African American medical students. So our dear Margaret Mitchell, of Gone With the Wind Fame, was a determined woman who succeeded as an enlightened Southerner. She championed the Black community in Atlanta in other ways and also supported the early effort to desegregate the city’s police department. To quote Mitchell, “I want peace; I want to see if somewhere there isn’t something left in life of charm and grace.”

WOLFE, CATHARINE LORILLARD A Great Philanthropist By Polly Guerin

2010-08-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

Portrait of Catharine Lorillard Wolfe (1876)
by Alexandre Cabanel

Dear Catharine: It is said that more women have backed the founding of museums then men and this truism certainly applies to you, a woman determined to succeed in promoting the role that museums could play in presenting art to the public. Your largesse as a great American philanthropist and art collector is legendary. When the Metropolitan Museum of Art was incorporated in 1870 by a group of businessmen, you were the only woman among the 106 founders. Although you gave large amounts of money to other institutions your most significant gifts were two bequests to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, leaving your large collection of 140 paintings to the museum, along with an endowment for its maintenance.
THE WOLFE FUND
The bequest of Lorillard’s art collection gave the Metropolitan its first significant representation of the kinds of paintings that appealed to the general public. The Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Wing displayed popular paintings including, Rosa Bonheur’s painting, “The Horse Fair” (1853). Other star attractions included Ludwig Knaus’s “Holy Family,” and Jules Breton’s “Procession of Pardon in Brittany.” The large crowds flocked to see “Madame Georges Charpentier and Her Children, Georgette and Paul” painted by Auguste Renoir (1878), acquired by the Museum in 1907. INTEREST IN LIVING ARTISTS
While she was seriously expanding her own collection, Lorillard had a particular interest in living artists. A life-long supporter of Grace church, she also left a substantial bequest to be used for some form of “women’s work”. In 1896, a club bearing Catharine Lorillard Wolfe’s name was established by the Rector William Reed Huntington in New York, and Mrs. Newell, wife of the Rector of the Episcopal Church in Paris. The Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club was founded with the mission to promote and advance the artwork of women. Today the mission is the same. Annual juried exhibitions to honor talented women artists are held at the National Arts Club in New York City.
CULTIVATING ARTISTIC INTEREST
From early life Catharine cultivated a fine and discriminating taste for art. Wolfe’s father John David Wolfe was a real-estate developer, who had given labor and money for the advancement of the New York Historical Society, and was one of the founders of the American Museum of Natural History, and its first president. Her mother Dorothea Anne Lorillard was partial inheritor of the Lorillard fortune and Catharine, who had inherited her father’s noble qualities, would continue their philanthropic activities. Catharine was an only child (1828-1887) and her fine mind was broadened by extensive travel in many countries.
EXTENSIVE BENEFICIARIES
Catharine Lorillard Wolfe was an outstanding supporter and always had a large number of beneficiaries including the Newsboy’s Lodging House and Industrial School (an outgrowth of Charles Loring Brace’s movement to help care of New York’s homeless children; she financed archaeological missions, including one that unearthed Nippur and she was also involved with the American Museum of Natural History, which her father had helped to found. She gave large amounts of money to institutions such as Grace Episcopal Church and Union College and her generosity attesting to her great philanthropy continued throughout her lifetime.
A LIFE WELL LIVED WITH ART AS ITS CORE, PHILANTHROPY, COMPASSION FOR LIVING ARTISTS, THE CATHARINE LORILLARD WOLFE ART CLUB CONTINUES THE TRADITION. WWW.CLWAC.ORG.

LUCE, Clare Boothe An Extraordinary Life (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-08-10T09:50:00.001-07:00

Dear Clare: Talented, wealthy, beautiful, socialite, a Congresswoman, ambassador and spouse of magazine magnate Henry R. Luce of Time-Life-Fortune, WHEW!, the zeal in which you pursued each one of these careers is nothing short of remarkable, a woman determined to succeed, and indeed you did!!! More astonishing is the fact that you became equally famous in each of the individual careers becoming an icon of woman’s achievement on its highest scale. One of your famous quotes, “Male supremacy had kept women down. It has not knocked her out,” explains in part your remarkable ability to pursue each task vigorously. Although your roles in politics, journalism and diplomacy stand alone as the pinnacle of your diverse careers, many of us know you for the play “The Women”.
THE WOMEN
It’s a legendary satire on the idleness of wealthy wives and divorcees which opened at the Barrymore Theatre in New York City, December 26, 1936. The play may have been received coolly by the critics, but among the public it was immensely popular and ran for 657 performances, toured the United States and 18 countries. While it is true that most of us do not have servants, this tale about women’s leisure pursuits, excesses of living the high life and for whom blowing money on luxury goods is their main pursuit, seems all too apropos to describe the unfulfilled lifestyle of some women of a certain age.
THE FILM ADAPTATION
Where does inspiration come from? To the creative mind it’s in every situation, but you have to listen. Legend has it that some gossip Clare heard in a nightclub powder room inspired her Broadway hit that was wittily adapted for the screen in M-G-M 1939 film, THE WOMEN. This catty, clever all female film centers on a group of high-society women who spend their days at the beauty salon and haunting fashion shows. While some critics may say the play/movie is outdated there are similarities in high society today. The pampered Park Avenue princesses include the venomous Crystal Allen (Joan Crawford) who gets her fangs into the husband of sweet, happily wedded May Haines (Norma Shearer) while scandalmonger Sylvia Fowler (Rosalind Russell) lets the cat out of the bag at the beauty salon. Available on DVD, The Women, is really all about men.
CLARE’S JOURNALISM CAREER
After a divorce from George Tuttle Brokaw Clare joined the staff of Vogue, as an editorial assistant and later when Clare became associate editor of Vanity Fair she began writing short sketches satirizing New York society called “Stuffed Shirts.” Clare was not only an able editor but an attractive one and she traveled with the cognoscenti in café society and intellectual social circles. She soon met Henry Robinson “Harry Luce, the world renowned publisher, as well as founder of Time magazine and the business periodical Fortune. (He would later found Life magazine and Sports Illustrated). They fell in love, and married in 1935, just one month after Harry divorced his wife of 12 years, with whom he had two sons. Sadly, the union of Harry and Clare, which lasted 32 years, was childless, but Clare did have a daughter Ann Clare Brokaw from her first marriage.
ON THE FRONT LINES
The marriage between Clare and Harry was fortuitous as it linked two formidable personalities in journalism, but less familiar is Clare’s wartime journalism. After the beginning of World War II, Clare traveled to Europe as a journalist for Harry’s publication Life magazine and wrote a vivid account of her four-month visit in her first non-fiction book, Europe in the Spring (1940). Documenting her observations she attributed the war in part to “a world where men have decided to die together because they are unable to find a way to live together.” She and Harry toured China and reported to Life the status of the country and interviewed high ranking generals as well as world leaders including Chiang Kai-Shek and Jawaharlal Nehru. However, Clare considered her war reportage as ‘time off’ from her true vocation as a playwright.
THE U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN
With such a background in international affairs, in 1942 Clare ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives representing the Fourth Congressional District of Connecticut, on the Republican ticket. During her tenure she was a strong advocate on military issues. On Christmas Day 1944, she visited American troops in Italy, and returned to Congress advocating immediate aid to Italian war victims. During her second term, Clare was instrumental in the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission. She once said, “They say women talk too much. If you worked in Congress, you know that the filibuster was invented by men.” RETIRING YEARS
In 1947, after her House term expired, Clare wrote a series of articles describing her conversion to Catholicism, which were published in McCall’s. This inspiration stemmed from the death of her daughter Ann, a nineteen-year-old senior at Stanford University, who was killed in an automobile accident. Overwhelmed by this tragedy Clare had gone into a depression and did not want to run for reelection to the House stating she wanted to return to writing. In 1964 she and Harry, who had retired as editor-in-chief of Time would spend most of the next few years at their vacation home in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1981, Clare came into the limelight again when President Ronald Reagan appointed Clare to the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board, on which she served until 1983.
Clare Boothe Luce's life was chiseled like a brilliant diamond, she had however lived a multifaceted life with equal fame and accomplishment in each facet. Sadly, Clare Boothe Luce died of a brain tumor at the age of 84.

Gerda Wegener Remembering The Danish Painter (c) by Polly Guerin

2010-08-04T08:07:00.000-07:00

Though nearly forgotten in the history of female artists it is high time that you should be rediscovered for your playful art and strength of character. An internationally renowned Danish painter Gerda Wegener amazes by her prolific oeuvre as portraitist, graphic artist and purveyor of deluxe editions of erotic stories. Although Gerda’s career relied on her phenomenal talent, perhaps even more shocking was her notorious diligence and the advantages of an unusual marriage which opened up notoriety on a more sinister scale. It was at an art opening at the gallery of Leonard Fox, Ltd. on Madison Avenue in New York City where I found that Gerda’s works were delightful, charming, provocative and surprisingly shocking eroticism imbued with an Art Deco sensibility.
ARRIVING IN PARIS
When Gerda arrived in Paris in 1912 she was accompanied by her husband Einar Wegener, also a painter, who she married in 1904. It was the perfect environment for emerging artists, but the city had entered into a period of unprecedented upheaval. There was public outcry against certain art and music. Ravel’s ballet Daphnis et Chloe and Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du Printemps were among the public targets and even riots. The young Gerda, on the other hand, took Art Deco by storm with her adventurous spirit and superb artistry, winning numerous awards as well as commissions for portraits of Parisian society women. The French State even decorated Gerda with a Legion d’Honneur for her art.
GERDA’S PROLIFIC TALENT
Gerda was not only a rare talent she was industrious and productive. Her illustrations appeared in La Vie Parisienne, Vogue, Le Rire and La Baionette, and other premiere fashion and political journals of the day. Her artistic portrayals of fashion could be seen plastered on walls, but most notably her erotic scenes, inspired by the Art Deco movement probably found their way into the trenches of World War I. She became a very popular among the cognoscenti and sought economic success living a life of passionate pursuit of her art.
AN ARTIST’S LIFESTYLE
Gerda was no shrinking violet but was a dynamic personality fueled by an ambition to acquire the bourgeoisie ambiance and trappings of society. Together with her husband Einar, she was part of the Parisian artist scene, living a life with decadence sex and fashion. Her expensive apartment and studio was in the fashionable quartier Tour Eiffel and at their summer home on the banks of the Loire she would stage parties for two thousand invited guests. It is sad to realize that despite her prolific career and all these extravagances, in the end she died in poverty and obscurity.
GERDA’S UNUSUAL MARRIAGE
In the 1930s transformation surgery was risky and at an experimental stage. Her husband, Einar Wegener, a known transsexual, liked to disappear into the streets of Paris in one of his costumes. In female guise as “Lili”, at first he cross-dressed as a favor to Gerda, who needed a female model to pose for one of her portraits. After cross-dressing Wegener became convinced he had another personality---a female one. Urged by this realization he traveled to Germany for sex reassignment surgery and afterwards went by the name Lili Elbe. Lili lived a double life in Paris attending parties, balls and socials as Lili, and gained many admirers. Sadly Lili passed away from complications after her fifth operation. However, Gerda had supported Lili throughout her transition, but the King of Denmark declared the Wegeners’ marriage null and void in 1930.
GERDA MARRIES AGAIN
Gerda was not without admirers and along came a suitor that would rescue her and begin a new stage in her life's story. She subsequently married an Italian air force officer and diplomat, Major Fernando Porta. By all estimates they were an enviable couple, romantic and wildly in love, and moved to Morocco, settling in Marrakech and Casablanca. The marriage lasted about 8 years. She returned to Denmark in 1938, but this time her work was largely out of fashion. Although she died impoverished and largely forgotten her story comes to life in the international best seller, The Danish Girl, a novel by David Ebershoff. The novel is being developed for the screen and Nicole Kidman will be playing the role of Einar/LiLi and Charlize Theron will the playing the role of Gerda.

GLADYS EMMA PETO, Story Book Illustrator (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-07-21T08:24:00.000-07:00

Storybook Illustrator Art Deco Era

Dear Gladys Peto: I came upon your delightful illustrations in children’s books where every picture changed the way I would look at the Art Deco era of childhood imagery. Each page is a charming adventure with stylized flowers pressing their fanciful image throughout, story after story of adventures of young girls as never portrayed before. Although you were well-known throughout the United Kingdom in the 1920s and 1930s it’s time to introduce you to American audiences for you were one of the greatest artist of your time. So popular were your illustrations during the ‘30s that it was ‘in fashion’ to wear a Peto dress, printed, of course, with your identifiable designs. Your style was in such demand that you often worked as a costume and set designer for the theater and the transition of your designs from storybook to stage put the spotlight on your unique oeuvre.
PETO’S UNIQUE STYLE
Peto’s work remains appealing today for a whole new generation of admirers. Its unique and inventive Art Deco style, which critics say was ‘clearly influenced by Aubrey Beardsley,’ captures something magical of the world of childhood. As an illustrator of books for children, she is in a class all of her own creative genius and she wrote some of the stories herself introducing a yesteryear of happy romps through childhood. Peto’s images draw the reader to the curious world of sullen young girls with slender limbs, exquisitely dressed as if going to a party, immaculate and poised as if on the brink of some mischief or adventure. Her oeuvre was extensive. In advertising art Peto is best known for illustrations for the infant formula, Ovaltine, as well as a host of other well known products featured in magazines and seen everywhere on posters.
NURSERY WARE
Peto’s fame was spreading into other product areas. Her illustrations were proving so popular that in 1929, the pottery company R H & S Plant Ltd., manufacturers of porcelain and china at the Tuscan Works in Longton, England, produced an adorable range of children’s nursery ware decorated with her artwork. Tea sets, mugs, plates and bowls featured her adorable characters imprinted with sayings such as “Dance just as I do, If you can, the Fairy says to Little Anne.” Peto’s reach into the lives of children took further claim with several ‘handkerchief books’ produced to depict her artwork. These charming publications contained six square children’s handkerchiefs made from Irish linen, and covered subjects such as school time, nursery rhymes and Alice in Wonderland.
PETO’S EARLY LIFE
(1890, Maidenhead, Bershire-1977, Northern Ireland.) Peto did not come from a long line of artists, she was the first in her family. After attending Maidenhead High School and art classes in town, she headed off to London to study at the London School of Art. She took up a daring career path and became a successful commercial artist. Her design style and fashionable imagery caught on and the story book artist was born. Later, in the 1920s she married Cuthbert Lindsay Emmerson, of the Royal Army Medical Corps, and traveled with him to Malta, Cyprus and Egypt. Her travels are strongly reflected in drawings, paintings and writings from this period, and in her travel books, such as “The Egypt of the Sojourner,” published by J.M. Dent in London for their Outward Bound Library.
AN ARTIST OF EXTRAORDINARY ORIGINALITY AND TALENT GLADYS EMMA PETO, AN ILLUSTRATOR AND WRITER SO ACCOMPLISHED, DESERVES TO BE RECOGNIZED FOR HER PIONEERING WORK AS AN ILLUSTRATOR AND FOR CREATING THE CURIOUS WORLD OF YESTERYEAR CHILDHOOD.

Celia Thaxter American Poet by the Sea (c) by Polly Guerin

2010-07-06T09:51:00.000-07:00

Celia Thaxter in her island garden painted by Childe Hassam

Dear Celia Thaxter: I discovered the incredibly beauty of your poetry inspired by your life on Appledore, one of the Isles of Shoals off the coast of New Hampshire, when I visited so long ago. Your island garden so painstakingly maintained by the Portsmouth Horticultural Society brings to mind the patience and endurance of a woman whose love for the minutest detail of nature found its way into your poetry and also your watercolors and ceramics. Every flower, leaf, bug, slug, sandpiper, seabird and the mighty gray rocks were your friends and blossomed into poems of joyful recognition for their amazing contribution to a life well lived by the sound of the sea.
THE SOUND OF THE SEA
At first glance the Isles of Shoals seems very sad, stern and bleak, but to you Appledore, where you lived, it was enchanting. You perhaps ascribe your poignant poetry to the sound of the sea to the fact that people forget the hurry and worry and fret of life after living there awhile, and, to the imaginative mind, all things become a dreamy tableau of never ending beauty. The eternal sound of the sea on every side seemingly wears away the edge of preoccupation with the mainland; sharp images become blurred and softened like a sketch in charcoal and tranquility takes over the senses.
A SEASIDE SONNET
By Celia Thaxter: As happy dwellers by the seaside hear In every pause the sea’s mysterious sound, The infinite murmur, solemn and profound, Incessant, filling all the atmosphere, Even so I hear you, for you do surround My newly-waking life, and break for aye About the viewless shores, till they resound With echoes of God’s greatness night and day. Refreshed and glad I feel the full flood-tide Fill every inlet of my waiting soul; Long-striving, eager, hope, beyond control, For help and strength at last is satisfied; And you exalt me, like the sounding sea, With ceaseless whispers of eternity.
AN ISLAND GARDEN
Celia reminisces “All flowers had for me such human interest, they were so dear and precious. I wondered how every flower knew what to do and to be; why the morning-glory didn’t forget sometimes, and bear a cluster of elder-bloom, or the elder hand out pennons of gold and purple like the iris; or the goldenrod suddenly blaze out a scarlet plume, the color of the pimpernel, was a mystery to my childish thought. And why did the sweet wild primrose wait till after sunset to unclose its pale yellow buds; why did it unlock its treasure of rich perfume to the night alone? Few flowers bloomed for me upon the lonesome rock; but I made the most of all I had, and neither knew of nor desired more. Ah, how beautiful they were!” (From “Among the Isles of Shoals, by Celia Thaxter, 1873, J.R. Osgood publisher)
A LIFE SANCTIONED BY THE SEA
Life on the Isles of Shoals, in its remote and pristine beauty vividly colored Celia’s poetry and prose. As I witnessed this sea-locked vista I can tell you that the landscape of the Isles of Shoals has changed little since the time when Thaxter lived there. First as daughter of the lighthouse keeper on White Island Lighthouse and then later on Appledore where her family had the finest island hotel which became an intellectual and literary Mecca drawing artists like Willam Morris Hunt and Childe Hassam to the Shoals as well as well known authors. The burden of caring for her brain-damaged child, Karl, and an invalid husband, Levi, must have weighted heavily on her and would surely have been enough to discourage any writer, but Celia was committed to her role as a poet. She wrote with quiet passion of the place and land that she loved most and gave poetry readings daily throughout the summer season at Appledore.
AMERICA’S FAVORITE POET
Celia Thaxter (1835-1894) reputation as the most popular of America’s women poets far surpassed many other poets’ names better known today. Yet Celia’s fame began to wane around 1894 but is regaining its place with new legions of followers today who have come to appreciate her poignant sentiments. And now I leave you with an excerpt from Celia Thaxter’s poem “Land-Locked.”
O Earth! Thy summer song of joy may soar
Ringing to heaven in triumph. I but crave
The sad, caressing murmur of the wave
That breaks in tender music on the shore.

Posted by Polly Guerin at 8:37 AM 0 comments go to: http://www.poetryfromtheheartpollyguerin.blogspot.com

Corrie Ten Boom's Risky Business (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-06-30T10:14:00.000-07:00

Dear Corrie: I often wonder what I would do in the wake of Germany’s invasion of Holland in 1943. Would I protect my friends who were being persecuted because of their faith? Would I step up to the plate and save Jewish people I did not even know? Would I risk my own life to facilitate their escape? These are questions I ask myself, but you did not even consider questioning your benevolent behavior and took a great risk to help Jewish people and you paid dearly for doing so. In the hallmark of remarkable women, determined to succeed, you leave a legacy of unparalleled bravery.

THE TEN BOOM FAMILY

The Ten Boom family was renowned clock and watch masters and Corrie was one of the first women trained as a clock smith, who repaired and improved clocks in Haarlem, Holland where the Ten Boom family lived and were highly respected citizens. Corrie recalls, “Life was so peaceful then when I was growing up in Haarlem. I helped out in my father’s clock repair shop on the bottom floor of our home. Our family was well-liked in our neighborhood. I even taught bible class and started several girls’ clubs that became popular in Holland. It was a peaceful and idealic time, but it drastically changed with the German invasion.”

THE CLOCK/WATCH SHOP

In 1837, Willem Ten Boom founded a clock and watch shop which later passed onto his son Casper, and then to his daughter Cornelia Ten Boom, generally known as Corrie Ten Boom (1892-1983). Casper Ten Boom was a well-liked watch repairman and often referred to as “Haarlem’s Grand Old man.” Their home called Beje (short for Barteljorisstraat) was a happy place where a cultured and religious family and their faith inspired them to serve both the Church and Society at large.

A HIDING PLACE

During World War II, their home Beje became a refuge, a Hiding Place for fugitives and hunted people who were sought by the enemy. By protecting people, father Casper and his daughters Corrie Ten Boom and Elizabeth ten Boom, called Betsie risked their lives. Their undaunted faith led them to hide Jews, students who refused to cooperate with the enemy, and members of the Dutch ‘underground’ resistance movement. The Beje accommodated these refuges until it was ‘safe’ to smuggle them to other families and thereby saved a great many lives.

A SYMBOL OF REFUGE

After the German invasion of Holland in 1943 life began to change dramatically for the Jewish people. Every week there was something they couldn’t do. They lost their jobs, or their businesses were taken away; they were banned from public places; and they were denied food. Jewish men were sent away and never heard of again. Some Dutch people became unkind to their Jewish neighbors because the Germans gave them special privileges, but our family, and many others, knew that we had to help those being targeted. Corrie recalls, “We dedicated their lives in Christian services and our home was ‘an Open house’ for anyone in need of help. Our house, Beje, became a symbol of refuge during WWII. We built a safe room in the wall of our house and even though the Nazis would search hard, they never found the Jews who were hidden there.”

THE ARREST AND INTERROGATION

Corrie recalls, “I had been sick for several days with a bad case of the flu, but I was awakened by screams and the sound of feet rushing toward my room. At first I thought that it was one of the drills we had practiced to hide Jews. But this time , February 28, 1944, it was German soldiers raiding our home, looking for Jewish people that they had heard we were hiding. I leaped from my bed to help our guests hurry into the secret space that had been built inside a wall in my room. Once they were safely hidden, I pretended to be asleep but the soldiers rushed into my room. They wanted to know where the Jews were, but neither my sister, Betsie nor I, would tell them. We were slapped and hit by the soldiers. Blood tricked down our swollen faces, but we were willing to die than tell where they were.”

BETRAYAL AND INTERMENT

After the family was betrayed and the Gestapo raided the house they arrested six members of the family. The Nazis plundered the place, knocked down walls but could not find the Jews. However, they did find enough written material and food cards to send the Ten Boom family to prison. During the next hours about 30 friends, who came to the Beje unaware of the betrayal, were also arrested and taken to Ravenbruck concentration camp. The sister’s ordeal there was sustained by their unwavering Christian faith. They recited the Bible from memory and throughout their incarceration they helped other prisoners to renew their faith and take comfort in the words that would lift up their burden. Corrie’s sister Betsie died at Ravenbrook as did Casper (84), Christiann (24). Willem (60) died shortly after the war.

CORRIE TEN BOOM’S LEGACY

Corrie survived the horrors and deprivation of Ravenbruck concentration camp and when the war was over, she wrote a book, “The Hiding Place,” detailing the Ten Boom family saga. Corrie travelled around the world and encouraged everyone she met with the message that Jesus Christ is Victor over all and everything, even the misery of the concentration camp. Her family home, Beje is again an “Open House,” a living museum memorial to the Ten Boom family of Haarlem, who lived as Christians. The museum keeps alive the spiritual heritage of the family as an inspiration for everyone to learn and savor the truth, the true meaning of a Christian faith. The Ten Boom Clock and Watch shop has been partly restored in the setting of that time period and a watchmaker carries out this meticulous work of repairing watches on the spot in the shop today. http://www.tenboommuseum.org/.

Zelda Fitzgerald Painter and Linguist (c) by Polly Guerin

2010-06-23T08:57:00.000-07:00

Dear Zelda: So much noteriety has focused on the life you led with your husband, the celebrated author F. Scott Fitzgerald that you were seemingly cast in his shadow without the rightful recognition you deserve as an independent woman determined to succeed.

Christened the original flapper, your zany cavorting with Scott fed the scandal sheets with regularity. Friends and acquaintances were awe struck by your storied antics. You flouted convention but underlying your unbridled demonstrations was an unprecedented craving for attention, and something to call your own: painting and writing.

CALLING SOMETHING HER OWN

Perhaps that is why you had such urge to excel and as a child took ballet lessons. Later in life trying to claim something of your own you at age 27 you indulged in ballet with wild and unrelenting pursuit. Yet your role as an artist is one of your finest achievements. The watercolor paintings which you produced were well executed subjects that were charming, whimsical and sometimes absurd, but definitely worth discussing here. Zelda was a creative talent who was a dedicated artist, the one artistic expression that she practiced throughout her life. When the Fitzgerald’s moved to Paris in 1924 they became part of a circle of artists including Constantin Brancusi, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein and Pablo Picasso. It is at this time that Zelda began painting in earnest. Subject matter reveals her appreciation for landscape and flowers, and her unique and wonderful sense of fantasy and theatricality. A large group depicts fairy tales and reveals dynamic reinterpretations of traditional children’s stories. Zelda’s paintings are primarily from the 1930s and 1940s. These works were exhibited once in a New York Gallery in 1934 but were exhibited mostly in private showings. After Scott died in 1940, she created a sentimental series depicting places in New York and Paris. Rediscovering Zelda and her paintings began with a 1974 exhibition at the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts. Later an exhibition of Zelda’s painting was circulated to museums across the United States under the auspices of International Artists, Washington, D.C.

A BORN LINGUIST

You were a born original linguist. Many of your words and phrases found their way into Scott’s novels. These examples are a mere smattering of the breath of your contribution. In the conclusion of Scott’s “This Side of Paradise, the soliloquy of the protagonist Amory Blaine in the cemetery is taken directly from your personal journal. When you gave birth to your daughter, Frances “Scottie” Fitzgerald, you exclaimed, “I hope it’s beautiful and a fool---a beautiful little fool.” In “The Great Gatsby,” the character Daisy Buchanan expresses the same for her daughter. In the 1930s Zelda created some her best work, including the only novel, “Save Me the Waltz.” Your originality deserves kudos not given to you during your lifetime.

UNDERSTANDING ZELDA

One need only refer to your undisciplined childhood that set the stage for outrageous adult behavior. Spoiled by a doting mother, Minerva “Minnie” Machen no doubt contributed to your willful conduct. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Zelda Sayre (1900-1948) had a prestigious lineage starting with her father Anthony Dickinson Sayre who was a justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama. The Sayre’s were a prominent southern family with relatives in the United States Senate, and a Montgomery newspaper editor. Despite this staid background during Zelda’s childhood she developed a distinct appetite for attention and scandalized conventional society by dancing the Jazz Age Charleston and fueled rumors that she swam nude by wearing a flesh colored bathing suit. Those were just a smattering of her antics that shocked Montgomery social circle. Always, her father’s reputation saved her from scandal. No wonder she stood out, southern women of the time were supposed to be delicate, obedient and accommodating.

THE FITZGERALD CONNECTION

There was no excuse for her scandalized behavior, but the more flamboyant her antics the more she fueled the gossip mongers in docile Montgomery society who were in for another surprise. At a country club event where she performed, “Dance of the Hours” for the social set the handsome first lieutenant, F. Scott Fitzgerald entered her orbit of entertainment. Courtship swiftly followed, but she only agreed to marry him once his first novel, “This Side of Paradise” was published. It is a known fact that Scott had ransacked Zelda’s diaries and letters for story and novel material and had used verbatim excerpts in his novels. Zelda had a natural talent for writing and Fitzgerald’s penchant for lifting works, written by Zelda, became routine. In fact Zelda was engaged in writing of her own but there was the touchy matter of by-line consideration. Often, therefore, Scott’s name appeared for publication, as his name was known to the reading public and would garner higher fees. There is no doubt, however, that Zelda had certain literary gifts. In the winter of 1928-1929 Zelda completed a series of stories for College Humor, and Scott signed his name to many of them. Zelda’s “the Girl with Talent” and “The Girl the Prince Liked” were inevitably drawn from her natural talent and original voice. She helped Scott write the play The Vegetable, but when it flopped the Fitzgerald’s found themselves in debt, so Scott wrote short stories with a frantic pace, but became burned out the depressed.

LES ENFANTS TERRIBLE OF THE JAZZ AGE

After the success of “This Side of Paradise,” Zelda and Scott became New York celebrities. The couple embodied the fun, exhuberance, and glamour of the 1920’s but their wild behavior and drunkenness led them to be evicted from both the Biltmore and Commodore Hotels. Their social life was flooded with alcohol and to their delight the New York newspapers had a field day reporting their escapades. They became the icons of youth and success. "Flappers," a term Scott Fitzgerald coined to refer to a new breed of modern, independent woman, was inspired in large part by the freethinking, strong-willed Zelda. Scott himself named the decade the "Jazz Age," when Flappers and their swains frequented speakeasies during prohibition home to drinking, dancing and swinging to the sounds of the Jazz Age

DEMISE OF THE LOVELY BELLE

Sadly after a lifetime trying to succeed Zelda was driven to the heights of physical exhaustion. The histrionics and drama of Zelda’s life, and her grueling routine to become a ballerina resulted in a nervous breakdown in 1930. Zelda’s health slowly deteriorated and she was diagnosed as schizophrenic, thus spending 18 years of her life in and out of institutions. Despite her illness she spent the majority of her days painting. One wonders what amazing works of art she might have created had she not died tragically in a hospital fire at the age of 48.

DONA GRACIA NASI, A WOMAN OF THE AGES (c) By Polly Guerin

2010-06-09T07:22:00.000-07:00

Portrait of Dona Gracia Nasi

Dear Dona Gracia: As we celebrate your 500th birthday (1510-2010) and your incredible accomplishments you rank among the most noble of women determined to succeed. Dona Gracia Nasi, born in Lisbon, Portugal (1510-1569) was one of the wealthiest Jewish women of the Renaissance who used her personal fortune and powerful contacts to help conversos (forcibly converted Jews) prime victims of the Inquisition to flee to safety in the Ottoman Empire. Dona Gracia Nasi’s negotiating skills, leadership and fierce commitment to her Jewish faith serves as a role model for women of all religious persuasions. Her unwavering courage and leadership is a story worth the telling and inspires women today.
A MODERN WOMAN
Dona Garcia lived at a time in which her actions, setbacks and strategies were surprisingly modern, and that is only one of the reasons I include her in this series on amazing women of the ages. Consider her name, for example, she never known by her husband’s name Mendes and like other women of the l6th century, she retained her birth name, Beatrice de Luna, until she took her original Hebrew name in the Ottoman Empire, where she could live openly as a Jew. Never underestimate the powerful convictions of a woman such as Dona Garcia. She took control of her personal life and never relied on one doctor’s opinion concerning a medical concern but immediately sought another doctor’s opinion.
MARRIES INTO THE NASI DYNASTY
Beatrice de Luna was born into an ancient, venerable family of “Marranos,” (New Christians), that fled Portugal when Spain expelled its Jews in 1492. She married into the eminent international banking and finance dynasty of Mendes, and in 1528 when she was 18 years old, she married Francisco Mendes in a public Catholic wedding and then a Crypto-Judaic ceremony with the signing of a ketubah (a formal contract in a Jewish religious marriage). Francisco, along with his brother Diogo, ran a powerful trading company and bank of world repute with agents across Europe and around the Mediterranean. Following the opening of a sea route to India, they became important spice trader. After her marriage she was known as Dona Beatrice Mendes and in private life, called by her Jewish name, Gracia Nasi. (Dona is a formal title meaning “Mrs.” Gracia is the Spanish equivalent of Hannah)
MANAGING THE FAMILY BUSINESS
Dona Beatrice Mendes was widowed in 1538 leaving her with an infant daughter, Brianda. Following her husband’s death she went to Antwerp, where her brother-in-law Diogo Mendes had moved the family business years earlier. At his death in 1542 she took up the reigns of management and not only ran the family’s banking business but the trading and shipping empire as well. She became a celebrated banker and as Diogo had done before, she continued using the family’s contacts and international resources to help Jews escape the Inquisition, and by doing this act of bravery, her family was also constantly in danger.
A POWERFUL WOMAN
You may rightly wonder what prevented Dona Garcia from re-marrying? Remember she was a woman of her time but she knew the compulsory rules of the day. In the Renaissance Dona Garcia could not remarry and bear more children without making grave sacrifices. The laws of those days would have immediately handed control of her money and business to her new spouse. Instead she became a powerful woman managing the Mendes commercial empire and becoming a successful businesswoman. Legend has it that she was a fierce negotiator, tough and determined when it came to collecting debts, whether from fellow Jews or the royal courts of the day. Her enormous wealth put her into a position to influence kings and popes dealing involved commercial activities, loans and bribes. Payments to the Pope, for example, delayed the establishment of the Inquisition in Portugal. She even maintained her own lobbyist at the Vatican against the expansion and grisly deeds of the Inquisition.
PURSUED BY THE INQUISITION
During her travels through France, Italy, and Turkey the Inquisition pursued her and greedy local rulers attempted to confiscate the family fortune. With amazing determination, business acumen, shrewdness and diplomacy, she managed to escape each assault and continue to build the family business. Dona Beatrice and her family finally reached Turkey in 1553, where they settled near Constantinople, finally free to live as a Jew. She de-Christianized her maiden and married names and was called Garcia Nasi. She built synagogues, yeshivas and hospitals. Gracia Nasi a noble and sainted woman of the ages died near Istanbul in 1569.
A NEW BIOGRAPHY
The remarkable life of Dona Garcia Nasi deserves full disclosure as only a scholar can produce. Andree Aelion Brooks, award-winning author of a new biography of Dona Garcia Nasi called, “The Woman Who Defied Kings,” published by Paragon House (2002), presents the incredible story of Donna Garcia Nasi, the 16th century Jewish woman banker who developed an escape network that saved thousands of her fellow converses from the terrors of the Inquisition. Ms. Brooks is an associate fellow at Yale University and a former contributing columnist to the New York Times. She can be reached at andreebrooks@hotmail.com. A Journey into the Life and Times of "La Senora," the first commemoration in honor of the 500th birthday of Dona Gracia Nasi was presented by
Ms. Brooks at The brotherhood Synagogue on June 6, 2010.

THE PRINCESS OF MONACO, GRACE KELLY (C)

2010-05-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

THE PRINCESS OF MONACO, GRACE KELLY

Dear Grace: You were the personification of the well groomed, white gloved, classic beauty, seemingly always in control and turned out with band box perfection. In an era (1950’s) when manners and breeding were paramount characteristics of refined sensibilities you served as an icon for countless women who tried to imitate your style. Born to the role of movie star and princess your brand of kindness and your delightful personality were legendary as was living your life to its fullest with smoldering fire and sexual elegance. As mere admirers other women dreamed of finding their gallant prince but you did, and became Her Serene Highness the Princess of Monaco.

THE PHILADELPHIA DEBUTANT

Even before meeting her prince Grace was a true princess. She was tall, slender, with icy blond hair and cool blue eyes that gazed out at the world with poise and All-American girl perfection. Born in Philadelphia on November 12, 1929 into a charismatic Irish-Catholic family, her father Jack Kelly’s sporty, competitive persona must have inspired Grace’s drive and determined desire to succeed. Despite her parents’ disapproval Grace wanted to be an actress from an early age, but her determination was steadfast and she somehow managed leave home and head for New York City. While attending the renowned American Academy of Dramatic Art at 120 Madison Ave., in the historic Murray Hill enclave of Manhattan, she began taking acting classes and working as a model. Many roles would define her serene persona and in her graduation performance she was aptly cast as Tracy Lord, the privileged heiress in The Philadelphia Story. Grace was talented, albeit aided by her stunningly beautiful face, which gazes out of the photograph posted at the Academy in the graduating class of 1949.

BECOMING A FILM STAR

Grace did not hatch the dream of becoming a movie star without resources. Grace had a theatrical family legacy that included her Uncle Walter Kelly, who was a successful vaudevillian and George Kelly, a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. It was George who encouraged her dream of acting but he did warn her about Hollywood’s feudal studio system. Grace’s first small acting roll was in the film “14 Hour,” but this film did not spiral her career forward, it was High Noon, 1952 that put her in the spotlight. The Los Angeles times would write that she “came seemingly out of nowhere,” but the truth of the matter is that her “sexual elegance” caught the eye of John Ford and Alfred Hitchcock. She acted in a couple of films including Mogambo with Clark Gable and Ava Gardner. Grace's rumored romances with leading men fueled the gossip mongers with relish. Undaunted by such knowledge when she and Gable had an affair during the filming of Mogambo, Grace replied nonchalantly: “What else is there to do if you’re alone in a tent in Africa with Clark Gable?” Her rise in Hollywood was swift. She acted in seven movies for Hitchcock, winning two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award. She was riding high on her career when her starring role as a film star was serendipitously cast in another direction.

THE PRINCE ARRIVES ON THE SET

As destiny would have it Grace was at the Cannes Film Festival in the South of France when she met Prince Rainier of Monaco. He too, found in Grace Kelly the perfect woman he was looking for. During filming of MGM’s The Swan, she had been exchanging letters with the Prince Rainier Grimaldi, ever since she met him in 1955. Grace seemingly slipped with fairytale ease into love with the Prince. Perhaps the timing was right and cast of lovers perfectly paired because Grace had made it perfectly clear to her intimate circle that she did not want to become an aging beauty in Hollywood.

THE WEDDING OF THE CENTURY

The little principality of Monaco was decked out like a wedding cake; the palace was as pink as a bridesmaid’s gown. The two were married in an extravagant ceremony in 1956. It was the first multi-media press event with a slew of reporters and photographers on the ship that took Grace and her entourage of 66 to Monaco. Her arrival was met with hails of enthusiastic onlookers and greeters. It was a dream come true, a win win situation, the movie star became a Princess and for Grimaldi the prospect of the birth of a child would secure Monaco’s independence from France. The festivities were filmed by MGM and broadcast live to more than 30 million viewers in worldwide.
BIRTH OF THE HERMES’ KELLY BAG

It was during her pregnancy with her first child Caroline that Grace adopted an accessory by Hermes, a large square handbag made of pigskin that she used to shield her belly from the public. In her honor, Hermes christened this bag, ‘the Kelly,’ which even today remains an icon of impeccable good taste. Her role as a mother and as a Royal was consuming, and Rainier discouraged any filmmaking roles. Some say that it was not a ‘fairytale’ marriage, but who knows. Was real life ever meant to be so perfect? Grace’s marriage obviously had the same ups and downs, joys and disappoints as all other women who dreamed of a fairytale marriage.

AU REVOIR TO THE PRINCESS

One never knows what exactly happened that glorious sunny but fateful day of September 13, 1982. Dismissing the chauffeur Grace was driving the car because she was headed for the dressmaker and had put dresses that needed to be altered across the back seat. While driving that treacherous road it seems that she suffered a small “warning’ stroke and she lost control of the car. Sadly that car crash silenced the life of her Serene Highness the Princess of Monaco.

THE PRINCESS GRACE LEGACY

Even today Grace Kelly’s imprint is felt on the world of fashionistas who covet her famous looks, her image of poise and perfection. She dressed cool and collected, her makeup was understated and her hair clean and shining, and her clothes were immaculate, a perfect lesson for any young woman today. No miniskirts for this Princess. She wore knee grazing pencil skirts with tiny waists and sexy jackets, or a simple classic ball gown devoid of jewelry. The effect was stunning and a classic example of controlled elegance. Grace Kelly was in every aspect: classy, sophisticated, discreet and forever remembered as a true Princess.

BELLE da COSTA GREENE, MORGAN'S LIBRARIAN (C)

2010-05-11T11:12:00.001-07:00

By Polly Guerin

Dear Belle: Your legend goes far beyond color borders and crossed into history's archives as one of the most revered librarians. You ascended upward into elite society and crossed the great divide as the triumphant African American personal librarian of the prestigious J.P. Morgan Library. At a time when even most white women were denied job opportunities or discouraged from pursing work outside of their home you carved out a remarkable career. The year was 1905 when J.P. Morgan engaged your services, shy of five years before the suffragettes won the vote by the 19th amendment to the Constitution in 1920. Segregation was rampant at the time, but your light complexion enabled you to pass for white. Vivacious, intelligent and shrewd Belle da Costa Greene is an amazing art deco heroine in the annals of American women’s achievements.

BELLE THE LIBRARIAN

In some people’s lives ‘luck’ plays an important card of good fortune, and that was the case with Belle ad Costa Greene. J.P. Morgan had realized that his book collection had become too large for his study and engaged Charles F. McKim to build him a library to the east of his Madison Avenue brownstone. At that time J.P. Morgan’s nephew, Julius Spencer Morgan, a Princeton alumnus who was an advisor to the library, understood his uncle's need for a librarian and introduced Greene to America’s great titan of industry. She did not come to meet J.P. Morgan without credentials. Greene had been working at the Princeton University Library in Princeton, New Jersey and had honed skills that would serve her well at the Morgan Library. No doubt the brainy Belle impressed the great financier, but she was also quite beautiful and possessed a certain sensuous quality due to her exotic complexion, which helped her to pass as white.

AN OPPORTUNISTIC EVENT

The opportunity presented itself and Morgan hired her as his personal librarian. However, over and above her physical attractiveness, Morgan trusted her expertise not only because of her bargaining power with dealers, but also for her keen knowledge of illuminated manuscripts, of which Morgan had a vast collection. Trusting in her expertise, Greene had carte blanche to commit huge portions of Morgan’s fortune to establish the Morgan Library as one of the premier private collections. Throughout her tenure she would spend millions of dollars buying and selling rare manuscripts, books and art.

A LIFETIME CAREER

Greene seems to have passed over the boundaries of the racial divide more for reasons of ambition and opportunity and made the Morgan Library her lifetime career. . Alas, Greene never married but devoted her life to the development of the Morgan Library. In the role of Morgan’s emissary, Greene was determined to make Morgan’s library pre-eminent in the collection of manuscripts, bindings and the classics. She had the enviable position of being in the center of the art world for over 43 years, and every dealer coveted her friendship. As a result she moved with ease in elite society and enjoyed the company of the super rich patrons of the arts.

A FASHIONABLE WOMAN

With Morgan’s largesse, Greene’s unlimited means attracted attention as did her bearing and fashionable style of dressing. Known for her designer wardrobe, she once declared, “Just because I am a Librarian, doesn’t mean I have to dress like one.” On trips to Europe her lifestyle was lavish and unprecedented. When she traveled she stayed at the best hotels—Claridge’s in London and the Ritz in Paris. It is said that she would even take along her thoroughbred horse, which she rode in Hyde Park in London. In friendships she favored affairs with rich or influential men, especially art scholars and dealers. She enjoyed a Bohemian freedom and had a long list of lovers. Asked if she was Morgan’s mistress, she is said to have replied, “We tried!” Rumor had it that she had her most lasting romantic relationship with the celebrated United States art critic, Bernard Berenson.

AN HEIRESS EMERGES

Even after J.P. Morgan died in 1913, Greene continued in her role with J. P. Morgan’s son, who bore the same name, continuing to build and overseeing the collection. Following J. P. Morgan's death she also became the director of the library. Her society and art dealer contacts made her a formidable collector and established her privileged status as the most respected librarian of the era. J.P. Morgan left her $50,000 in his will, reportedly $800,000 in modern money. Not so bad for a woman of African American decent, albeit she passed for white. Her incredible journey spanned 43 years from 1905 to 1948, the year that she retired. She died two years later in New York City.

GREENE’S NEW IDENTITY

Whispers and rumors about Greene’s passing were common throughout her life. In order to pass Greene and her mother, Genevieve Ida Fleet, who also had a light complexion, changed their name. They added “da Costa,” claiming to be part-Portuguese to account for their exotic complexion. Greene was born Belle Marion Greener (1883-1950). The family’s background was solidly-established in Washington, D.C. black bourgeoisie society. Her father Richard T. Greener, also very light-skinned, was a distinguished lawyer and public figure and the first black undergraduate to receive a degree from Harvard in 1870. Greener was also appointed dean of Howard University Law School. He separated from his family in 1890.

GREENE’S GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT

The story of Belle Marion Greener/Belle da Costa Greene reminds us, that underlying her finest achievement as J.P. Morgan’s librarian, was her talent, her shrewd intelligence, her tenacity and drive to realize her goal to make J.P. Morgan’s library the pre-eminent private collection in New York City and one of the most outstanding reference libraries for scholars worldwide.

The Morgan Library & Museum is located at 225 Madison Ave. (36th & 37th Streets) New York, NY 10016. http://www.themorgan.org/.

FRIDA KAHLO MEXICAN PAINTER EXTRAORDINAIRE (C)

2010-04-28T09:03:00.000-07:00

FRIDA KAHLO MEXICAN PAINTER

By Polly Guerin

Dear Frida: I admire your fortitude, your originality and personal oeuvre that identified with Mexico, your beloved homeland. We recognize you in dozens of self-portraits with your bold unibrow and mustache, the flower crown in your hair and the native costumes you preferred wearing as a symbol of your Mexican heritage. As an iconoclastic artist you painstakingly rendered striking, often shocking images that often reflect your own pain and turbulent life. Yours was a journey that began as a self-taught artist and evolved over time with kudos of the international recognition.

CULTIVATING A MEXICAN IDENTITY

No matter where she traveled, whether in Paris, New York or her native country Frida fashioned herself elaborately in the Tehuana costumes of Indian maidens, creating an identity that clearly was unique and captivating. She painted using vibrant colors in a style that was influenced by indigenous cultures of Mexico. Frida Kahlo (born Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderon, July 6, 1907-July 13, 1954) was one of four daughters born to a Hungarian-Jewish father and a mother of Spanish and Mexican Indian descent, in the Mexico City, suburb of Coyoacan. She was born amidst political chaos in her homeland and throughout her life Frida preferred to claim 1910 as the year of her birth which coincided with the outbreak of the Mexican Revolution (1910).

AN ACCIDNET ALTERING LIFESTYLE

Some say that Frida adopted the Tehuana form of costume to hide her legs. There may be some truth to it. A polio survivor at fifteen, Frida’s young life was dramatically altered due to a tragic accident. Frida had entered in the premedical program at the National Preparatory School in Mexico City, but that ended when she was gravely injured in a trolley car accident three years later when she was eighteen years old. Despite spending a year in bed and enduring more than 30 operations recovering from fractures of her back, collarbone, ribs and a shattered pelvis, shoulder and neck injuries. The injuries left her broken as a youth and debilitated throughout much of her adult life. She suffered a life of constant pain and often had to wear a body brace to support her weakened condition.

BECOMING FRIDA KAHLO, THE PAINTER

One wonders what Frida could do to while away the dreary hours of recovery. It was during this year of convalescence that Frida began to paint with oils. Her paintings were mostly still lifes and self portraits filled with the bright colors of Mexico’s native folk art. Her talent evolved dramatically with self-expression and her profound reactions to life that she produced in surrealistic style in her paintings. About a third of her body of work, about 55 paintings, consists of self portraits. In some she stares out passively, in others Frida’s oeuvre was fantastic and sometimes gory depictions that symbolically articulated her own pain. Revealing different states of her mind are portrayals revealing her heartbreak, abortion and miscarriage. Yet there was a feeling of realism in many of her works which she rendered with real images in the most honest, straightforward way.

DISCOVERING DIEGO

High up on a scaffold, the celebrated muralist Diego Rivera sat contentedly high on his perch doing what he loved doing, painting grand public murals with political themes. She encountered the larger than life Diego in such a manner but had actually met him first as a schoolgirl. At 21, Frida fell in love with Rivera, whose approach to art and politics suited her own. Although he was 20 years he senior, they were married in 1929 and she became his third wife. The two became intertwined in a tumultuous marriage. Although as a couple, they remained childless one can observe Frida’s anguish of miscarriage in her painting. During most of their life together Frida was often immobilized in a cast in her bed, or confined to a hospital room awaiting an operation or recovering from a surgery. Her torment was abetted by Diego’s incorrigible philandering, once with Frida’s own young sister, Cristina. Yet, Frida remained loyal often referring to him as her "Baby. "

FRIDA’S DEVOTION TO RIVERA

Frida took great pride in keeping a home for Diego and loved fussing over him, cooking for him and even bathing him. Their love proved sustainable. The couple traveled to the United States and France, where Frida met luminaries from the worlds of art and politics, and had her first solo exhibition at the Julien Levy Gallery in New York City in 1938. Though they divorced in 1939 the two remained inseparable and remarried in 1940. Frida’s painting “The Two Fridas,” a double self-portrait, painted in 1939 at the time of her divorce from Diego is believed to be an expression of Frida’s feelings at the time.

FRIDA EMBRACES LIFE

She delighted in children and had many pets including the mischievous spider monkey that appears in “Self-Portrait with Monkey.” She loved visitors and often begged friends and “lovers to visit, not to “forget” her. Sadly after a lifetime of great fortitude and constant pain Frida Kahlo died at the age of 47. The legendary artist has of late been transformed into a veritable cult figure with numerous books and films depicting her life. At one time there was even a cult of young women who would affect the Frida Kahlo look, simulating Tehuana costumes, the flowered headdresses and long skirts of the artist. In a lovely tribute to Frida Kahlo this Deco Diva and her iconic works continue to attract admiring followers.

DOROTHY DRAPER PRIMA DONNA DECORATOR

2010-04-16T12:44:00.000-07:00

DOROTHY DRAPER PRIMA DONNA DECORATOR

By Polly Guerin

Dear Dorothy: Long ago dining was no ordinary affair at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s restaurant. It was a memorable experience with its regal reflecting pool topped by skipping water sprites, and above hovered huge iron birdcage chandeliers. “Isn’t this a marvel?” my companion said. “It’s the best ambiance in town.” Indeed I did agree. The design environment was an incredible style, a fairytale-like setting enhancing the pleasure of our self service lunch. As we sat at a table at the edge of the reflecting pool we took it all in as the rightful ownership of typical New Yorkers. The birdcage chandeliers were pure decoration for no birds were noticed, but I shall never forget that it was Dorothy Draper who installed this enchanting environment, which was nicknamed "The Dorotheum." Sadly the restaurant no longer exists. Gone is the reflecting pool, the darting water sprites and the birdcages, all banished to oblivion and replaced with the museum’s new wing.
DOROTHY DRAPER’S OEUVRE

To Dorothy, public space represented a place for people to come and feel elevated in the presence of great beauty, where the senses could look and feel and absorb the meaning of a quality of life. Her design vision looked away from the period room styles of the past and moved forward into modernism with what became known as “the Draper touch.” Her oeuvre embraced an explosion of vivid, splashy colors, oversized prints, aristocratic flourishes like big, Baroque white plasterwork and most striking chessboard tile floors. Most stunning was her signature ‘cabbage rose” chintz, paired with bold stripes and intricate mirror frames over fireplaces. It was refreshing it was daring, it was the new wave of decorating with panache.

CLIENTS AND PROJECTS

Carleton Varney, the biographer of “The Draper Touch,” said of his mentor, “People came to Dorothy because she did the unexpected, and had this brilliant sense of color. She took a world that was drab and dreary and made it colorful. In 1937 she made the Hampshire House like an English country house with flowered chintzes. Dorothy was wealthy and had every social credential, which is why all the best hotels in the world came to her. Dorothy hardly bothered with private homes; her creative and unique style was reserved for hotels and large spaces which were her métier.” Her society friends admired her particular blend of French and English elements and her distinctive taste gave her the ability to take control of a hotel project in all aspects of design right down to the designs for menus, matchbook covers, and the staff uniforms. As such she decorated the sprawling Greenbrier Hotel, White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia in an enchanting blaze of color, stripes and chintz.

PROFESSIONAL STATUS

Decorating was not a recognized profession back in the 20s and 30s and decorating was mainly a male dominated occupation. Although women of a certain class did not work back then that did not stop Dorothy. With no other credentials than her incredible good taste, sense of color and decor Dorothy Draper became a self-taught decorator (no professional schools existed) and opened the Architectural Clearing House, arguably the first ‘official interior design business in 1923. Therefore, Dorothy Draper stands alone as the first person to “professionalize” the interior design industry in the United States.

THE PRIMA DONNA

In her day, Dorothy was the prima donna of the decorating business. Talk about branding Dorothy had it all. She gave decorating advice in her regular column for Good Housekeeping magazine, designed fabric lines for Schumacher, furniture for Ficks Reed, Heritage, and also designed theaters, department stores, commercial establishments and private corporate offices. Dorothy dominated the decorating business well into the 50s and designed the interiors of jet planes (Convair & TWA). She did a line for Package and Chrysler in the 1950s including a pink polka dot truck. The cosmetic industry acquiesced to her genre enlisting her creative for the Dorothy Gray cosmetic firm.

TO THE MANOR BORN

No doubt, it bodes well if you’re born into the right circles and have acquired class, bearing and distinction. No wonder Draper was able to parlay her blue-blood background into big business, particularly at a time when it was considered daring for a woman to go into business for herself. She had connections to the high society social world. Born a Tuckerman, to a wealthy and privileged family in 1889, the six foot tall debutant from Tuxedo Park grew up in New York surrounded by the best of American upper-class WASP style. Like so many young women of her era she wanted out of the confines of this society and did so by marrying Dr. George Draper, FDR’s personal physician and brother to actress Ruth Draper. However, when her husband asked for a divorce in the 1930s, it was almost a fortuitous ending to her marriage; her ambition took off with new zeal and highly visible commissions followed.

THE DRAPER LEGEND

Much of Draper’s oeuvre survives to this day. Imitators may aspire to create the Draper Touch but can never truly repeat her brand of creativity. Her eye-popping colors and never before seen combinations, such as aubergine and pink with a splash of chartreuse and a touch of turquoise blue elevates one’s visual surprise and pleasure as does the white furniture frames embracing oversized floral print chintz. Thank you Dorothy for making a world that was drab and dreary into a colorful symphony of color, joyful prints, shiny black and dull white contrast, pristine white moldings, mirror and furniture frames de rigueur interior design.

CLAIRE MCCARDELL AMERICAN FASHION ICON (c)

2010-04-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

Claire McCardell creator of “The American Look” (c)

by Polly Guerin

Dear Claire: Paris can still claim its title as Haute Couture fashion capital of the world but American Sportswear, the concept of mix and match coordinated pieces is duly a credited to your creative innovation. As a pre-eminent American ready-to-wear fashion designer in the 20th century you understood the new independent woman and her active lifestyle from living in suburbia and chauffeuring children to school and husbands to the train station to engaging in sports activities, the gym and cultural pursuits. McCardell was a woman of her time. She knew what women wanted and patterned many of her design ideas after her own wardrobe needs.

THE NEW CASUAL CHIC

McCardell gave new meaning to term ‘Casual Chic’. Stylish, functional, affordable and versatile the coordinated garment pieces produced the concept of “separates” that made dressing from day into night and weekends spontaneous and comfortable. Her easy-to-wear approach to fashion is synonymous with the term ‘leisurewear’ and produced a loyal following among women of the pre WWII era, who rejected the formality of the French Couture. Women owe you a debt of gratitude to McCardell’s design concepts for even today casual wear is a mainstay of the American woman’s wardrobe.

FREEING FASHION’S RESTRAINTS

McCardell freed women from wearing the structured undergarments such as corsets, crinolines and girdles underlying the corporeal restrictions and dictates from Paris in the 40s and 50s. In her book, “What Shall I Wear?,” (Simon & Schuster 1956) she wrote that McCardellisms were ‘A glossary of terms that speak to me of fashion…and haven’t very much to do with Webster.’ She referred to separates as Strip-Tease or Matches: Clothes in pieces. You can wear all of them at one time or only two or three pieces, but they all go together and are made of related fabrics.
FABRIC INNOVATION

Cultivating the cult of soft, fabric draping and gathering to accentuate the natural shape of the body McCardell fashions had vast appeal, not only for their easy-wear facility but they were relatively inexpensive. These versatile separates and dresses were produced in materials borrowed from men’s wear, lingerie and even children’s wear incorporating natural-fiber fabrics such as cotton, twill, gingham, denim and jersey. McCardell knew a woman’s need for pockets and pleats were plenty. She was the first with the “riveted look,” using work-clothes grippers for fasteners and ornamentation and snappers made it easy to snap jackets, blouses and pants on and off. When the advent of WWII brought shortages of leather McCardell put her models in fabric Capezio ballet slippers, often matching the fabric of the garment. The fad caught on and gave the ballet slipper new meaning as footwear.

VERSATILITY IS THE KEY

Tying and wrapping were one of the hallmarks of McCardell’s design oeuvre. The 1938 MONASTIC DRESS, described as any loose, shift-like dress without a waistline, to be sashed at the whim of the customer, proved a popular easy-wear fashion. McCardell wrote, “It was a full and shapeless forerunner of the pleated Grecian sheath and all the other unwaisted dresses. It seemed to have no form. But when it was belted, it did great things for the female figure.”

The POPOVER DRESS, (1942) a versatile wraparound, coverall sort of dress could be used as a house dress, a bathing suit cover-up, dressing gown or glamoured up as a party dress. These dresses were not only a favorite for active women but they also accommodated the inexact sizing and fit of ready-to-wear apparel. When it was introduced it sold for $6.95. McCardellism interpretation of the Popover, “Something that goes over everything. It is an apron one day, a bathrobe the next, a dinner dress, if necessary, with lots of beads.”

CAREER DIVERSITY

McCardell had a series of short term jobs before becoming the assistant to fashion designer Robert Turk who was head designer for Townley Frocks Inc. Opportunity came quite suddenly for the young McCardell when Turk drowned in a swimming accident and she stepped up to design the 1931 collection. She continued as designer till Townley closed is operation in 1939. Hattie Carnegie then hired McCardell to work for her famed dressmaking firm, but that affiliation did not last but one year due to Carnegie’s clients who wanted more elaborate fashions. Then onto a brief stint with Win-Sum, a low-end manufacturer until Townley reopened in 1940. With her distinct style and the importance of her design oeuvre the company soon began issuing its fashion collection under the label “Claire McCardell Clothes by Townley.” She was the first American Designer to have name recognition. By the end of the forties, Townley was Lord and Taylor’s best ready-to-wear seller. In 1944, McCardell was a highly acclaimed American designer and received numerous awards and she eventually appeared on the cover of Time magazine May 2, 1955. BECOMING A FASHION ICON

As a child, McCardell (1095-1958) lived in Frederick, Maryland, the daughter of Adrian and Eleanor McCardell and her early interest in fashion emerged serendipitously. Playful and creative she would cut figures from her mother’s fashion magazines and create paper dolls and fashion imaginary garments. It is not surprising that the spirited young girl began sewing her own clothes as a teenager. After first attending Hood College in Maryland she switched to Parsons in 1925 to pursue her interest in fashion and received her certificate in Costume Design. After years on Seventh Avenue as the recognized pioneer of American sportswear, she returned to Parsons in 1944 as a critic and instructor.

McCARDELL’S WIT

In her book McCardell wrote: "My idea of clothes is the dress that dances well, walks well, sits well; the bathing suit that you can swim in; the ski suit that’s warm; and the house dress that can receive unexpected guests. " A fascinating garment in her collection was the Diaper bathing suit, made of light cotton, with a panel that wrapped up between the legs, and was secured by thin strings. Thank you Claire McCardell we are indebted to your design ingenuity that gave us the ‘AMERICAN LOOK.’

THE WHIMSICALITY OF FLORINE STETTHEIMER

2010-03-12T17:35:00.000-08:00

Painter Extraordinaire, Chronicler of New York Society (c)
By Polly Guerin
Dear Florine: I was originally introduced to your whimsicality when I visited the Museum of the City of New York where your sister Carrie's "Stettheimer Dollhouse" is ensconced and to which you had contributed your unique creative inspiration. The dollhouse, a depiction of an upper-class residence of the 1930s, is truly an Art Deco treasure wherein reside the Lilliputian works by your artist friends, including Marcel Duchamp’s “Nude Descending A Staircase,” and sculptures by William Zorach and Gaston Lachaise to name a few. I was so inspired by this dollhouse that I wrote a time-travel murder mystery novel called, “The Dollhouse Murder,” a story that dwells in the fantasy of Miss Carrie’s dollhouse with you and Duchamp as central characters, as well as the Baron and Baroness de Meyer and Alexander Archipenko.
FLORINE’S BRILLIANT CAREER
However, Florine, this is about your brilliant career as painter, poet, designer and social hostess extraordinaire, yet even at your death in 1944 you were somehow unrecognized for your brilliant repartee on the social life of the upper-class in New York between WWI and WWII. This may partially be due to the fact that Florine decided not to show her work in a came to the studio she maintained in the Beaux Arts Building at 80 West 40th Street, on Bryant Park. With its gilded furniture and cellophane drapes Florine’s studio was the background for the fashionistas and artists of the era to convene and socialize.
A FOLKLORIC DECORATIVE STYLE
Florine’s whimsicality in a modernist style, all of her own invention, portrays decorative detail and joyful brilliant colors that gives us pause to admire her as an amazing Art Deco diva. Her paintings reveal a naïve modernism of simple forms and vivid colors depicting friends and family with a wry intimacy and warmth, like Sunday Afternoon in the Country (1917). This fantasy portrayal of the cognoscenti leisurely passing the time include friends from Florine’s circle, The Baron and Baroness de Meyer, the Marquis de Buenavista, and Edward Steichen photographing Marcel Duchamp and Florine at her easel.
A DECORATIVE STYLE
Florine’s paintings were never literal but rather the viewer entered a magical world conceived with a bit of frivolity. In Picnic at Bedford Hills (1918), another example of the artist’s oeuvre, Florine sits alone holding a parasol; her sister Ettie is recumbent on a carpet in conversation with Elie Nadelman and her sister Carrie with Marcel Duchamp are setting out the picnic repast. It recalls a languid summer’s day executed in vivid colors and painted on a field of bright yellow. Florine’s Cathedrals series: The Cathedrals of Broadway (1929) and the Cathedrals of Fifth Avenue (1931) and the Cathedrals of Wall Street (1932) are each crammed with identifiable public figures and places in caricatured allegories. These three paintings reside in the American Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
HOSTESS OF AN AMERICAN SALON
Florine and her two sisters Miss Carrie and Miss Ettie, and their mother Rosetta presided over a New York salon that had considerable to do with shaping the intellectual and cultural pulse of the city. The artistic cognoscenti of the era were frequent visitors to teas, lunches or dinners, while others in the art circle coveted an invitation. An important addition to Florine’s circle was Marcel Duchamp, an avant-garde artist, a suavely handsome and cultivated personality who felt quite at home in the genteel intellectual circles of the female ménage. Duchamp figures importantly in privileged position in life pervades her work chronicling boating parties, picnics, summertime escapades, parades and society.
BORN TO PRIVILEGE
Florine was born in Rochester, New York (August 29, 187l-May 11, 1944) the fourth of five children to Rosetta Walter and Joseph Stettheimer. The members of her family were wealthy and influential assimilated Jews. Although the father abandoned the family for reasons that are unclear Rosetta never remarried and her three youngest daughters, Carrie, Florine and Ettie remained single and lived with their mother until her death in 1935. The family spent much of Florine’s early life with extensive travels throughout Europe where she began to study art. In the mid-1890s she studied at the Art Students League of New York, but realized her full potential upon her permanent return to New York which was precipitated by the start of World War I.
FLAUNTING PAGEANTRY With MIRTH
Upon assessing Florine’s oeuvre it is clear that her privileged position invades her work with lively, colorful accounts not only of her daily life but in whimsical paintings that chronicle of the upper-class ways of New Yorkers. Look deeper into Florine’s paintings and you will see that this amazing Art Deco diva freely depicted a magical world that remains as enchanting today and evocative of admiration.

EDITH WHARTON AND THE MOUNT (C)

2010-02-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

by Polly Guerin

Dear Edith: It was many years ago when I first visited your former Berkshire estate, “The Mount” in Lenox, Massachusetts. It was a pilgrimage of sorts to pay homage to your amazing oeuvre producing over forty books during your lifetime. The library at that time was rather barren of books less than I expected, but I had my picture taken there by a desk and commanded to memory that I would ask you to be my muse. Your characters, such as Ellen Olenska in the Age of Innocence and the charming but ill fated Lily Bart in The House of Mirth are the most memorable among your books which I have read. Your life and the society that you wrote about stand as a testament to the women of your time and place who had to overcome the obstacles that they encountered to find happiness and self fulfillment. Edith, however, broke through these strictures to become a Pulitzer Prize winning American novelist, short story writer and designer.

LOOKING BACK ON THE GILDED AGE

Wharton’s life spanning the years (1862-1937) was truly amazing and put her in an ideal position to chronicle the mores of the social ambitions of the newly rich of the Gilded Age. However, as both a participant in fashionable society and a keen observer of the regime set by the old money set she was in an enviable position to combine an insider’s view of America’s privileged classes and with a brilliant, natural wit to write humorous incisive novels and short stories. In this privileged position Wharton witnessed the variegated changes in Old New York and in Newport, Rhode Island where she summered in her childhood and eventually built her own house, The Mount, in Lenox in 1902.

EARLY RECOLLECTIONS

Literary legal eagle, Louis Auchinchloss in a talk in 2002 at the New York School of Interior Design had quite a bit to say about Edith Wharton. “Shy, yes,” he said, but she had a definite aggressiveness, too. In Newport circles, she was considered a little fast---I know my grandmother thought that!” Although Edith Wharton had a rather strained relationship with her mother she was not without early support. Her mother had her poems privately printed when she was sixteen and the copy that Auchincloss gave to the Morgan Museum had Wharton’s own pen corrections in it. In 1885, at 23 year of age, Edith Newbold Jones married Edward (Teddy) Robbins Wharton, from a well-established Boston family who was 12 years her senior and a gentleman of her social class. Wharton at that time had very little knowledge of what to expect in marriage and she bitterly remembered that her mother refused to answer any questions that she may have posed. This fact wasn’t the only reason why it wasn’t a happy union, aside from travel; the couple had a lackluster relationship and more importantly, little in common intellectually.

THE DECORATION OF HOUSES

Edith Wharton’s writing career may have been launched with the publication of her first book, The decoration of Houses, (1897) written with her architect friend, Ogden Codman, but it was just the forerunner of this born storyteller’s oeuvre. The two taste masters denounced Victorian decorating practices and advocated the elimination of overstuffed furniture, artificial plants, festoons of lace on mantelpieces and dressing tables, heavily curtained windows. They endorsed a style of minimalism, bringing a breath of fresh air into interiors by stressing rooms based on simple, design principles, stressing symmetry and balance in architecture and thereby launched the careers of professional decorators to interpret the new style.

LONDON AND PARIS BECKON

Heading frequently to London and Paris she forged friendships with Bernard Berenson, the painter John Singer Sergeant and scores of French writers and artists including Jacques-Emile Blanche, Andre Gide and Jean Cocteau, always writing and managing to produce a volume a year. In Paris, one of the most romantic cities in the world she began an affair in 1908 with Morton Fullerton, a journalist on the London Times and all that she painfully missed in her marriage, love and intellectual communion, was fulfilled. However, Auchincloss described Wharton’s lover, Morton Fullerton as follows: “It is always sad to see a first-rate human being temporarily in the grips of a fourth-rater.” Wharton herself finally wrote that she would have been better off had she never met him. She divorced Teddy Wharton in 1913.

AN EXPATRIOT AMERICAN

In Paris, Wharton on her own terms and newly divorced became part of the intellectual circles where the artists mingled with the rich and high-born interlopers. She settled in Paris, in the historic Faubourg Saint-Germain arrondissement on the Left Bank. Life was a whirlwind of visiting Americans as well, including Henry James, Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Adams. But World War I was looming and Wharton became fiercely dedicated to the Allied cause. Traveling to the front lines, unusual as it was for the time, she often in the company of Walter Berry and her chauffer made excursions in her automobile into the front lines to observe the fighting. An early war journalist she wrote reports for American publications in which she urged the United States to join the war effort. In addition, Wharton helped establish workrooms to employ women who had no means of support and tirelessly led the committee to aid refugees. She collaborated with Elisina Tyler (Countess Elisina de Castelvecchio) during the war years in war charities, for which the French Academy in 1920 awarded them jointly a gold medal inscribed with both their names.

FRANCE AND GREAT REWARDS

The final stage of Wharton’s life was spent in two beautiful houses in France, the summers at Pavillon Colombe, in a small village just north of Paris, and the winters at Chateau Saint-Claire at Hyeres where she continued to write and enjoy the company of her beloved miniature dogs that were always a key element of Edith’s intimate household. In recognition of her accomplishments the grand dame of American letters was the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize in 1921 for The Age of Innocence, and an honorary Doctor of Letters from Yale University in 1923. The lifestyle of the social and moneyed world in which she lived and depicted in her fiction may have vanished, but her books and authoritative works on architecture, gardens, interior design and travel have survived the test of time. Her achievements continue to leave a lasting impression of a remarkable woman who gave us a peak into the Gilded Age and other venues of witty storytelling.

RESTORING THE MOUNT

After further touring The Mount several years ago, I was disappointed at the time that Edith Wharton’s boudoir and bedroom were empty, the furnishings long gone, but somehow her spirit lingered on. I was happy to learn recently that the NYC based designer, Michael Simon will soon be restoring these areas so that it reflects the time period in which she lived. The Mount is in every aspect of the estate, including its gardens, architecture and interior design, evokes the spirit of Edith Wharton who created an environment that would meet her needs as a designer, gardener, hostess, and, above all, as a writer. Within a year Wharton wrote: "Lenox has had its usual tonic effect on me, and I feel like a new edition, revised and corrected...in the very best type.” In a letter to her lover Morton Fullerton, she revealed how much of herself she put into The Mount. “I am amazed by the success of my efforts. Decidedly, I’m a better landscape gardener than a novelist, and this place, every line of which is my own work, far surpasses The House of Mirth.” The Mount, located on a hillside in the Bershires overlooking Laurel Lake was designed according to the principles stated in Wharton's 1897 book, The Decoration of Houses. The house and the restored Italianate gardens can be visited from May through October. Ticket Office: 413.551.5107. www.edithwharton.org

MARYLOU WHITNEY SARATOGA'S GRAND DAME (c)

2010-02-17T17:16:00.000-08:00

By Polly Guerin

My dear Marylou: I remember it well. It was a pristine summer day in June and I was looking forward to interviewing you at Caty Hill your 135 acre estate in Saratoga Springs, New York and there you were in an elegant creamy beige pant suit with a marvelous gold broach perched on the shoulder of your jacket that quite nicely accented your glossy blonde hair. You were a vision of chic yet when children came in from the pool, draped with damp towels; you let them climb on your lap. Your nonchalance was impressive, yet I knew that you were the grand dame of Saratoga Springs. What’s more your charity and benevolence in the cultural and sport areas was legendary. And so the interview took place and I took copious notes of a woman who is truly an amazing diva par excellence, Alaska frontierswoman, Adirondack environmentalist and patron of the arts, horse breeder and racing enthusiast. Let’s raise our champagne glasses as we salute your life and its finest achievements.

A VISIT AT CATY HILL

You sat behind the great Whitney desk and with your friendly and open manner you gave a most interesting discourse on your current life and activities. Have you been to the races?” you asked me. “I’ve been attending a writer’s conference here in Saratoga I replied, but I haven’t been to the races.” With that Ms. Whitney whipped out a pink booklet and I wondered if I was getting a pink slip dismissal, but no instead, she gave me two complimentary tickets to sit in her royal box at the Saratoga racetrack so that I could view the races first hand like a society lady. Thank goodness I wore a picture hat that day, because fashionable millinery is de rigueur at the race track.

THE QUEEN OF SARATOGA

On the eve of the Whitney Handicap at Saratoga Race Course, droves of onlookers would turnout to watch who’s who of the horse and society worlds walk the red carpet at Canfield Casino. Everyone, however, awaited the arrival of crucial social figure Marylou Whitney, the philanthropist and grand dame who annually made a spectacular entrance in a themed event that announced the festivities each season. A gala it was in every description, showmanship par excellence, which she put on since 1978 with her late husband Cornelius “Sonny” Vanderbilt Whitney, who died in 1991. They had been the king and queen of the horsey set and later Marylou continued producing the gala with her current husband John Hendrickson. As the Queen of Saratoga, Marylou bestowed a magical influence on Saratoga Springs not only through philanthropy but through a huge impact casting the social spotlight on Saratoga’s summer horse village. “Marylou saved this town,” at least that is what people say.

THE ANNUAL GALA

Every year, on the eve of the Whitney race, Marylou costumed herself in keeping with a fantasy theme, such as Snow White or Little Bo Peep or the Good Witch from The Wizard of Oz. Whether she appeared as a fairytale princess, a flapper era debutante or an Alaskan heroine her entrance was a crowd pleaser for Marylou was much loved by the town as their patron and savior. Although these events had carnival aspects, they were not stuffy affairs, and catered to the local crowd as well with dog and clown acts, fortune tellers and booths set up where people could eat burgers and indulge in make-your-own-sundae tastings. The social elite paid stiff sums for the fundraiser benefits, which included the National Museum of Dance, and for the privilege to attend a private party inside the casino with Marylou and her entourage of celebrity friends.

SARATOGA SPRINGS BACK

Nary a lightweight when it came to philanthropy Marylou’s was instrumental in reversing the tide of decline of a seemingly sleepy Saratoga in the 1950s by putting the Saratoga Springs, 150 miles north of New York City, high on the social scene by throwing those high-profile parties that brought celebrities, media, and much-need dollars to the racetrack. Her late husband’s family was a major force in thoroughbred horse racing and in 2003; she made a $100,000 donation to the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. The “Marylou Whitney Stables owns Bridstone, the 2004 Belmont Stakes and Travers Stakes winners.

MARRIAGE AND A NEW LIFE

In October 1997, when she was 72 years old Marylou (b. Marie Louise Schroeder 1925) married John Hendrickson, a (then) 32-year-old tennis champ and former aide to Governor Walter Joseph Hickel of Alaska. She met the very-junior John Hendrickson when she was in Alaska helping to ready her dog team for the Iditarod at a dinner party held by Governor Hickel. According to accounts there was an immediate attraction and she began spending a lot more time in Alaska. Hendrickson is no lightweight and had been managing land holdings in Alaska, so it is not surprising that later, as a vice president, he joined Whitney Industries, a lumber and logging business with 51,000 acres of critical Adirondack real estate. As for the glaring age difference between her and Hendrickson, Whitney once said, “He’s basically 31 going on 60. He’s older than me because I newer grew up. Perhaps it is because my father called me ‘Baby.” Hendrickson seems to be assuming a bit of the protector role that her late husband Sonny also played in her life.

ADIRONDACKS AND PHILANTHROPY

Hendrickson’s deft sale of 15,000 acres of Mrs. Whitney’s land in the Adirondacks proved he was more than just a semi-pretty face With John taking the lead some acres were sold to New York State and the acquired lands are called the Willam C. Whitney Wilderness Area. In 2007 Marylou and her husband John Hendrickson donated 250,000 to the Long Lake Library. In celebration of the gift, the library will be renamed The Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Long Lake Library. Together they have followed in the Whitney family’s legendary philanthropy and gave generous donations to the Long Lake Medical Center and the Long Lake United Methodist Church. And as breast cancer activists Marylou and Hendrickson donated $2.5 million for the Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson Center Facility for Women at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center.

HAIL TO THE QUEEN OF SARATOGA

Sadly Marylou suffered a stroke in early 2006, which seriously curtailed her celebrated activities in Saratoga. The planned summer gala that traditionally opened the racing season was to be “A Night in Alaska” by dog sled, and for the only woman who’s ever been to the South Pole and the North Pole within a period of four months, ‘A Night in Alaska’ would have been the quintessential event of all times. However, since having a stroke, Marylou has forsaken champagne nights, but the horse town has not forsaken the stalwart Queen of Saratoga and neither has anyone who has any horse sense. We salute her amazing ‘joie de vivre,’ her generous sense of philanthropy, a champion race horse owner and breeder and last but not least for putting Saratoga Springs on the map for future generations.

ESTHER HOWLAND FIRST LADY OF AMERICAN VALENTINES (C)

2010-02-10T14:59:00.000-08:00

LOVE TOKENS FROM THE HEART, THE GOLDEN AGE OF VALENTINES ©

By Polly Guerin

Lacy and beribboned, gilded with hearts, intertwined and pierced by Cupid’s dart, “Love Tokens From the Heart” were the frou-frou confections of lavish sentimentality, which identify with the Golden Age of Valentines, the years 1830 to 1860. These lavish confections, spilling forth with fancy paper work and sentimental verse, expressed an era and a time when the delicate art of romance was heightened by sending of charming valentine cards and greetings. So engaging is the custom that modern sentimentalists will be sending over a billion Valentine greetings, February 14th, making Valentine’s the second largest card-sending holiday.

THE POSTMAN COMETH

A popular magazine in 1850 explained the significance of the expected Valentine: “But of all the clamorous visitations in expectation is the sound that ushered in…a Valentine. The knock of the postman on the door this day is light, airy, confident and befitting of one that bringeth good tidings. A blessing on St. Valentine, the patron saint of the day, fraught with so many heart flutterings and heart enjoyments!” As the postman’s footsteps were heard along the street on Valentine’s Day ladies awaited the tell-tale knock at their door, which signaled the momentous arrival of a sweetheart’s sentiments. To be passed by was a devastating personal experience as it was observed by one’s next door neighbor who was peeking out of the window and awaiting the post as well. So much for Victorian foibles! The custom of sending valentines to loved ones was so well established that there was practical help for swains whose feeling went deeper than words. If the muse did not inspire there were little books of love poems, called “valentine writers”, which were available for copying by lovers who could not conjure up an original rhyme. Commercial valentines were soon to lead the way to a prolific business that spread from England to America.

TWO HEARTS ENTWINED

The first valentines were imported from England, where new graphic art techniques enabled publishers to produce valentines of extraordinary beauty, intricacy and delicacy. Of all the well-known makers in England and America two stand out above all others, Jonathan King of London and Ester Howland of Worcester, Massachusetts, the first lady of the American Valentines. The real inspiration behind Jonathan King’s business was his wife Clarissa who added glitter to cards simply by decorating them with powdered colored glass. King’s valentines were highly ornamented to catch the eye and prettily enhanced with fine net, lacy paper, silver and gold glitter, cupids, flowers and love birds. Valentine “bank notes” issued by the Bank of True Love were also in vogue at the time. Typically the sender promised to pay the sincere homage and never-failing devotion of an affectionate heart. The idea was pure fantasy and wit, but the notes were printed on actual bank note paper that looked so real that they very soon outlawed.

A VALENTINE HEROINE

The history of valentine greetings in America has one special heroine—Esther Howland. Esther was the daughter of Southworth A. Howland who ran the largest bookstore and stationery shop in Worcester, Massachusetts. The well-educated young woman, a graduate of Mount Holyoke Seminary was preparing to go into teaching, but when she saw a British valentine that her father had imported to introduce in his emporium, it sparked her artistic talent. Quite enchanted with the cards, Esther hit on the idea that she could make Valentines as pretty as the European kind, if not nicer, and set about doing so. When her brother, Allen, was scheduled to go on a horse-and-buggy sales trip to get orders for the next season Esther convinced him to take along a few samples of her cards. The handmade cards cost from $5 to $l0, a price that only the wealthy could afford, and the response was overwhelming. Esther expected her brother to sell $100 to $200 worth of the expensive cards. Instead he returned with orders for $5,000 worth. With such good sales results she was able to convince her family to let he go into business. The year was 1847. She persuaded her father to import embossed lacy paper and materials from England, and color pictures from a lithographer in New York. With all the material assembled, as well as artificial flowers, feathers, glitter, silk and lace, spun glass, colored papers, portraits and romantic scenes, Esther rounded up her “staff.” She took over a bedroom in the family home as a factory, creating prototyped designs for her helpers to copy. They worked in an assembly-line fashion. One person cut out pictures; another made backgrounds, and so on around the table the valentine confections were assembled as each girl added further embellishment. As time went on, Esther Howland's, assembly-line production of these Valentines did exceedingly well and the business expanded to a $100,000 a year enterprise. It was an astonishing accomplishment and huge sum for 1848.

COPYCATS EMERGE

It was not long before other entrepreneurial individuals recognized a good thing and established similar businesses with valentine cards that bore a striking resemblance to Esther Howland’s. Legend has it that among one of her employees was George Whitney, who later established his own business. The striking resemblance of the Whitney valentines in decorative art collections today proves out the fact that Whitney’s valentines closely resemble those of Esther Howland, even to the small red “W” stamp at the back of each card, similar to the “H” used by Miss Howland. When her widowed father became deathly ill in 1880, his dutiful daughter gave up her business to be at her father’s side.

SHE BROUGHT ROMANCE TO MILLIONS

By all accounts Esther Howland by Victorian standards was an attractive young woman and wore the fashionable attire, perhaps having her gowns made by a seamstress who copied styles form Godey’s Lady’s Book, the quintessential arbiter of style which featured colored fashion plates from England, selected by the venerable editor, Sarah Josepha Hale. With an excellent family background, a good education and a fine bearing, one would have thought that many a beaux would have courted the First Lady of Valentines, but, sadly, she never had a sweetheart of her own and died a spinster in 1904. Lets toast the First lady of Valentines whose greetings lavished with lace; love and sentimentality were the epitome of a romantic bygone era.♥

Visit Polly at www.pollytalk.com.

DORIS DUKE A UNIQUE BENEVOLENT HEIRESS

2010-02-02T11:58:00.000-08:00

DORIS DUKE A UNIQUE BENEVOLENT HEIRESS

Dear Doris: When I visited Rough Point, your mansion in Newport, Rhode Island a few years ago, I was struck by the massive life-depicting painting that hangs in a stairwell, where a beautiful, blonde young girl stares out of the picture with a poignant gaze into the unknown future. Commissioned by your father James Buchanan Duke, who founded the American Tobacco Company and endowed Duke University, this is a portrait of You, Doris Duke, that young girl who would become an heiress, a philanthropist and benefactor of artists, medical research, and charities that support the environment and work to prevent child abuse. As founder of the Newport Restoration Foundation (1968) you may not have wielded the hammer and nails yourself but much of your fortune and time was spent on restoring over 80 Colonial buildings in Newport, Rhode Island, where you spent your summers at your mansion home, Rough Point. THE GOLDEN SWAN

Over the years you became a golden swan with a generous spirit and during your lifetime you gave away more than $400 million to various causes. You are an amazing art deco diva, brainy, athletic, cultured, a world traveler, but most of all you were not frivolous but had strong convictions about your humanitarian concern for giving back to society and by turning your wealth toward historical preservation and bettering the world through generous endowments to support numerous institutions. A lover of animals, particularly your dogs, and pet camels, in later years you became a wildlife refuge supporter. With amazing foresight when you were just 21 years old you established a foundation called “Independent Aid,” an organization which eventually became The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation,” an organization that still operates today. For all this we salute your integrity and prolific philanthropy, and honor your memory.

A MEDIA FRENZIE

A great deal has been written about how you inherited an immense fortune, an estate estimated at $80 million, at your father’s death in 1925. You were a mere twelve years old and the media was quick to dub you the “Million Dollar Baby” and later “The Richest Woman in the World. On his deathbed, her father wisely cautioned his young daughter to “trust no one,” a piece of fatherly advice that would forever resonate in your impressionable mind. Doris’ mother on the other hand was only left a modest trust fund and inevitably it strained their already tenable relationship. Showing her mettle, when Duke was only 14 years old, she was forced to sue her mother, Nanaline Duke, in order to stop her from selling family assets. However, Mrs. Duke had considerable say in the matter of her daughter’s upbringing and when Doris wanted to attend college, her mother forbade it. Instead she took Doris on a grand tour of Europe, where she was presented as a debutante in London. Such travels may have forged Doris’ pleasure as a globetrotting enthusiast throughout her life. One thing was quite clear about Doris’ character. While other heiresses sought press coverage, Doris shunned it and was a reluctant celebrity avoiding the glare of publicity and refusing interviews. She had a private persona that forged an aura of mystery and speculation. ROMANCE AND THE HEIRESS

It is not surprising that upon entering the social world of continental society that the lovely, statuesque Miss Duke with her golden tresses and athletic good looks would attract suitors. In 1935 at the age of 22, she stunned everyone when she hastily married aspiring politician and semi-millionaire, James H.R. Cromwell (Jimmy), who was sixteen years her senior, the son of Palm Beach, Florida doyenne Eve Stotesbury. After a two-year around the world honeymoon, Doris and her husband arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii, where they built a house named Shangri-La (after the mythical land where no one grows old), in which she created her own decorating style filling it with Islamic art which she began collecting in the 1930s and a notable collection of Southeast Asian Art. A non-conformist, Doris was not bound by the usual rules of decorum and developed a rather magical oasis in Shangri-La, where she dressed in her version of Oriental splendor surrounded by world-class treasures. Cromwell meanwhile, a New Deal advocate, had ambition and used his wife’s fortune to enter the political arena, becoming U.S. Ambassador to Canada in 1940. The couple had a daughter, Arden, who lived only for one day. They divorced in 1943. While living in Hawaii, it is not surprising that Duke became the first woman to take up competition surfing. After all, she had been swimming in the ocean right off the coast of her Newport mansion, Rough Point, for quite some time and had developed the strength and stamina to withstand its rugged waters. Hawaii would be a similar challenge. Under the tutelage of surfing champion and Olympic swimmer Duke Kahanamoku and his brothers she tackled the sport like a true champion.

A NOTORIOUS PLAYBOY

It seems to me that women of great wealth often become easy targets of marriages that make the headlines. According to reports Miss Duke was pretty happy most of the time, traveling, obtaining treasures from around the world and whatever delights she could not easily obtain, she bought. Over the course of her long life, she also acquired an impressive roster of lovers and a second husband, who cost her a fortune. While in Paris in 1947, Doris became the third wife of Porfirio Rubirosa, a diplomat from the Dominican Republic and a notorious playboy. Because of her great wealth, Duke’s marriage to Rubirosa attracted the attention of the U.S. State Department, which cautioned her against using her money to promote political agendas in this alliance. Although a pre-nuptial agreement protected her financial interest, she still gave Rubirosa several million dollars in gifts, including a stable of polo ponies, sports cars, a convert B-25 bomber, and, a 17th-century house in Paris in the divorce settlement. After this debacle Duke never remarried.
DORIS’ ROUGH POINT

Inside the sprawling Rough Point mansion, which was originally built by Frederick W. Vanderbilt in 1887, one can see the lifestyle of an heiress with a passion for collecting. Twenty years after Shangri La, Duke turned her attention to Rough Point, where she had grown up. Completely emptied several years before, after her mother stopped coming to Newport each summer, the house was a blank canvas for Doris to decorate with art and furnishings from Duke Farms, the family’s New York house, as well as the great art dealers and auction houses. Duke was ahead of her time in her taste for exotic décor, the floors were covered in Persian and Indian carpets and the house had object d’art throughout. Her art treasures include antique furniture, and everywhere hang paintings by masters like Gainsborough, Van Dyck and Renoir. When it came to creating a glamorous and luxurious bedroom Duke chose an entire bedroom set and accessories in glowing mother-of-pearl, which was made in Vienna around 1820, with the exception of the impressive secretary desk, which was made in Goa, a Portuguese colony in western India, circa 1800. Duke bought the mother-of-pearl furniture suite at Parke-Benet Galleries in New York in April 1966 for $18,500. The music room was the site of numerous musicales and a caretaker at Rough Point told me that Doris loved jazz music so much that she became an amateur jazz pianist and often performed with a jazz group. With such a passion for jazz, it is quite understandable why she frequently made anonymous gifts to starving musicians. In 1993 Rough Point was willed to the Newport Restoration Foundation, complete with all of its contents. It was her wish that it be opened to the public as a house museum. http://www.newportrestoration.org.

SANDCASTLES AND GOODBYE

Among the great treasures in Rough Point is the reminder of a child’s Newport summer, which may surprise the visitor. One of the most charming items on display in the home of this heiress sits little trophies Doris won while making sandcastles on Newport Beach. Those are the halcyon days of her childhood but now the treasures from this house belong to the public, as he continuing gift of giving to a world made better by her philanthropy. She was a woman of considerable chic and was considered one of the best dressed in society. On any day, one might also get to see some of the custom-made couture fashions that she wore throughout her life, by designers such as Dior, Givenchy, Halston and Pucci, to name a few. We sadly say adieu to a woman whose life mantra, above all else, was philanthropy. We shall also remember her as a stalwart patron of historic preservation and environmental conservation.

MILLICENT ROGERS, HEIRESS, CHAMPION OF AMERICAN SOUTHWEST

2010-01-26T12:09:00.001-08:00

By Polly Guerin

Millicent Rogers Glamorous icon and Taos Flower
Dear Millicent: It was only when I visited Santa Fe, New Mexico and made an excursion to Taos that I discovered the Millicent Rogers Museum, housed in an imposing historic and expanded Taos dwelling with its remarkable collection of Southwest art. I was particularly impressed with the contemporary pieces of Native American jewelry as well as the stunning pieces you created from your love of this desert oasis. My curiosity was peaked. Who was Millicent Rogers? Your life’s story is remarkable in itself as it was short lived but impacted with adventure, affairs, family and your great love for the Southwest.

A LIFE SPARED and JOIE DE VIVRE

The magnificent, multi-dimensional woman who was Mary Millicent Abigail Rogers (1902-1953), the granddaughter of the Standard Oil tycoon Henry Huddleston Rogers, became a mother, a socialite, a philanthropist, a designer and a champion of the arts and crafts of the Southwest. She was brought up in lavish Jazz Age South Fork, Southampton, Long Island, but she was’t supposed survive to witness the glittering Art Deco era of the 1930s. So fragile was her health because of a childhood bout with rheumatic fever she was expected to die before the age of 10 or so the doctors had predicted. Not this stalwart young woman. Despite the illness’ life-threatening effect, she had a remarkable but short life. She plunged into every aspect of her existence like a bold eagle and swooped into the headlines when she married three times. She was told to never give birth she had three sons. She not only illustrated dinosaur stories for her boys but when one of her son’s broke his leg as a child, she decorated his cast with a comical tale of a Koala bear. Other illness followed, but that did not stop her stampede through life. She had several debilitating heart attacks and a battle with double pneumonia but soldiered on with the zeal of conqueror and her considerable intellect forged her passion for living life to its fullest.

AN ARTISTIC VISION

Instead of hitting the headlines like other heiress’ of the Jazz Age era, Millicent’s view on life was that of an innovator, a creator and a champion of the Southwest. Despite her ‘gaunt’ visage, she was an acclaimed beauty with a sylphlike shape and had a unique creative vision and intellect. Although bedridden for long periods of time, Millicent read voluminously and became a classical scholar teaching herself to read Latin and ancient Greek. In this way and through her fashion style she reinvented herself and her lifestyle throughout her short life. A friend Charles James, designer of the extravagant couture concoctions, his fashions were well suited to adorn her statuesque figure. Inspired she even sketched costumes for her multicultural wardrobe. Most significantly she ornamented her 5-foot-9 frame with many of her own Southwest-inspired jewelry designs. A prolific collector she acquired antiques and furniture from Beidermeier to the Ashcan School of art that filled her homes in Austria, New York, Jamaica, New Mexico, California and Virginia. DISCOVERING TAOS

Although Millicent lived in many places after she discovered, Taos, New Mexico and moved there in 1947, where she ensconced herself in an old adobe hacienda. During this time of prolific creation, discovery and collecting she amassed an astounding collection of some six thousand pieces of jewelry, which include some prehistoric Southwest works. With her considerable intellect and appreciation for Native American Culture she had traveled and collected artifacts by attending numerous fairs and pueblos in the Southwest. As she became increasing incapacitated due to her illnesses when her Taos house was renovated, a workshop with facilities for casting was placed off her bedroom. Influenced and inspired by Navajo and Pueblo jewelry, Millicent who had trained herself to be productive though bedridden, learned their metalworking techniques. As her health failed, she spent more time in this bedroom designing and creating her personal style of Southwest jewelry, which is displayed today in the eponymous Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos, New Mexico.
LOVE & ADVENTURE

Despite the fact that her father was afraid of fortune hunters, Millicent was kept on a fairly tight leash, but she managed at the same to have her way. The drama of her fashion penchant was apparent early on when she made her debut in a Mandarin robe and a head dress from Chinatown. At 20, she married Count Ludwig von Salm- Hoogtraten, moved to Austria, where she took up skiing and dirndls. After divorcing the Count she moved back to the United States and after two more husbands, divorced and gave it all up and settled down for the simple life in Taos. It’s amazing to note that despite a lifetime plagued by illness, many celebrated men were attracted to Millicent not only for her intellect but bounders captured her heart and her cash. A flirtation with the future Duke of Windsor, Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond were among her diversions as well as an early adventure with an heir to the Italian throne, who reportedly wanted to marry her. Evfer the amoureuse, of all her lovers Millicent seems to have had a poignant memory of a romance with Clark Gable and wrote letters to the movie star attesting to her lost love.

A SAD FAREWELL

Millicent Rogers died quite young, a mere 51 years old, but the life of this society swan and her upbringing at Black Point, Southampton, where she learned to shoot with her father Harry Rogers II, brought out an independent streak that served her well during her life so short but vibrantly enacted. She crammed her days with learning, creating, collecting and championing the arts and crafts of the American Southwest and creating and producing her own brand of Southwest-inspired jewelry. Despite her many illnesses Millicent’s remarkable spirit, determination, creativity and her unwavering hold on taking life to its fullest capacity is an inspiration.

EUNICE W. JOHNSON MAVERICK FASHION ICON

2010-01-12T12:42:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

KUDOS TO YOU EBONY FASHION FAIR LADY
Dear Ms. Johnson: I applaud your life of amazing achievement. As wife of the late John H. Johnson, publisher and chairman of Johnson Publishing Company, Inc. you partnered in 1945 by naming the company’s flagship magazine geared to black readers, by calling it "Ebony,"after the fine-grain dark wood. It remains the world’s most popular Black-oriented magazine in which you also wrote a special fashion feature. However, imprinted in my memory is the fact that you produced and directed the iconic Ebony Fashion Fair, a traveling fashion show that set the pace for black fashion for half a century. I bow with admiration to your powerful persona and also to you as a leading lady, as a businesswoman and as a philanthropist, and a visionary who also created the Fashion Fair cosmetics a leading product line for women of color.

THE FASHION FAIR

As a member of the fashion press I had the opportunity to observe firsthand the Ebony Fashion Fair, which was usually held on Sunday afternoons, and how lovely a scene did the audience portray. Dressed in their Sunday best, hats and gloves the ladies arrived fully expecting to view an extravaganza the likes of which had never been presented to the black community before. The exciting fashion show made over 175 cities during its annual tour of the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean. From the start the tours aim was to bring attention to aspiring young black designers, including Leonora Levon, Quinton de’ Alexander and L’Amour, and to present the best of the haute couture to the black community. Over the years the fair focused on charity and raised more than $55 million for both local and national charitable organizations, civil rights groups, hospitals, community centers and scholarships. Your vision and your largesse make you Royal Celebrity in the annals of fashion history.

LAUNCHING MODELS’ CAREERS

It is a known fact that the Ebony Fashion Fair traveling runway shows are credited with launching the careers of many African-American models and most importantly, changing perceptions of minorities in fashion. Statuesque African-American models like Pat Cleveland, Tyra Banks and Naomi Campbell, Iman and Beverly Johnson have graced those runways. When Mrs. Johnson was in Paris attending the couture shows to purchase fashions for the Fashion Fair shows, she even convinced Valentino to use black models in his shows in the 60s. Using the power of her prestige and deep pockets she threatened that if he could not find black models, she’d get some for him. Then she added, “And if you can’t use them we’re not going to buy from you anymore.” Obviously that was before he was famous. According to Johnson Publishing Co., the Ebony Fashion Fair has produced more than 4,000 shows and continues today to fulfill its role model for black women worldwide.

ATTENDING THE COUTURE

One day when I was covering the couture fashion shows in Paris as a journalist for WWD, I was on my way to the Yves St. Laurent show and bumped into Audrey Smaltz, who was working on the shows and assisting Mrs. Johnson. Audrey recalled how Mrs. Johnson traveled to the fashion capitals of the world including Paris, Milan, Rome, London, New York and Los Angeles to personally select and purchase more than 200 garments by internationally acclaimed designers and couture houses to be featured in the shows and for which she spent over $1 million annually. Resistance by the couture to sell to Mrs. Johnson soon vanished when they realized her considerable influence and buying power. Mrs. Johnson began producing the shows in 1963 and it rapidly become the most talked-about fashion event across the United States.
FASHION FAIR COSMETICS

Something else seriously concerned Mrs. Johnson. She noticed that the Ebony Fashion Fair models were struggling unsuccessfully to find cosmetics in shades that matched their deeper skin tones. It gave her the idea of starting, in 1973, Fashion Fair Cosmetics, a prestige line that African-American women could buy, for the first time, in major retail department stores. The first lady of cosmetics for black women revolutionized the cosmetic industry and due to the growing popularity of Fashion Fair Cosmetics influenced firms like Revlon to produce a line called Polished Ambers for black skins, Avon followed and so did Max Factor. Fashion Fair cosmetics for women of color is sold in nearly 1,000 stores across the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, France, England, Canada, Switzerland and other foreign countries.

GROWING UP IN SELMA, ALABAMA

Eunice Walker was born in Salem, Alabama on April 4, 1916. As a youngster growing up in Selma Eunice was always fascinated by style and clothing. Not only did she make clothing for her dolls but it was her physician father, Dr. Nathaniel D. Walker who took the greatest pride in the shirts that she made even working the button holes by hand. It’s no wonder therefore that Eunice earned her high school degree in sewing and tailoring at the high school at Selma University. She graduated from Talladega College in Talladega, Alabama in 1938 with a degree in sociology and earned a master’s degree in social work from Loyola University in Chicago in 1941. She met John H. Johnson at a dance in Chicago in 1940, and they married after she graduated from Loyola. Throughout her lifetime Eunice Johnson has received numerous awards and among the Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters conferred on her by institutions of higher learning Talladega College is prominent among them, renaming its Division of Social Services and Education in her name and inducting Johnson into the university’s prestigious hall of fame.

FAIR THEE WELL

It is no surprise that a planned event was scheduled to honor Eunice Johnson. As reported in Women’s Wear Daily, the trade fashion bible of the industry, the “FAIR WELL” event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Temple of Dendur was a luncheon planned for months in advance to honor Eunice W. Johnson. The event, however, took on an added poignancy when the famed philanthropist, co-founder of Ebony magazine and the Ebony Fashion Fair passed away on Jan 3, 2010 at the age of 93. The event became a celebration of a life’s achievement and a tribute to the Mrs. Johnson. Pat Cleveland recalled, “I met Mrs. Johnson when I was 14. She put me in her fashion fair.” Accolades poured in and most notably was a letter from President Obama, in which he paid tribute to Johnson’s legacy. “As a philanthropist and entrepreneur, Eunice wrote a chapter in history.” And so we must say goodbye and Fair Thee Well for you deserve the praise of the angels and paid homage by the world that has lost one of its most amazing women.

UNSUNG POLISH HEROINE IRENE SENDLER

2010-01-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

IRENE SENDLER

AN UNSUNG POLISH HEROINE (C)

by Polly Guerin

Dear Ms. Sendler: I address you so formally out of great respect and profound admiration for an amazing woman who saved 2,500 Jewish children during World War II by smuggling them out of the Warsaw Ghetto and providing them with false documents and sheltering them in individual and group children’s homes outside the Ghetto. One wonders how such a woman, the Mother of All Mothers, had the courage to perform this delicate and difficult work right under the surveillance of the Germans. Alas that is a story that deserves further exploration and with your permission I will tell how she evolved and became a national heroine.

A SYMPATHETIC CHILDHOOD

Early on Irena, nee Krzyzanowska, (2.15.1910-5.12.2008), commonly referred to as Irena Sendlerowa, from early childhood sympathized with Jews. A Polish catholic she had reason to align herself with the Jewish community. Familiarity and acquaintance with Jews were a household occurrence. It was the practice of her physician father to regularly treat Jewish patients, but unfortunately he died from typhus, which he had contracted from one them. That however, did not diminish Irena’s rally cause. Later on it was evident that this spirited young woman would show strengths of character that was etched in her upbringing. Once in her lifetime she said, “You cannot separate people based on race or religion.” As a student she opposed the ghetto-bench system that existed in prewar Polish universities and as a result she was suspended from Warsaw University for three years.

THE GERMAN OCCUPATION

It was very risky to aid Jews. A Nazi German poster of the era in German and Polish (Warsaw, 1942) threatened death to any Pole who aided Jews. It was a dire time. An unbelievable period of horror in the annals of wartime history. Not only the rescuer, but all household members’ risked death if they were found to be hiding Jews, but that did not deter Irena. As early as 1939 while working for urban Social Welfare departments during the German occupation of Poland, Irena began aiding Jews. Assisted by some two dozen helpers, she and her team created over 3,000 false documents to help Jewish families aided and abetted by the Zegota, the Polish resistance organization which nominated her by her cover name “Jolanta” to head its children’s section.

ENTERING THE GHETTO

This brave young woman, a beauty by classic standards, was about to fulfill her calling that paved the way to rescue countless children. Fortunately, the Nazis feared the spread of typhus, which they suspected came from the Ghetto and this threat opened the way for Irena to openly enter the Ghetto, as an employee of the Social Welfare Department. As a result she had a special permit to frequently go to the Ghetto to check for signs of typhus. To show her solidarity with the Jewish people, however, during these visits she wore a Star of David so as not to call attention to herself. You can imagine how difficult it must have been to smuggle children out of the ghetto or for the Jewish parents to part with their children. Because of her cover as a social worker she organized the smuggling of Jewish children out of the Ghetto carrying them in boxes, suitcases and on trolleys. She smuggled out babies and small children in ambulances and trams, sometimes disguising them as packages.

PLACING THE CHILDREN

The children were provided with false documents and sheltered in individual and group children’s homes outside the Ghetto. Some children were placed with Polish families, the Warsaw orphanage of the Sisters of the Family of Mary, or Roman Catholic convents such as the Little Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary Conceived Immaculate at Turkowice and Chotomow, and in some cases left in the care of priests in parish rectories. Irena had a clever plan and managed to conceive a unique method of documenting the children’s identities and concealing the information from the Nazis. She hid lists of the children’s names in jars, which she buried in the ground, in order to keep track of their original and new identities. In an effort to comfort the children she assured them that, when the war was over, they would be returned to their Jewish relatives. It was an honorable dream and for some of the child survivors though they most likely were not reunited with their families (most perished in the Treblinka concentration camp) this information would be invaluable to re-establishing their Jewish identity.

IRENA IS ARRESTED

The Nazis were on to Irena’s trail of deception and in 1943, she was arrested by the Gestapo, severely tortured and sentenced to death. It’s a wonder that she survived such brutal treatment as during the interrogation both her arms and legs had been broken. Zegota, the Polish underground, did not desert their comrade. They saved her by bribing German guards and on the way to her execution they left her in the woods, unconscious and near death. After her rescue and for the remainder of the war, she lived in hiding but was listed on public bulletin boards as among those who had been executed. Perhaps it was her youthfulness and healthy countenance that helped her to heal during this time, but Irena’s reserve was strong and her seclusion did not stop her work for the Jewish children. After the war she dug up the jars containing the children’s identities and attempted to find the children and return them to their parents. Sadly this rarely happened. However, in 2005 when Irena was 95 years old she was visited by some of the children she had saved. Her mantra was clear and simple, “You cannot separate people based on their race or religion. You can only separate people by good and evil. The good will always triumph.”

ACCOLADES POUR IN

Although Irena was modest about her role during the war the world was beginning to recognize her finest achievement. In 2003 Pope John II sent a personal letter praising her wartime effort and on October 10th, 2003 she received the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest civilian decoration, and the Jan Karski Award “For Courage and Heart,” given the American Center of Polish Culture in Washington, D. C. The fact that she was not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 did not daunt the righteous woman. In a letter addressing the Polish Parliament she said, “Every child saved with my help is the justification of my existence on this Earth, and not a title to glory.” In May 2009, Irena Sendler was posthumously granted the Audrey Hepburn Humanitarian Award, named in honor of the late actress and UNICEF ambassador.

LIFE IN A JAR

It is poignant to know that children were the inspiration for Irena’s story gaining worldwide recognition. In 1999 young students in Kansas were so take up with Irena Sendler’s story that they wrote a play called, Life in a Jar, (after her hiding place for documents). Since 2009 there has been over 285 performances of this play which brought the media attention that made Irena Sendler a world-famous icon. He story based on this play was also portrayed in a Hallmark hall of Fame production in 2009. The cast visited Sendler in Warsaw a week before her death. Her final words to them were, “You have changed Poland, you have changed the United States, you have changed the world (by bringing my story to light). Poland has seen great changes in Holocaust education, in the perception of the time and have provided a grand hero for their country and the world. I love you very, very much.” A documentary film by American filmmaker Mary Skinner, “Irena Sendler, In the name of Their Mothers” is planned for worldwide release in 2010. http://www.irenasendlerfilm.com .

And now it is time to say goodbye to dear Irena Sendler whose life is etched in the collective memory of children of the Warsaw Ghetto who were saved by her intervention through love and humanitarianism. You have set an exemplary example of extraordinary courage and noble spirit that inspires and makes us look in awe upon your finest achievement as the amazing woman who rescued over 2,500 children.

FAITH KEANE REICHERT Fiesty 108 Year Old Icon

2009-12-19T10:07:00.000-08:00

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY FAITH"
Dear Faith: "Happy Birthday To You" at the age of 108 in 2009. As you held court in your wheelchair at a celebration held by The Roundtable of Fashion Executives, we all bowed in homage to your amazing mind, so clear as a bell, sharp as a tack and all that, and much, much more praise for your longevity astounds and leaves us in genuine “Awe”. Your many admirers lined up to greet you and when my turn came you remembered me by saying how you enjoyed reading my PollyTalk column. So extraordinary was your comment that I was quite stunned by your clarity and remarkable memory. So here we are reaching for the stars when you have already been there and back over a century of living life well and full of wonder and achievement.

‘FAITH’FUL LONGEVITY

My dear Faith, I salute your longevity. As you celebrate your long and illustrious life one can only stand in awe regarding the extraordinary events that transpired during your lifetime as a resident of New York City. Just think of it. You were born Helen Faith Keane in 1901, which means that the tumultuous years of WWI transpired, followed by the Art Deco 1925 Jazz era, then in the1930s The Great Depression spread through the years before WWII, then came other skirmishes and events through which you were challenged. Yet you have survived it all and in style. Daughter of polish immigrants you stood steadfast to the your destiny becoming a fashion icon, a radio and television personality, a professor at NYU for thirty years, and much, much more. Your amazing youthfulness and family background is the perfect ingredient for a novel in itself. As I look at Faith today I can still see the determination in her spirit which no doubt she possessed as a twenty year old woman.

“HAPPY” WITH LIFE

The ebullient Faith had a knack for acquiring admiring nicknames, but perhaps the one that stuck most was “Happy,” for indeed she is and was happy about all her life, her congenial family and he great love for people. However, while “Happy” Faith is 108 in 2009 she is not alone. It is amazing to realize that her brothers, Irving (103) still runs his law office with his two sons and Peter (97) were alive as was Faith as well as sister Lee, who has since passed, for the building, the sinking, the salvaging and the filming of the Titanic. This experience plus many other epic events during their lifetime leave an indelible mark on their record of longevity. So much so, that the siblings have assisted with various medical research projects hoping to pin down any possible genes that might help medicine understand their longevity and health at advanced ages. Though nothing definitive came up it remains a mystery how the remaining trio in this four family saga is still active and enjoying their longevity. The family’s longevity continues to be of great interest and has been featured nationally on shows such as “Good Morning America” and in print in the Wall Street Journal. Even Oprah Winfrey called to take the four siblings in for a week in Chicago. “Lee who was alive at the time had never heard of Oprah before, Faith said. “When we explained to her about the show, she said only fools would watch television in the afternoon.” She added, “Don’t people have anything better to do than watch television.” So that epic Oprah viewing was squelched.

ROWING WITH FAITH

It seems to me that Faith had a rather normal upbringing that segued into a fine education. She attended Cornell University where she was a member of the women’s rowing team, and from which she would graduate Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in English in 1925. She later earned an MA in psychology from Columbia University. Now let me diverge and tell you about the rowing team. Faith is arguably the most well-known alumna of the women’s crew and when she returned to the Ithaca Campus several years ago she brought her own degree of fiestiness back to Cornell, her old stomping grounds. Faith pointed out to the new rowers how times have changed from when women needed to have parental permission to be active participants in sports. Faith, the oldest living female rower at Cornell, who coxswained the crew, circa 1925 recalls, “My sport for two wonderful years was rowing, but I never competed.” Faith is truly a renaissance woman who has had years fulfilling her destiny in fashion, broadcasting and education.

FAITH’S MULTI FACED CAREER

Before becoming a legendary broadcaster, Faith excelled in various fields. First as an $l8 a week copywriter for six years at Bloomingdale’s department store and graduating to the position of Fashion Coordinator. Then she moved on to Montgomery Ward as fashion coordinator for their catalog and retail stores, but along came academia to lure her away from retail. While still working day shifts at Montgomery Ward Faith began to work as a teacher, teaching night courses in fashion advertising at New York University. She eventually joined the faculty of NYU in their school of retailing, teaching first part time then full time regaling students for thirty years.

A TALK SHOW HOSTESS

An outspoken innovator Faith landed a job on television when she complained about a show with which she was displeased. The producer invited her to lunch and he offered her her own program. This gave birth to the “Helen Faith Keane Show…For Your Information” aimed at women which aired for one year over WABD, a Dumont-owned station. The show eventually won the Mcall’s Mike award in 1951. For Faith, what’s changed most during her long life are, “The social mores regarding sex and intimacy. “You have to realize that during the 50s era being pregnant in public was considered entirely too intimate.” Faith did however touch on topics such as, ‘ask your doctor about breast cancer.’ About the development of her program Faith recalls, “The ladies would write to me with their questions and, when I received sufficient interest in a particular topic, I would seek an expert who could address it.”

GETTING PERSONAL

This early pioneer of a woman’s talk shows also found time to get married. Her husband, Dr. Philip Reichert, a prominent cardiologist, was a graduate of Cornell Medical School (class of 1923) and throughout their lifetime together Faith had wonderful support from her husband. He died in 1985. The couple had no children, but one can surmise that the vast audience she reached with her talk show, and the huge student body that attended Faith’s classes at NYU and including all the fashion women she mentored were indeed her vicarious offspring’s.

THE ROUNDTABLE DEBUT

An innovator from the start Faith joined two other colleagues to form a different fashion organization. At a time when The Fashion Group International had become so big that it was no longer possible to get to know other women in the industry, it was fortuitously that Helen Faith Keane and Lucia Forman and Betty Greene, decided in 1949 to establish a satellite organization, The Roundtable of Fashion Executives to fulfill the purpose of co-mingling with like-minded women executives. Originally they called the organization Vox Pop, the Voice of the Public, but in 1952 when Dupont refused to write a check to Vox Pop, you all changed the name to The Roundtable of Fashion Executives, and the name remains the same today. My how times have changed in this exchange-of-information membership. Meetings were led by a member who selected a topic, started the program and all members contributed spontaneously. Occasionally, meetings featured guest speakers, and members were permitted to bring guests. When you met in the 1950’s at the Ritz Carlton Hotel lunch cost $3.50 and by the 1990s at the Princeton Club lunch costs rose to $35, and today real individual lunch costs are $45 to $50. Meetings sometimes became Brown- Bag, to avoid the increasing luncheon costs. Today, The Roundtable of Female Executives remains loyal to its original mission.

KEEPING THE FAITH

Dear Faith, You are a living legend!!! Your amazing career from copywriter to television host and New York University marketing professor leaves me in total awe with admiration for your many accomplishments. Thank you for your generosity, your feisty spirit, you’re mentoring of so many women during your lifetime and still going ever forward defying aging. My heartfelt congratulations to a woman I heartily praise, and innovator, energetic, opinionated and marvelous!!!

AUDREY HEPBURN ICON OF THE 20TH CENTURY

2009-12-11T05:21:00.000-08:00

AUDREY HEPBURN STYLE ICON OF THE 20th CENTURY (c) By Polly Guerin

AUDREY HEPBURN, Fashion Trend Setter, Philanthropy, UNICEF Good Will Ambassador

Dear Audrey: When you played a model in the film Funny Face, when you played the chauffeur’s daughter in Sabrina and came back from Paris chic and soigne carrying a little French poodle, and when you played Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I remember how you were my favorite fashion diva. It was from these movies that your on screen persona captured my imagination. Like so many other admirers I coveted your aristocratic and iconic style. Your wardrobe of simplicity and seemingly effortless elegance, aided and abetted by the young French couturier Hubert de Givenchy personified the chic elegance of the 1950s and 1960s. Commenting about Givenchy who became your lifelong friend and collaborator you once said, “It was as though I was born to wear his clothes.” However, you were more than meets the eye of film star celebrity. Later I came to know you, as did the world at large, that you were not just a film star but a philanthropist and goodwill ambassador to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and later your son’s Sean Ferrer and Luca Dotti, created the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund in order to continue your humanitarian work.
BIRTH OF A STYLE ICON
By gazing at Audrey’s beautiful face one would never imagine the depredation of Audrey’s early life. Born in Ixelles, a principality in Brussels, Belgium as Audrey Kathleen Ruston (May 4, 1929-January 20, 1993), she was the only child of Joseph Victor Anthony Ruston, an English banker, and his second wife, Baroness Ella van Heemstra, a Dutch aristocrat. Although born in Belgium, Audrey had British citizenship and attended school in England as a child. Her father’s job with a British insurance company enabled the family to travel frequently between Brussels, England and The Netherlands. However, Audrey spent her childhood chiefly in the Netherlands, including the German-occupied Arnhem, Netherlands, during the Second World Wear (1939-1945). Her father later prepended the surname of his maternal grandmother, Kathleen Hepburn, to the family’s and Audrey’s surname became Hepburn-Ruston.
HARDSHIP IN WARTIME
In 1935, Hepburn’s parents divorced and her father, a Nazi sympathizer, left the family. This sad event in Audrey’s young life was later referred to as the most traumatic moment of her life, but more events to shadow her history are were to come. In 1939, her mother moved her and her two half-brothers to their grandfather’s home in Arnhem in the Netherlands, believing that the Netherlands would be safe from German attack. It was at this time that Audrey trained in ballet. However, in 1940, the Germans invaded the Netherlands. During the occupation Audrey adopted the pseudonym Edda van Heemstra, modifying her mother’s documents because an ‘English sounding’ name was considered dangerous. It wasn’t popular to be British and “Audrey” might indicate her British roots too strongly. Being English in occupied Holland was not an asset: it could attract attention and result in confinement or even deportation. During the Dutch famine of 1944 Audrey and many others resorted to making flour out of tulip bulbs to bake cakes and biscuits. She developed acute anemia, respiratory problems, and edema. Most significantly the hardships she suffered during the war (constant anxiety and hunger) left her physically weakened.
PURSUING HER DREAM
In 1948 Audrey left the Netherlands with her mother Baroness Ella van Heemstra to pursue her dream of becoming a ballerina. However, the toll of wartime hardships that affected her stamina, combined with her height (5ft 7in) coupled with her poor nutrition during the war, meant that she was rejected for prima ballerina roles for which she had studied for so earnestly in Arnhem and London. She turned to other possible careers—working in the chorus line, modeling and acting. The rest is history. Ballet’s loss was cinema and the fashion world’s gain. During the filming of Monte Caro Baby Audrey was chosen to play the lead character in the Broadway play GiGi, which opened at the Fulton theatre in 1951. Providence played into her life when the writer Colette first saw Hepburn, she reportedly exclaimed, “Voila! There’s our Gigi!” Her film credits are extensive and legendary tributes to a great movie actress who survived it all with great grace and perseverance.
THE HEPBURN STYLE
Audrey had a sense of her own unique, personal style. When she was first sent to the couture house of Givenchy the great couturier was expecting the other ‘Miss Hepburn’---Katherine. From the moment he met her his assumed disappointment gave way to adoration. She preferred to wear pastel colors, black and ivory with the occasional hot-pink statement. Givenchy said of her, “All the responsibility for the way Audrey looked is hers. She made the selections.” One wonders how Audrey acquired such elegant and simplistic taste. No doubt, it is as the French say, ‘je n’est ce pas,’ something that is inborn. Further attesting to her unique style sense when I was on assignment in Hollywood, California I interviewed Edith Head, the multi-Oscar winning film costumier about her book, ‘The Dress Doctor,’ she said, “Like Dietrich, Audrey’s fittings became the ten-hour not the ten-minute variety. She knew exactly how she wanted to look or what worked best for her, yet she was never arrogant or demanding. She had an adorable sweetness that made you feel like a mother getting her only daughter ready for the prom.” Audrey was 5ft 7 inches tall, bust 32in, waist 22in, hips 34in. For most of her life these measurements altered but slightly.
The Wedding Called Off
One of the legendary garments auctioned in December 2009 at Kerry Taylor Auctions in London included the ivory satin bridal gown designed for Audrey Hepburn by the Fontana Sisters for her planned marriage to James (later Lord) Hanson. Whilst Audrey was filming ‘Roman Holiday’ with Gregory Peck in Rome, she approached the Fontana sisters to ask them to make her bridal gown. Signora Micol Fontana said that the 23 year old Hepburn was “young, fresh, on top of the world. Audrey wanted complete discretion and had lots of fittings”. Some weeks later when Audrey called off the planned wedding to James Hanson she asked the eldest of the sisters-Zoe to give the dress away. “I want my dress to be worn by another girl for her wedding, perhaps someone who couldn’t ever afford a dress like mine-the most beautiful, poor Italian girl you can find.” Zoe’s search centered on a poverty stricken young Italian girl called Amabile Atobella. Amabile visited Rome just once to have the dress adapted by the Fontana sisters for her to wear at her own wedding to farm worker Adlino Solda with whom she remained happily married. Amabile said, “I have had a happy marriage, so the dress brought me luck”. After the even she carefully wrapped the dress in tissue paper and stored it away without disturbing it for decades. It was not until 2002, when Micol Fontana, the last survivor of the Fontana sisters traced the gown for a retrospective exhibition of their work, that it was rediscovered.
A Celebrated Auction
At auction the wedding dress was sold with a photograph of Audrey wear- ing the original Fontana gown and a letter from the vendor confirming the provenance. It was estimated to fetch E8000-12000 Lot 333. This once in a lifetime auction featured around 36 items of clothing as well as hats, belts and a fascinating group of letters in which she describes an early film break, her proposed wedding to James Hanson and the time spent filming “Roman Holiday.” The collection also includes stunning evening wear and a plethora of chic little black dresses. Auction contact: info@kerrytaylorauctions.com. Of course you all know that Audrey did get married twice once to Mel Ferrer and then to an Italian doctor, Andrea Dotti.
And so it is time to say goodbye to dear Audrey whose iconic style lives on in the hearts of all women who wish to achieve elegance, grace and distinction. Your amazing survival, your angelic quality and your legendary humanitarianism lives on forever in the hearts of us who admire your noble spirit. Your admirer, Polly Guerin

EDITH HEAD HOLLYWOOD'S DRESS DOCTOR

2009-12-08T08:29:00.000-08:00

EDITH HEAD HOLLYWOOD’S DRESS DOCTOR
My dear Edith: It’s been quite some time since I interviewed you in Hollywood at Paramount Studios, but I remember it as if it were yesterday. As you sat at your desk with your iconic page boy hairdo and bangs that fringed your signature dark glasses, I wondered what was behind the persona of one so revered in costume design history in America? After a long career that spanned from silent films to the Golden Age when Hollywood had fabulous films and fabulous clothes, and you dressed all the great stars, you garnered eight Academy Awards, more than any other woman in history. Over the years you became a highly-prolific designer, lecturer, producer of fashion galas, fashion editor and author. You truly personify an amazing diva, who infiltrated the hallowed halls of design without even an art portfolio to prove your worth. But herein is the tale of a young girl with a lot of luck on her side and an angel to guide her way.
LANDING A JOB AT PARAMOUNT In the matter of landing her first job at Paramount Edith admits the truth. In her book, “The Dress Doctor (Little Brown and Company) Edith recalls how it all came about. “During summer vacation, looking for a summer job, I answered a newspaper advertisement, which said the studio was looking for sketch artists to help design the clothes in a forthcoming Cecil B. DeMille epic called, “The Golden Bed.” Edith explained that she had been studying in the evenings at Chouinard Art School. “My daytime job as a teacher made it possible for me to attend classes at night and I thought that the pay as a sketch artist might be better than a teacher’s salary. I wrote for an appointment and received an answer: I was to be at the studio the next morning at ten, bringing sketches. That night I made the rounds at Chouinard and collected all the students’ best landscapes, seascapes, oils, watercolors, sketches, life, art, everything. Looking back, I cannot imagine doing such a thing and acknowledge this youthful and naive indiscretion with my late apologies.” When Edith showed the sketches to Howard Greer, the studio’s head designer he exclaimed, “I’ve never seen so much talent in one portfolio! Report tomorrow for work,” he said, “your salary will be fifty dollars a week.” Fifty dollars a week looked like a fortune to a schoolteacher earning fifteen hundred dollars a year.
DISCOVERING A FRAUD The next day Edith was sitting in front of a drawing board staring at a blank piece of paper on which she was to sketch evening dresses and riding habits. She recalls, “I sat there a long time. I’d figured I could fake it but…. “What’s the matter?” Howard asked. “Don’t know how to draw!” I admitted."But all those wonderful sketches in your portfolio!” he exclaimed. “Borrowed,” I said. It didn’t take long for Greer to realize that Edith didn’t have much talent. Oddly enough, for some reason Greer found the whole situation amusing and took Edith under his wing and taught her how to sketch and become a designer. Obviously, Edith did have a natural talent and learned fast. “From the first day at the studio, I was fascinated, enthusiastic and willing, but I hadn’t the least notion that I’d ever survive. I wonder why I did. Perhaps it was because I worked hard and was willing to tackle anything---paint polka dots on china silk butterfly wings for Peter Pan, paint shoes with printed patterns to match printed gowns to be worn by a famous film star.” Edith continued her studies at Chouinard at night and studied everything Howard Greer and his top assistant Travis Banton did.
THE BOTTOM OF THE TOTEM POLE Luckily, Edith was a quick student. Within six months, she could sketch in the style of Greer or in the style of Banton so that it was impossible to tell that someone else had done the work. Edith was on her way but at the bottom of the totem pole so designing for great stars was out of reach, but not for long. She recalls, “My first big assignment was to do the Candy Ball costumes for Cecil B. de Mille’s film, “The Golden Bed.” I drew girls dressed as lollypops, peppermint sticks and chocolate drops. Howard asked me if I knew how to the designs could be executed and I assured him they were simple. So he took the rather amusing sketches to show de Mille, who was known around the studio as The Great Man. He melted on the spot and promptly Okayed them. “Then came the crisis. I’d drawn very elongated girls with bodies like peppermint sticks and candy cane fingernails two feet long. Came the day of the shooting and, shortly after, came a blast from Mr. de Mille—who was never a patient man. The peppermint sticks had started cracking during the dance routine. Using real candy proved to be a mess, whenever the dancers got within a half a foot of each other, the candy would stick. From that day on, I’ve never drawn anything I could not make. Stardom as Hollywood’s celebrated costume designer was yet to come before she did some of the best dressed animals on the screen. Later when she became head designer for Paramount the roster of stars dressed by Edith Head reads like a veritable “Who’s Who” of Hollywood. Some of the great stars include: Katherine Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor, Olivia de Havilland, Dorothy Lamour, Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Shirley MacLaine, Julie Andrews and Faye Dunaway. Commenting about her career Edith stated, “Costume designers are not like other designers in the world, because through our magic we can change actors and actresses into the different roles they portray. We are a very specialized craft and tremendously important to the reality of the picture.”
EARLY LIFE IN MINING TOWNS Surprisingly, Edith Head began her career along dis-similar lines. A native Californian, her step- father was a mining engineer. “Of all the mining camps we lived in, this is the one I remember best, four miles out of a metropolis called, Searchlight, Nevada. I hated the loneliness of the desert, dreamed of cities, of playmates, of sounds, of people next door; but I loved it, too---the cactus and the greasewood that sprawled on the desert flow, the tiny yellow flowers of spring. My first patients were the local animals and pets who had to endure dressing up for my tea parties.” At some point the family moved to San Bernardino, California and received her BA from the University of California and MA at Stanford, specializing in languages. Subsequently she taught Spanish at the Bishop School in La Jolla and later in Los Angeles. It was while she was teaching that Edith began studying at night at the Chouinard Art School and the rest is history. She married once to fellow classmate Charles Head, but the marriage was short lived. Later Edith married set designer Wiard Ihnen in 1940 and their marriage lasted until his death in 1979. However, she continued to be known as Edith Head until her death. (October 28, 1897-October 24, 1981).
Dear Edith, Your legacy rises to the celestial stars. Your work on a wide span of motion pictures and television shows, your advice as The Dress Doctor, and your amazing rise to stardom as America’s first and foremost costume designer leaves me breathless with awe and admiration. I am, as always, your admirer, Polly Guerin.

THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR, NEVER A QUEEN

2009-11-19T07:24:00.000-08:00

REIGN OF CELEBRITY
The grand seductress, Wallis, Duchess of Windsor may never have succeeded to the British throne but her reign of celebrity can best be attributed to the period in which she was a conniving American socialite who married, as her third husband, Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, formerly King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom. The king's desire to marry a twice-divorced American with two living ex-husbands caused a sensation throughout the world, and particularly a crisis in the United Kingdom and the Dominions. This decision led to the King's abdication in December 1936 and all ears were pinned to the radio to hear the King decision to marry "the woman I love." After the abdication, the former king was created Duke of Windsor by his brother George VI. Edward married Wallis six months later after which she was formally known as the Duchess of Windsor, but never "Her Royal Highness." One wonders what was so special about this amazing Deco decadent woman to be able to capture the king's heart? Albeit she was a good style setter, she wasn't exactly a beauty. Perhaps it was her sexuality that pinned him down to her allegiance?
An Advantages Alliance
As a prominent figure in the privileged social set in Britain in the 1930s the reigning celebrity couple was Edward, Prince of Wales and his then-mistress Lady Thelma Furness. It is no doubt that the Prince met Wallis at various house parties when she was married to her second husband, Ernest Aldrich Simpson, a shipping executive and former captain in the Coldstream Guards. Wallis was ripe for a new assignation. For one thing, Ernest was beginning to encounter financial difficulties and providence played its opportunistic hand when Lady Furness was away in New York. Abetting Wallis' access to the Prince, before she left Lady Furness unwisely asked Wallis to look after Edward and indeed she did. While Furness was traveling Wallis wove her web of attraction and became the Prince's mistress ousting Lady Furness and alienating him from his former lover.
The Fatal Attraction
You've heard of the term 'fatal attraction.' Well, the Prince was so totally besotted with Wallis that he found her domineering and abrasive irreverence toward his position appealing. In the words of one biographer, he became 'slavishly dependent' on her. If one could look into Edward's upbringing, nannies at birth, shunted to private schools and absence of close motherly love one can perhaps understand the alienation from his family that developed in one so sensitive that he was willing to accept partnership with such a controlling woman. His courtiers became increasingly alarmed as the affair began to interfere with his official duties. Off they went with no concern for his official Princely duties to holiday in Europe. As was the custom of wealthy men, he showered Wallis with money and jewels but when Edward presented Wallis to his mother, at a party in Buckingham Palace, his father was was outraged, primarily on account of her marital history. What's more divorced people were excluded from court.
Romantic Crisis
By the time that Edward had ascended to the throne as Edward VIII after George V died, it became apparent to all concerned, the Court and Government, that Edward was determined to marry Wallis. One major setback was the Church of England that did not permit the re-marriage of divorced people with living ex-spouses, and Wallis already had two ex-spouses. Her marriage Edward would be her third alliance. They could get married in a civil ceremony, but the constitutional position was that the king could not marry a divorcee and remain as King. The marriage idea between the King and an American divorcee was extremely unpopular not only in the British Empire but also because Wallis was perceived as a conniving woman who was pursuing the King because of hsi wealth and position. Although Wallis under pressure by the king's Lord-in-Waiting, Peregrin Cust, 6th Baron Brownlow, was urged to renounce the King, and she did so in a press statement. The King, on the other hand realized that in order to remain the King, Wallis could not be Queen. Furthermore if the King were to marry Wallis, the government would be required to resign, causing a constitutional crisis. Under these conditions if the King wished to marry Wallis he had no option but to abdicate.
The Bitter End
No member of the British Royal family attend the wedding on Wallis and Edward and they were childless. Rumor has it that Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) remained bitter towards the Duchess of Windsor for her role in bringing George VI to the throne and for prematurely behaving as Edward's consort when she was his mistress. This attitude was mere speculation because Queen Elizabeth never voiced it publically.
So the celebrity couple reigned over friends and acquaintances throughout the world traveling with their gang of pug dogs and great amounts of travel luggage. One never knows whether Edward, the Duke of Windsor ever regretted his choice or how truly happy he was in the end.
There's is much more about Edward and Wallis' life together but I have touched on here only the segment of their amazing romance and his abdication. For more information contact www.theduke&duchessofwindsorsociety.org.