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Little Gloria... Happy at Last
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"Not even Hollywood in its heyday could have dreamed up a melodrama so electrifying as the one that swirled around 10-year-old "Little Gloria" Vanderbilt in 1934 when she became the object of a scandalous custody battle between her beautiful but poor, and none too bright, mother, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, and her rich, powerful aunt, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney whose own p
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Mass Market Paperback, 766 pages
Published
April 10th 1981
by Dell Publishing Co.
(first published 1980)
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Custody of the child Gloria Vanderbilt (and her multi million dollar trust fund) is battled over in court between her glamorous world-traveling socialite mother, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, and her extremely wealthy older aunt, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (artist and founder of the Whitney Museum of Art in Manhattan). It is the height of the Depression (1934) and no famous trial could be bigger or more satisfying to Americans than this poor little rich girl's plight (the wealthier lady won, but it
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This book is truly fascinating. I've read it at least three times and never get tired of it. There are so many different aspects to the story. The real life personalities profiled are colorful, to say the least. A must read for anyone interested in Gloria Vanderbilt, high society or sensational trials. The book is extremely detailed and well researched. There are times when it gets a little off-track, going into back stories of people who aren't that important to the main story. Over all it is a
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Rooting around my book shelves I came upon my copy of LITTLE GLORIA which I had always wanted to read. Especially since I loved Goldsmith’s book OTHER POWERS. We met Goldsmith in 2005 and she signed both of our books. So I thought I would give it a try even though I was not in the mood to start another long and heavy book. Especially one that was now some 34 years old.
It did not take long for the book to hook me with its subject and Goldsmith’s research and sense of detail for the book reads li ...more
It did not take long for the book to hook me with its subject and Goldsmith’s research and sense of detail for the book reads li ...more
Read this a few times because it's a fascinating look into the world of Gloria Vanderbilt as a child and the sensational headlines of the custody battle surrounding her. Little Gloria was a pawn in her mother's fight against her aunt Gertrude for custody after her father dies. Never understanding the reasons why she was being fought for she put all her love and trust into her childhood nurse Dodo, who was eventually sent away. In this book you get a real sense of Little Gloria's profound sadness
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You know Anderson Cooper, the news anchor? He comes from a once-famous family, the Vanderbilts. His mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, was the subject of custody battle that was front page news during the Great Depression. Little Gloria... Happy at Last is the story of that battle, and it is a very interesting tale.
Fighting over her were her young widowed mother Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, ...more
You know Anderson Cooper, the news anchor? He comes from a once-famous family, the Vanderbilts. His mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, was the subject of custody battle that was front page news during the Great Depression. Little Gloria... Happy at Last is the story of that battle, and it is a very interesting tale.
Fighting over her were her young widowed mother Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, ...more
My sister was enthralled with this story when it was on TV, either as a made-for-TV movie, or a miniseries (I can't remember which). I didn't see the show, but I was intrigued enough to buy the book. Evidently, however, not intrigued enough to actually READ the book until some 20 years later.
The book chronicles how the Vanderbilts made their fortune and became prominent in New York Society, and how the near-penniless Morgan twins, Thelma and Gloria, were swept up into that world. That aspect of ...more
The book chronicles how the Vanderbilts made their fortune and became prominent in New York Society, and how the near-penniless Morgan twins, Thelma and Gloria, were swept up into that world. That aspect of ...more
The early chapters are fascinating and a pleasure to read, but once the narrative moves to the legal proceedings, Goldsmith's text becomes almost as tedious as a trial transcript.
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Well written life story of Little Gloria Vanderbilt.
This book was a fascinating -- if overlong -- retelling of the custody case I only knew the barest bones of. I was aware, going into it, who won custody of Little Gloria, but now I understand what precipitated America's most famous custody battle.
It was mother vs. aunt, and no one comes off especially well.
AUNT: Gertrude Whitney, aka Auntie Ger, seems just as interested in keeping Vanderbilt money in the Vanderbilt family as she is in caring for the child. It isn't that she didn't want Little Gl ...more
It was mother vs. aunt, and no one comes off especially well.
AUNT: Gertrude Whitney, aka Auntie Ger, seems just as interested in keeping Vanderbilt money in the Vanderbilt family as she is in caring for the child. It isn't that she didn't want Little Gl ...more
What a surprise this was; until now, I did not know that Gloria Vanderbilt was "somebody" before her clothing and perfume lines. I found this to be a very interesting biography and am glad the library had a copy.
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Interesting
Detailed account of the trial. A bit too detailed, but it was a good read.
Very comprehensive.
Intriguing but overlong.
A strange child, Gloria Vanderbilt was caught between warring mother and aunt, with spiked interventions on occasion by grandmother. Why did Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney even want this child? Like many upperclass offspring, it was nannies and butlers who were her everyday companions and child-rearers in chief. Barbara Goldsmith probes the crazy court shenanigans as the ladies battled for custody, and reveals the less than stellar early path of the women who emerged to create madly popular jeans r
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A rather slow, but good read if one is interested in this type of subject matter. It shows how the rich lived back in the day and how Gloria Vanderbilt, Sr. was intimidated into giving up custody of her child, Little Gloria, to Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, the child's aunt. Lots of photographs of the mansions on 5th Avenue in NYC, and the "summer homes", all more ostentatious than the last. Interesting note: in the 70's, a Vanderbilt family reunion was held and their wasn't a millionaire among t
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This is such a juicy read. Not just because it tells the back story on Gloria Vanderbilt, and quite a story that is, but because it gives you a picture of the very very rich who created New York City. Along the way, learn fascinating details about how Gloria's family interacted with the Royal Family. You won't forget this one. Sex, romance, intrigue, tragedy, comedy, legal maneuverings, and it's all true.
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Dec 28, 2009
Valerie
added it
I really had no general opinion of biographies until I read this book. I had read several other biographies, and hadn't come away with such a bad taste in my mouth.
I read this because it was recommended to me, and frankly found it disgusting. Every detail that was revealed had me thinking more and more "What business is this of mine?" I think I did finish it, but it pretty much soured me on biographies. ...more
I read this because it was recommended to me, and frankly found it disgusting. Every detail that was revealed had me thinking more and more "What business is this of mine?" I think I did finish it, but it pretty much soured me on biographies. ...more
This book is chock full of details!!! It's comprised of mostly courtroom details but it's very compelling. It ends rather quickly and should be sold as a book about the case rather than anything else. I found myself getting frustrated at the idiocy of the judicial system during the trial and the incompetency of the lawyers and judges but alas it was a different time and values were different.
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This book should put paid to the notion that money makes you happy - for ever. Get out the Kleenex for poor Gloria's unhappy but nonetheless fascinating story. She was a survivor alright. Well written.
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The story of the custody battle over little Gloria Vanderbilt (yes, THAT Gloria Vanderbilt), interesting also for the life of the wealthy in New York at the time, and specifically the Vanderbilts.
Biography.
At one time I had my own personal copy I bought at a street fair in NYC. Shocking custody battle of heiress Gloria Vanderbilt/
A good telling of her story, but leaves out some important details. Assumes too much knowledge of the family history.
Sad Sad Sad
It's a sad story of the effects of neglect and immense wealth.
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an American author, journalist, and philanthropist. She received critical and popular acclaim for her best selling books, essays, articles, and her philanthropic work. She was awarded four honoris causa doctorates, and numerous awards; been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, two Presidential Commissions, and the New York State Council on the Arts; and honored by The New York Pub
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